A grand opening celebration for the University of Kentucky’s (UK) Equine Reproduction Facilities was held Feb. 2 at UK’s Maine Chance Equine Campus. The celebration recognized the generosity of supporters who funded the remodeling.

The remodeled facilities, consisting of two state-of-the-art barns with laboratories, will help UK’s Maxwell H. Gluck Equine Research Center faculty develop the best equine reproductive research program in the country and give the Center, an affiliate of UK’s Ag Equine Programs, better opportunities to match the signature equine industry it serves. The mare facility and separate stallion facility will be used reproductive health studies. Laboratory facilities have been constructed for handling semen, embryos, and reproductive tissues.

Lexington is often viewed as the epicenter of the state’s signature equine industry, and as such, reproductive health is of top concern to industry stakeholders.

"This reproductive lab is evidence of the vision of many stakeholders who encouraged UK to provide research worthy of what is arguably the Thoroughbred reproduction center of the world," said Nancy Cox, associate dean for research at UK’s College of Agriculture, Kentucky Agricultural Experiment Station director, and administrative leader for UK Ag Equine Programs. "We are fortunate to have the leadership of Dr. Mats Troedsson (DVM, PhD, Dipl. ACT, ECAR, chair of the Department of Veterinary Science and director of the Gluck Equine Research Center) and his new team of reproductive researchers to implement this vision in this 21^st century facility