LEXINGTON, Ken. — USA Equestrian Trust has awarded $55,000 in grants to help fund four projects by equine non-profits. The awards come on top of nearly $210,000 awarded in May for 10 projects by equine non-profits.

Since the inception of the Trust’s grants program, the organization has awarded more than $1.5 million in grants. The projects funded as part of the grants period ending in October were:

AMERICAN SADDLEBRED HORSE ASSOCIATION ($10,000) to help redesign its database of registered Saddlebreds, members, competitions and show results, as well as upgrade its website.

ARABIAN HORSE ASSOCIATION ($15,000) to assist in revamping its website to help the organization market and promote the breed.

SACRAMENTO AREA HUNTER JUMPER ASSOCIATION ($5,000) to offer a free training clinic to its members, who are entry-level exhibitors and low-budget owners. The money for this grant was allocated from funding reserved for Hunter/Jumper activities in California and Nevada.

USEF EQUINE HEALTH RESEARCH FUND ($25,000) for a research project at the University of California, Davis that is identifying novel drug therapies for the treatment of nervous system disease Equine Protozoal Myeloencephalopathy.

The Trust’s next application period will begin early this year. Equine non-profits wishing to make a request for funding during that application period will be required to fill out the online application form at www.trusthorses.org.

USA Equestrian Trust is a New York Not-for-Profit Corporation whose mission is to assist in preserving and/or enhancing the quality of equestrian sport in the U.S. Its objects and purposes are exclusively charitable, educational and dedicated to the fostering of equestrian sports. The Trust is a private foundation pursuant to the United States Internal Revenue Code of 1986.