Profile n°1 : Fanny Menuge

With Tiago Mendonça as her instructor, she started her M1 course on horse welfare and riding therapy.
For Master 2, she focused on the Frederic Gaillanne Foundation and more particularly on dogs.
The IRSEA did not hesitate to suggest to Fanny to go even further in her studies, by offering her to validate a doctorate and thus, to write a thesis. After a long reflection and questioning about her professional future, Fanny, encouraged by her colleagues, decided to spend another 3 years with us.

Her thesis is : Identification of the factors influencing the acquisition of the performance necessary for the work of guide dogs for visually impaired children: design of an optimization program.

The theme of her research is still focused on the foundation and the dogs, but she is more focused on the attachment bond with the foster family during the training of the dog.
In fact, the puppy is placed in a foster family around the age of 2 months, after weaning. Throughout its first year, the puppy will be at the side of the foster family who will teach it the rudiments of life in society. The 2nd year, he will start his education at school, from Monday to Friday, and will return to his foster family on weekends or during certain holiday periods. As soon as his training is completed, the dog is then placed with a child to spend the rest of his life.

Fanny is interested in the stress of separation from the foster family and the transfer of attachment that takes place in the dog as it moves from one family to another.

Parallel to her thesis, she is working on a project in collaboration with Carlos, which allows her to have no routine and to organize her working days according to the appointments, manipulations and research she has to do.