If you are all having issues with paying that much to fund the research, why not try something like fundraisers to help pay? Hosting things like a dog walk where people pay an amount like $20 (whatever an equivalent for you would be) to participate is a great way to raise money like that. All you'd have to do is find a place to do it, throw a cheap lunch together, and explain to people why it's a good cause. You can also encourage participants to raise extra money on their own to help donate.
Also, would it be possible to take donations at dog shows? You could explain to people that the money goes towards genetic HD research.
There's no reason the money for the research has to be placed souly on the owners of the dogs. This type of research benefits EVERY dog breed, because all research has to start somewhere. I'm not sure how feasible all this would be for all of you (I know this type of thing is very common in the US, though) but I figured I'd throw it out there for you, just in case.
