As a Labrador retriever named Masa entered a pediatric hospital ward in Tokyo, children’s eyes lit up.
Masa is a facility dog, a specially trained animal that supports children hospitalised for extended periods or awaiting organ transplants. The dogs work alongside medical staff at a limited number of hospitals in Japan.
They interact with patients according to individualised treatment plans, offering moments of normalcy to children who rarely leave the ward.
Although facility dogs were introduced to Japan about 15 years ago, their use remains limited, largely because of cost.
In October, Masa visited the ward at the National Center for Child Health and Development, where children began playing doctor and interacting with him.
Three-year-old Rui Hiyama, for example, pretended to give him a toy injection while her mother, Saori, asked, “Are you feeling better?” Rui smiled and replied, “Yes.”
Rui has been hospitalised for nearly a year while receiving treatment for cancer. She took Masa for a short walk around the ward, holding his leash. “Even though she’s confined to the ward, she lights up whenever she plays with Masa,” Saori said.
The dog’s presence can also help ease fear during medical procedures.
“Masa is a hero,” said an 11-year-old fifth-grade boy, adding the dog helped him cope with tests he found frightening. On one visit, they played the balance game Jenga. When Masa pulled out a block, the boy shouted, “Wow!” in excitement.
Rui Hiyama spends time with facility dog Masa at the National Center for Child Health and Development in Tokyo on Oct 23, 2025. (Photo: Kyodo)
Masa’s handler, Ayami Gonnokami, is a certified pediatric nurse with 25 years of clinical experience. She works closely with doctors, sharing information at conferences on how and when to interact with child patients.
Gonnokami said some children close themselves off during painful treatments and distance themselves from medical staff and their families. “Even at times like those, Masa can just be there for them.”
Gonnokami tries to ensure that children spend a calm time with the dog. In one case, she said, a weak, bedridden child was able to walk after interacting with Masa.
Nobuyuki Yotani, head of the hospital’s palliative care department, said it is important to respect each child’s individuality within the many restrictions of hospitalisation.
“Time spent with Masa is a time when the child can return to being a child, without the attributes of illness,” Yotani said. “It contributes to improving their quality of life.”
Facility dogs such as Masa are dispatched by the nonprofit organisation Shine On! Kids. The programme began in 2010 at Shizuoka Children’s Hospital.
Since then, one dog has been placed at each of four hospitals in Tokyo and Kanagawa prefecture. The organisation plans to introduce a facility dog to Kobe Children’s Hospital in Hyogo prefecture in fiscal 2027.
Shine On! Kids aims to introduce facility dogs to all 15 pediatric cancer hospitals in Japan. However, funding remains a major obstacle. The annual cost for a single dog, including health care and personnel expenses, is about 10 million yen, and hospitals rely on donations to cover the expenses.
The organisation said it hopes to gather data on the medical effectiveness of facility dogs and lobby the government to include the programme in the medical fee system.