The American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) Foundation recently launched an aggressive $1 million campaign for laminitis research. The group plans to fund multiple studies that will help unravel the mysteries of this disease.

Also announced at the AAEP’s 57th annual convention in San Antonio, Texas, was the donation of $200,000 to the AAEP Foundation for Prascend, which is manufactured by Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica. The new drug is used for treating the clinical signs of Cushing’s disease, and the donation will help fund the first study, “Case-Control Study of Pasture or Endocrinopathy Laminitis.”

“This project is in response to AAEP members prioritizing laminitis as the most important disease requiring research,” says Wayne McIlwraith, an equine veterinarian at Colorado State University and a past AAEP president. “We are fortunate and very grateful that our long-time industry partner Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, Inc., and their new exciting product Prascend is willing to support research to help us help horses with this devastating disease.”

“Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, Inc. is very pleased to fund this continued research on equine laminitis,” says Dr. Jane Smith, director of the company’s equine division. “We truly value the work of AAEP and their Foundation and are proud to partner with them in this research effort.”

The “Case-Control Study of Pasture or Endocrinopathy Laminitis” project is already underway under the direction of recognized epidemiologist and equine vet  Noah Cohen at the Texas A&M University College of Veterinary Medicine.

Through the Laminitis Research Project, top equine researchers, AAEP members and horse…