The American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) Foundation has approved 2015 funding of $300,320 for 25 equine organizations and special projects committed to improving the welfare of the horse.

The Foundation Advisory Council selected recipients from a group of applications and ongoing projects seeking continued foundation funding during its June meeting. These recommendations were ratified by the board in late July.

Among the initiatives receiving support are student veterinary scholarships and educational programs, important equine laminitis research, Equitarian workshops, unwanted horse programs, and professional and youth development.

New initiatives to receive funding include an exercise-induced pulmonary hemorrhage research planning summit, a key component of the AAEP’s recently announced Prescription for Racing Reform; the Thoroughbred Makeover and National Symposium, which promotes second careers for Thoroughbred racehorses; the 10th International Equine Infectious Diseases Conference Practitioner’s Day, organized by the University of Kentucky’s Gluck Equine Research Foundation to provide equine practitioners the latest scientific progress on a variety of infectious disease topics; the Equine Education Network, a youth and college-level development program being started by the EQUUS Foundation; and the 12th International Equine Colic Research Symposium, which will convene distinguished researchers from across the world in summer 2017 to share knowledge on equine colic research