Therapy donkeys are helping mentally ill patients recover at a hospital on the outskirts of Paris

At a psychiatric hospital on the outskirts of Paris, therapy donkeys play an unusual but structured role in helping patients manage their mental health conditions as part of France’s public healthcare system.Within the Ville-Evrard hospital complex in Neuilly-sur-Marne, 19th-century farm buildings and wooded surroundings provide a calm setting for animal-assisted therapy. Patients walked five donkeys on Friday, grooming them and caring for them, with some cleaning their hooves and others ending the session with hugs, the Associated Press reported.“When you take something to help you relax… the effect is exactly the same,” said patient Nathalie, 60. “I call it animal medicine. It brings relief. You don’t think about anything else.”Patients attend these sessions free of charge as part of treatment funded by the public health system. They are usually paired with a donkey (Nono, Pitou, Oscar, Manolo or Malraux) and gradually learn the behaviors of each animal.Audrey Seffar, a nurse on the ward, said the program has made noticeable progress in some patients. “At first, she was reluctant to get off the bus (for the physically challenged). But with encouragement, she gradually did it,” she said. “Animals act as mediators.”Another patient, Jerome, 52, said the treatments helped reduce isolation. “It helps me in my daily life to talk to people and participate in activities I wouldn’t normally do,” he said.Launched in 2016, the animal therapy unit was officially recognized as a health care service in 2022 and currently includes nurses and volunteers. It has expanded from donkeys to include guinea pigs, chickens, goats, tortoises and rabbits.Staff say the approach supports people with anxiety, depression, autism and schizophrenia by improving mood regulation and social interaction. “Donkeys are my best colleagues,” one nurse said at the end of the session.