New owner questionnaire tracks canine atopic dermatitis signs between appointments

Dog owners who rated their pets' allergy signs on a new online questionnaire tracked the same improvements and setbacks that a veterinary dermatology specialist found on exam, according to a validation study published in Veterinary Dermatology.¹

The tool, called the Dog-Orientated Severity of Atopy Scale (DOSAS), was developed by researchers at the University of Nottingham School of Veterinary Medicine and Science, Royal Canin SAS and Vet Specialists Scotland. The authors present it as an at-home supplement to clinical exams for dogs with atopic dermatitis, a lifelong condition whose severity rises and falls.¹

When a dog's skin got better or worse between appointments 4 to 10 weeks apart, owner scores and the specialist's lesion scores largely moved together, with a correlation of 0.72 on a scale where 1 is a perfect match. The specialist graded skin with the Canine Atopic Dermatitis Extent and Severity Index, 4th iteration (CADESI-04), without seeing owners' answers.¹˒²

The questionnaire also gave consistent results. When 40 owners took it twice, 1 to 2 days apart, their scores closely matched. Over 4 months, the median score rose from 8 to 13 in 40 dogs whose owners said their skin had worsened and fell from 7 to 5 in 38 dogs that had improved. Dogs reported as unchanged showed no significant shift.¹

The authors propose 5 severity bands. A score of 0 to 4 indicates clear or almost clear skin, 5 to 9 mild disease, 10 to 14 moderate, 15 to 20 severe and 21 or higher very severe. They suggest the tool could support telemedicine, rechecks, clinical trials and earlier detection of flares.¹

How owners scored their dogs

DOSAS is modeled on the Patient-Oriented Eczema Measure, a questionnaire people with eczema use to log symptoms.¹˒³ Existing owner-reported tools for dogs, such as the Pruritus Visual Analog Scale (PVAS), focus mainly on itch.¹˒⁴

Owners report how many days in the past week they saw 5 behaviors, including their dog waking to scratch, chewing its paws or scratching until the skin broke or bled. Each is scored 0 to 4. Owners then check off any of 10 skin or ear changes, such as redness, greasiness, odor or swelling, at 1 point each. Totals run from 0 to 30, and a lower score means milder signs.¹

A sixth behavior question, about dogs pausing play or meals to scratch, was dropped after owners answered it inconsistently.¹

The survey drew responses for 333 of 668 dogs invited through the University of Nottingham's Itchy Dog Project. Most had a veterinary diagnosis of atopic dermatitis, while others had food allergies or recurring ear infections.¹

Owner scores matched exams less closely at single visits and for ear disease

At a single visit, owner scores agreed only moderately with the specialist's skin exam. Most dogs in that clinic group had mild disease.¹

Ear disease showed the biggest gap: owner scores agreed poorly with the 0-3 Otitis Index Score (OTIS-3) at one visit and moderately over time. The authors say the ear questions need refinement.¹˒⁵

The study was funded by Royal Canin and the University of Nottingham. Two authors are Royal Canin employees, and 1 is employed by Linnaeus Veterinary Hospitals.¹

References

1. Harvey N, Watson A, Laxalde J, England G, Gow D. Development and validation of a new online tool for monitoring clinical signs of canine atopic dermatitis. Vet Dermatol. Published online October 23, 2026. doi:10.1111/vde.70133
2. Olivry T, Saridomichelakis M, Nuttall T, et al. Validation of the Canine Atopic Dermatitis Extent and Severity Index (CADESI)-4, a simplified severity scale for assessing skin lesions of atopic dermatitis in dogs. Vet Dermatol. 2014;25:77-85, e25.
3. Charman CR, Venn AJ, Williams HC. The Patient-Oriented Eczema Measure: development and initial validation of a new tool for measuring atopic eczema severity from the patients' perspective. Arch Dermatol. 2004;140:1513-1519.
4. Hill PB, Lau P, Rybnicek J. Development of an owner-assessed scale to measure the severity of pruritus in dogs. Vet Dermatol. 2007;18:301-308.
5. Nuttall T, Bensignor E. A pilot study to develop an objective clinical score for canine otitis externa. Vet Dermatol. 2014;25:530-537, e91-e92.