Found Animals offers Michelson Grants of up to $250,000 USD per year for up to three years of funding for research in pursuit of a single-dose, permanent, nonsurgical sterilization product or technology for use in male and female dogs and cats.

As a mission-driven and product-focused program, the Michelson Prize & Grants funds research based on merit rather than a fixed approval rate. To date, we have approved over 30% of proposals submitted and have committed over $14 million to 30+ approved projects across the globe.

Michelson Grant Funding Criteria

To qualify for a Michelson Grant, a proposed project must pursue a technology, mechanism, or pathway representing an innovative approach to nonsurgical sterilization. Investigators are encouraged to submit for "proof of concept" studies in cell culture or rodents (in certain cases), and/or in dogs and cats.

When developing a potential approach, applicants should consider the program’s goal of bringing to market a low-cost, permanent, nonsurgical sterilant or sterilants that will have a maximum impact in addressing populations of animals driving shelter intake. Proposed research is not required to generate results that meet all of the Michelson Prize criteria in order to be funded; however, strong preference will be given to projects with the potential to produce a prize-winning product or technology, and approaches must represent a significant improvement over existing products. We encourage applicants to review the process for applying for the Michelson Prize prior to submitting a letter of intent for a Michelson Grant, in order that the data obtained may later support a Prize application. Grant recipients are eligible to make claims for the Michelson Prize in the event that their research generates a product or technology that meets all the criteria.

Applicants should also take note of refined Michelson Grant funding criteria, updated in November 2014:

• Approaches targeting cells (such as hypothalamic neurons) inside the blood:brain barrier should not be proposed using rodent species, but instead should involve experiments using dogs and/or cats, since efficiency and safety of constructs crossing that barrier may vary by species.
• Approaches targeting cells (such as hypothalamic neurons) inside the blood:brain barrier must include preliminary data demonstrating that authors’ construct can reach the target and must demonstrate efficacy in inactivating/inhibiting/blocking it.
• Approaches to immunocontraception will not be accepted in proof of concept rodent models; rather, these approaches must be proposed using dogs and/or cats.
• Approaches to immunocontraception in dogs and/or cats must include preliminary data in these species showing an antibody and/or cellular immune response to the target antigen, some preliminary efficacy in suppressing reproduction, and basis for the hypothesis that the treatment will have a long-term effect in both males and females following a single injection.
• Approaches using targeted cytotoxins to destroy discrete populations of cells must demonstrate preliminary data (in vitro or in vivo) demonstrating targeting efficiency, toxin uptake, and effect.

The Michelson Prize & Grants is an international program open to any entity, including academic institutions, biotechnology firms, research institutes, and well-qualified individuals or groups. We encourage applications from scientists from a wide range of disciplines, including, but not limited to, biology, bioengineering, biotechnology, cell biology, endocrinology, gene silencing, immunology, materials science, nanotechnology, neuroscience, pharmacology, reproductive biology, and theriogenology.