National Institutes of Health

Description

Purpose. This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) solicits Research Project Grant (R03) applications from institutions/ organizations that propose to study the impact of human-animal interaction (HAI) on children's health and development and to test the efficacy of therapeutic uses of HAI with children.In 2008 NICHD and The WALTHAM Centre for Pet Nutrition, a division of Mars, Incorporated, entered into a public-private partnership to explore the interaction between humans and animals. The partnership encourages research on Human-Animal Interaction (HAI), especially as it relates to child development, health and the therapeutic use of animals with children and adolescents. This shared interest resulted in The WALTHAM Centre donating funds to NICHD to enhance NICHDs ability to support research in this field. The purpose of this FOA is to build an empirical research base on how children perceive, relate to and think about animals; how pets in the home impact children's social and emotional development and health (e.g. allergies, the immune system, asthma, mitigation of obesity); and whether and under what conditions therapeutic uses of animals is safe and effective. Mechanism of Support. This FOA will utilize the NIH Small Grant (R03) grant mechanism and runs in parallel with a FOA of identical scientific scope, RFA-HD-09-031, that solicits applications under the NIH Research Project Grant (R01) mechanism. Funds Available and Anticipated Number of Awards. The total amount of funding that NICHD expects to award through this announcement is $500,000 per year, $250,000 of which has been donated by The WALTHAM Centre for Pet Nutrition, a division of Mars, Incorporated, as part of a public-private partnership with the NICHD. The anticipated number of awards is 6-7.

Who can apply

• State governments
• County governments
• City or township governments
• Special district governments
• Independent school districts
• Public and State controlled institutions of higher education
• Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized)
• Public housing authorities / Indian housing authorities
• Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized)
• Nonprofits with 501(c)(3) status (other than higher education)
• Nonprofits without 501(c)(3) status (other than higher education)
• Private institutions of higher education
• For-profit organizations other than small businesses
• Small businesses
• Others

Contact

NIH OER Webmaster<br/>FBOWebmaster@OD.NIH.GOV<br/>
FBOWebmaster@OD.NIH.GOV