The Canine Genetics Centre set up their Friends scheme in 2024, to give our supporters a way to make regular donations throughout the year. This helps our supporters spread their donations over the course of a year while giving the CGC a predictable income stream.
The CGC is appreciative of every donation it receives, regardless of size, and every single donation is put to the best use possible, helping us investigate inherited diseases in dogs. But regular donations are especially useful, because they enable the CGC to plan ahead and know which investigations they can commit to.
If you become a Friend and make a regular donation of just £5 a month, we will be able to collect DNA from six extra dogs every year that are affected with an inherited disease. If we can claim gift aid on your donation, the number of dogs we can sample increases to eight.
Every five new Friends enable us to sequence the whole genome of an affected dog and potentially find the mutation that is causing that dog’s inherited disease. And every ten new Friends enable us to validate, develop and launch a new DNA test.
During 2025 the CGC developed four new DNA tests, all for serious, debilitating or blinding diseases, some in close collaboration with researchers at other institutions. All these investigations were funded in part by donations from our Friends.
A donation of £5 a month will make a demonstrable difference to the number of dogs that we can help stay healthy and happy.
Every donation really does make a difference. If you can spare £5 a month or more, please become a Friend of the Canine Genetics Centre. For little more than the price of a cup of coffee today you will be making a very real difference to the health and happiness of the dogs of tomorrow.
