AKC Canine Health Foundation Announces Nearly $1.5 Million in Canine Health Grants

The AKC Canine Health Foundation (CHF), a nonprofit organization whose mission is to prevent, treat and cure diseases in all dogs, announces that 30 grants have been awarded in 2015 to researchers studying canine disease. These grants, totaling nearly $1.5 million, will continue to build on CHF-funded advances in veterinary medicine and biomedical science, impacting both canine and human health.

“The projects funded this year are a combination of innovative science and technology, and studies to address the immediate and practical medical needs of all dogs,” according to Dr. Diane Brown, CHF’s chief executive officer. “Research ranges from heritable disease, reproductive health, cancer and infectious disease, and includes projects to understand the needs and health of working dog populations, all with an emphasis on better health for dogs and their people.”

CHF administers annual health polls to provide real-time data on the concerns of dog owners and on unmet areas of need in veterinary medicine. Using this information, projects are chosen to build on the depth and breadth of CHF’s 20-year history of health research for dogs. Each grant awarded has specific aims to fill critical knowledge gaps in veterinary medicine, leading to better care options for both the common and the complex health issues of dogs. CHF also invests in training the next generation of scientists to address the health needs of dogs through its Clinician-Scientist Fellowship Program, awarding three Fellowships in 2016.

True to CHF’s mission, several of the newly awarded grants have a One Health emphasis where outcomes of the research project have the potential to benefit human, as well as canine health. One such example is the study of dogs with respiratory and skin diseases that live in the homes of children with asthma. Findings from this study will help unlock the complexities of these health conditions in both species.

CHF is committed to canine cancer research, and one such example is the funding of a $432,000 grant to better understand and prevent hemangiosarcoma, an aggressive and deadly form of cancer in dogs. This grant, awarded to Dr. Jaime Modiano, VMD, PhD, professor at the University of Minnesota, joins the American Boxer Charitable Foundation, the Golden Retriever Foundation, and the Portuguese Water Dog Foundation, thus emphasizing the impact CHF donors have in advancing collaborative research.

Funding for CHF grants comes from a number of sources, including: corporations, dog clubs and individuals who are committed to canine health research. Dog lovers are encouraged to make a donation to support healthy dogs by visiting www.akcchf.org.

The complete portfolio of new grants for 2015 can be downloaded in PDF format. Or, view and search all active and past grants in CHF’s full grant portfolio.

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Posted by chesliepickett on Feb 4 2016. Filed under Featured, Health & Training. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.