Funding Work on our Four-Footed Friends

Most funding for scientific studies comes from government agencies, which means most science must somehow follow priorities set by those agencies. Usually that works well enough: whatever needs studying eventually gets studied, because somewhere an agency recognizes the need.

In U.S. science, there's an odd exception to that premise. No agency concerns itself with the medical problems of pet animals. If it's a disease of cattle, sheep, or even honeybees, the Department of Agriculture would be interested. If it's an animal sickness with implications for humans, then the National Institutes of Health would write the check. If it affects the top predator in an ecosystem, then the National Science Foundation would consider the proposal. But if it gives your beloved golden retriever the sniffles, don't call Uncle Sam.

That, at least, is the rather gloomy (and surprising) picture I draw from an article in a recent issue of The Scientist, a biweekly newspaper aimed at professionals in the sciences. According to author Judy Henderson, veterinary medical research for companion animals is hard to finance. The best source of support seems to be a private foundation in Englewood, Colorado.

The Morris Animal Foundation is not named after advertising's famous finicky cat, although pet food was the source for the foundation's money. Veterinarian Mark L. Morris developed Prescription Diet canned foods for cats and dogs, then sold the rights to his product to Hill Packing Co. in 1948. He established the foundation with the royalties earned by his pet food, and the endowment grew over the next twenty years until the packing company was sold.

Veterinarian Morris believed the funding agencies had left a severe gap in medical research on companion animals, and the board now supervising the foundation he started believes the gap still exists. However, they have extended the scope of acceptable study animals beyond the original cats, dogs, and horses. Among the 62 studies funded by Morris during fiscal year 1991-92, two considered ferrets, three covered llamas, and two dealt with problems of mountain gorillas. African wild dogs and caged birds each got one funded project; the rest all were for one or another of the original three, mostly dogs or cats.

Research supported by the foundation has produced some payoffs over the years. One of the more conspicuous was the groundwork leading to a vaccine for feline leukemia virus. Another success based on Morris Foundation funds is a diagnostic test for canine parvovirus. Even though the research funded by the Morris Animal Foundation should be of direct benefit to animals, it is not uniformly welcomed by animal rights organizations. While the Humane Society of the United States has had no complaints about the foundation, according to the society's vice president for companion animals, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals does object to the foundation's studies. PETA is opposed to all forms of research on animals, even when animals are the beneficiaries.

The Morris Animal Foundation disburses more money than it earns, because other organizations take advantage of its established system and rigorous review procedures to handle grants for them. (Kennel clubs, for example, give money through the foundation for research on dogs.) Money from these sources has enabled the foundation to support research on problems other than infectious diseases. Current new directions include studies on congenital defects, which often accompany desired traits in purebred animals, and on behavior, since unacceptable behavior is the most common reason for people to give their pets to animal shelters.

With companion animals playing such an important role in so many people's lives, it is odd that a private agency leads in funding medical research for pets. One recipient of a Morris Animal Foundation grant thinks it's a matter of modern politics---Fluffy and Fido can't reach Congress. Pets---or pet owners---need to be represented by lobbyists. Until then, it's only Morris to the rescue.