On October 30, the National Cutting Horse Association (NCHA) Foundation announced an additional $50,000 in project support for the IGNITE Equine Clinicians Registry (ECR) Project and the Suspensory Ligament Study and encouraged others to participate to participate in supporting the project.
The initial support for the program's pilot study, granted in 2023, was the first contribution of Dr. Glenn Blodgett Animal Welfare Fund Foundation. This second round of funding, specifically dedicated to further supporting the IGNITE project, was generously provided by NCHA members and supporters of the NCHA Foundation.
“The NCHA Foundation is pleased to continue to support the IGNITE ECR project and looks forward to others in the equine community joining in to support this valuable endeavor,” said Julia Buswold, Director of the NCHA Foundation. “It cannot be underestimated how essential it is to facilitate fund research that will ultimately contribute to better treatment decisions for owners and equine physicians, while improving the longevity and quality of life of our equine athletes. Without the generosity of donors who share in our mission, we would not be able to make an impact of this magnitude, and for that we are incredibly grateful. We hope our commitment to the future of the industry will inspire others to join our efforts to support IGNITE.”
IGNITE is a coalition of passionate equine veterinarians and researchers with a shared mission to facilitate and promote the development of equestrian-focused projects and the next generation of best practice guidelines, supported by science, to positively impact health to have, welfare and longevity of performance horses. The ECR Project's successful pilot study consisted of experienced veterinarians following treatment protocols focused on knee and fetlock injuries treated with orthobiologics or regenerative therapies and their impact on the horse's return to performance events. Using an pioneering software system to catalog case information and track outcomes ensured that up-to-date information on trends, innovations and successes could be applied more quickly and confidently. Phase two of the project will focus on further collection and analysis of data on horses participating in the program, while participating veterinary practices continue to monitor the long-term effectiveness of selected treatment regimens.
“The IGNITE Group is grateful for the continued support of the NCHA Foundation. The funding will directly support our mission for this program, which is to create a platform to track the safety and outcome parameters of working horses following treatment of injuries with orthobiologic therapy. “The ultimate goal is to assemble a huge case sample of top equine veterinarians around the world to enable veterinarians and owners to make therapeutic decisions based on the largest, most current, and most comprehensive equine data set available,” says IGNITE- President Mark Revenaugh, DVM said.
