United States Eventing Association

The 2017 USEA Annual Meeting and Convention may have come and gone, but thanks to our friends at Ride On Video you will have the chance to relive the action as we share videos of the different sessions!

In 2013, the USEA approved the addition of a $1 starter fee to every USEA recognized event entry to fund Equine Medical Research. Dr. Michael Van Noy, who spearheaded this initiative, kicked off 2017 USEA Annual Meeting and Convention's presentation on USEA Funded Equine Health Research with a recollection of how this fee was added, including some of the driving forces behind the decision to implement and the challenges that were faced.

Katherine Cooper then discussed the current state of equine research in general, identifying key players that fund research, how much is typically spent on a single research grant, and the most researched topics. She explained that the USEA has been a leader in health and safety for both horse and rider in the past, and this is a cause which both generates positive PR and benefits our animals by ultimately increasing their longevity. Horses are not eligible for USDA funding and drug companies don’t fund equine-specific research because it doesn’t make financial sense.

The USEA donates the funds raised by the $1 per entry starter fee to Morris Animal Foundation for a number of reasons, including that the Equine Medical Research Committee is able to review the potential studies Morris has selected for funding and then can select from that list which studies they want to fund. They try to select a combination of studies that focus on the sport horse and then also donate to general health and welfare studies that affect all horses. That list is then approved by the Board of Governors.

In 2017, the Equine Medical Research Committee chose to fund studies on the following topics:

• Creating a New Tool to Study Wound Healing
• Filling in Gaps in the Horse Genome Related to Tendon Health
• Managing the Spread of Salmonella
• Investigating a New Treatment Strategy for Equine Asthma
• Improving Regenerative Therapies

About the USEA Annual Meeting and Convention

The USEA Annual Meeting and Convention takes place each December and brings together a large group of dedicated USEA members and supporters to discuss, learn, and enjoy being surrounded by other eventing enthusiasts. The USEA organizes multiple seminars in addition to committee meetings, open forums, and tons of fun! Click here to learn more about the USEA Annual Meeting and Convention.

The USEA would like to thank Adequan, Devoucoux, Nutrena, Charles Owen, SmartPak Equine, Rebecca Farm, Mountain Horse, Merck Animal Health, Standlee Hay Company, Auburn Laboratories, Eventing Training Online, Stackhouse & Ellis Saddles, Point Two, Professional’s Choice, Bit of Britain, Staples Inc., World Equestrian Brands, Gallops Saddlery, RevitaVet, CWD, H.E. Tex Sutton Forwarding Company, and Parker Equine Insurance, for sponsoring the 2017 USEA Annual Meeting and Convention.