Vet-AI (Joii Pet Care) and Zoetis have partnered up to test how the use of a Quality of Life tool, the VetMetrica™ (VM) questionnaire, impacts conversations between owners and their vets in real-life scenarios.

The VM questionnaire was created by the University of Glasgow, and it’s been embedded into an app created by Zoetis, called Animal Research Tool. 

Dog owners will complete the QoL questionnaire on their phone, and receive a QoL score and an alert message, if the score is below the threshold.

Owners and their dogs are recruited via the Joii Pet Care app and checked for eligibility. All dogs, whether or not their results produce an alert for low QoL, will be checked by their physical veterinarian.

This study has been approved by the Ethics Review Board of the RCVS under the reference:  2024-108-Chapman.

Benefits of Participation

• Contributing to Science 

Your participation will help improve quality of life assessment tools and potentially advance early disease detection and treatment in veterinary medicine.

• Better Client Engagement 

Have more discussions about quality of life with your clients so they understand the benefits of being proactive in health prevention.

• Study reward

Vet Participants who complete the study questionnaires (health assessment, OA checklist and feedback questionnaire) will receive £15 Amazon voucher as a thank-you for taking part.

Study objectives

Objectives:

1. Validate VetMetrica QOL Scores:
   • Assess associations between VetMetrica scores and veterinary clinical health assessments, with a focus on osteoarthritis (OA), in real-life scenarios.
2. Enhance User Experience:
   • Gather feedback through owner surveys and veterinarian interviews.
3. Promote Improved Communication:
   • Evaluate how VetMetrica enhances discussions during consultations.

Study Summary

This study aims to check how well the alert system in VetMetrica™ (VM) works. VM is an online tool that helps dog owners assess their pet’s quality of life by answering a set of questions. The tool creates a report showing how a dog scores in four profiles: Energetic and Enthusiastic, Happy and Content, Active and Comfortable, and Calm and Relaxed. If the overall score suggests that something might be wrong with the dog’s health, the tool sends an “Alert,” encouraging the owner to take their dog to the vet for further evaluation.

Background 

Various studies done previously on quality of life assessed by owners show that there is a discrepancy between owner assessment of quality of life and the real health status of their dogs (Davis, 2020; Rodger, 2021). This highlights the potential for VetMetrica to draw attention to issues unperceived by owners and promote communication with veterinarians and further diagnostics. This could lead to chronic conditions being diagnosed and treated earlier if the alert  leads to actions being taken.  

Hypothesis and Methodology

We hypothesise that VetMetrica™ can reliably detect health-related quality of life issues that may not be immediately apparent to owners, particularly in relation to OA. This study will recruit 510 dogs from the Joii database and direct them to their first-opinion practices across the UK. Dogs will be categorised into three age groups (2-4 years, 5-7 years, and 8-10 years). Participating owners will complete the VM questionnaire before their dog’s in-person veterinary consultation. All dogs, regardless of their alert status, will undergo a clinical examination, during which veterinarians will review VM scores and complete a health assessment, including an OA checklist. No definitive diagnosis is needed, just an expert opinion on what might be impacting the dog’s QOL, which will be collected via the questionnaire filled out by the vet during the in person consultation. Follow-up surveys and interviews will be conducted with both owners and veterinarians to evaluate the usability of the VM tool and its impact on communication during veterinary consultations.

Inclusion criteria

• Dogs aged 2 to 10 years.

• The owner’s first language is English.

• Owner comfortable using a smartphone and apps.

• Owner available to attend the vet visit and complete all surveys (same owner must complete all steps).

• Vet is willing to complete the questionnaire following in-person consultation.

Exclusion criteria

• Dogs diagnosed with chronic conditions (any illnesses that require continuous medication to control the symptoms)

• Dogs on long term medication prescribed by their vet. (Routine parasite control, other preventives and nutraceutical supplements are acceptable)

Study Design

This is Prospective, Cross-Sectional Study

• Conducted across first opinion practices in the UK.
• Recruitment via the Joii app

Dogs who needed to go into practice for reasons other than the study

510 seemingly healthy dogs to complete the study:

• 2-4 years: 150 dogs
• 5-7 years: 150 dogs
• 8-10 years: 210 dogs

All dogs need to be seen in person, regardless of producing an alert message or not.

The owner will contact the practice.

They will:

• Book their in person appointment: this should be for a reason other than the study, for example, vaccinations or a health check.
• Inform you that they hope to take part in the study and need the practice to support them.
• Give permission for the practice to share the dog’s clinical history with Vet-AI.

The practice receives information about the study. 

Vet-AI will email you and direct you to this page for more information.

You can also review our presentation with summarised information here.

When you feel you have enough information to make a decision as to whether or not you want to support the study, you can move on to the next step.

The Practice makes a decision

Please inform us of your decision by emailing us back once you receive the patient history request from the email address [email protected]

If you are willing to take part with your client, please provide us with:

• the date and time of their appointment
• the full clinical history of their dog who is taking part
• ask the vet who will be doing the in person appointment to access the study’s Consent to Participate so they can formalise their participation. Alternatively, the clinical director or practice manager can fill out the consent on behalf of the vet.

QoL report

Once the owner fills out the VetMetrica questionnaire in the Animal Research Tool app, a report will be produced. If the dog scored a low QoL result, an alert will be produced directing the owner to seek veterinary attention.

We will send you the report and ask that you attach the pdf file to the dog’s history, just like you would do with lab test results.

The vet then is able to read it just before the in person consultation.

The report includes an explanation of the results and a graph showing the scores in each of the four key areas evaluated.

One of the objectives of the study is to understand how the knowledge of these results impacts on the conversations had with the owner.

In person consultation

This is the key step of this study.

The owner will come to the appointment with their dog. We ask that you address the main reason for the consultation, first and foremost. 

At the end of the consultation, the vet is required to answer a short questionnaire. Depending on the findings during the consultation, this could be 10 to 20 questions but should take no longer than 5 minutes to complete.

If possible, we ask that this questionnaire is answered on the owner’s phone. If this is not possible, here is a link to the same questionnaire on a different platform.

You can also find the questionnaire flow here if you would like to familiarise yourself with the questions and the flow.

Vet feedback questionnaire

Within a day or two of the in person consultation, we will send the vet completing the in person assessment questionnaire, a feedback questionnaire.

This will be sent directly to the vet’s email and therefore we ask the vet that they provide this information when prompted to do so in the in person step.

This questionnaire includes questions about their experience and how the QoL report impacted the flow of the consultation.

Study Reward

Once the feedback form is completed by the vet, they will receive a £15 Amazon voucher as thank you from the study team by email. This will happen within 2 weeks of completing the feedback form.

Telephone interview

This is an optional step, which you can opt out of while answering the study’s consent form.

Only 10 vets will be selected. The interview will last between 20 to 30 min and you will be asked questions about your experience.

Study Information sheet, FAQs and Consent to Participate document

Study Consent to Participate for Vets

In Person Vet Assessment questionnaire

Vet Feedback questionnaire

Study Summary presentation

In-person assessment – questionnaire flow 

What is VetMetrica™?

• A web-based questionnaire designed to assess a dog’s health-related quality of life (HRQL).
• Developed by the University of Glasgow
• Owners complete the 5-minute questionnaire which provides instant QOL insights.

What does it do?

The tool generates a HRQL profile in 4 domains: 

• Energetic/Enthusiastic
• Happy/Content
• Active/Comfortable
• Calm/Relaxed. 

A composite score is calculated from the sum of the different domains. This can trigger an “Alert” if negative, helping to detect potential health issues even in seemingly healthy dogs.

Discussing the “Alert” should facilitate better communication between vets and pet owners.

What does taking part involve?

For Owners:

1. Fill out the registration form
2. Attend the eligibility call with the Joii team
3. Contact their practice:
   • Book an appointment (for a reason not related to the study) within 7-10 days from the eligibility call
   • Give permission for the practice to share the dog’s history with Vet-AI
4. Review the study’s T&Cs and complete the consent to participate form
5. Download the ART app and fill out the VetMetrica questionnaire (within 6 days of the appointment)
6. Attend the in person appointment
7. Fill out their feedback questionnaire
8. Telephone interview (10 participants out of 510)

For Vet Practices:

1. Speak to the owner when they contact the practice:
   • Book an appointment* for a reason not related to the study
   • Agree to share the dog’s history with Vet-AI (make note in dog’s file)
2. Review the information Vet-AI will send you by email
3. Read the study’s T&Cs and complete the consent to participate form online (Clinical director, Practice Manager or Vet who will do the appointment)
4. Send the dog’s clinical history to Vet-AI and confirm the date of the appointment
5. Attach the QoL report (produced by the ART app) to the dog’s file once received. We will send this to you.

*Depending on the length of the appointment the owner needs to make, you may advise the owner that a double slot is needed if you feel the vet needs more time to deal with the study requirements.

For Vets:

1. Review the study materials 
2. Review the QoL report before the consultation (we will send this to the practice and it should be attached to the dog’s clinical history)
3. Conduct the In-person appointment
   • Perform any duties related to the reason for the consultation, including a routine physical and orthopaedic examination
   • Fill out the In-person questionnaire*
4. Fill out the feedback questionnaire
5. Receive your thank you (£15 Amazon voucher)
6. Telephone interview (10 Vet participants out of 510)

*Ideally, this should be done on the owner’s phone, but it can also be done via an external link we will provide you with.

Why are you running this study? 

The purpose of this study is to see if there’s a connection between scores from a tool that evaluates Quality of Life (QOL) and how healthy a dog is during their normal vet check-up, understand what vets and pet owners think about the QOL tool through surveys and chats and find out if using the QOL tool helps vets and pet owners communicate better.

Why will you ask me questions? 

We need to ask questions to get some background information about the pet and their health in order to understand as much as we can about them and make sure they are eligible for the study. We will do this through Joii app questionnaires or via links we will send directly to you or make available on a website dedicated to vets. We might also ask you questions via a telephone interview. 

Do I have to pay? 

You do not have to pay to take part in the study. 

What will happen to the results of the study? 

We expect the results of this study will be published in peer-reviewed journals. All answers to the questions will be kept strictly confidential and anonymised. Results from the study may be printed in veterinary journals and also in the non-veterinary press, but neither you, your practice nor the pet will be identifiable from any published work. 

Do I have to be a Joii customer to participate? 

No. You don’t have to register with Joii. The owner may ask you to complete the vet assessment and OA checklist on their phone using the Joii app though. If you don’t want to use their phone, you can use separate links we will provide you with. 

Will I be able to give advice on my client’s pet’s health? 

Yes. We expect you to do the consultation as you would normally do and address any concerns the owner presents you with as per your normal way of working. The assessments for the study should reflect what you did in the consultation. You can advise any products that are necessary, and administer medication or preventative products as you deem necessary

What happens if I don’t receive the report for my client’s dog?

If you don’t receive the report before the consultation, we ask that you email us at [email protected] reporting the issue as soon as possible. Without you reviewing the report, the client cannot take part in the study.

What happens if I or my client forget to fill out the questionnaire during the in-person consultation?

The questionnaire that needs to be filled during the in-person consultation is an essential step of this study. Without this step being completed, we cannot give you or the client the study reward. If you were not able to do it during the consultation time, we ask that you do so using the alternative links provided on the website as soon as possible.

What happens if the client doesn’t have mobile data, or signal at the practice or if they have technical difficulties and I cannot fill out the questionnaire on my phone?

If any of the above situations happen during the in-person consultation, please remember that you can access the questionnaire for the vet assessment via the supporting website. We will also send you the links for these same questionnaires by email when we send you the report. The links can also be found in the study materials which we will send to you during the onboarding of both your client and the practice. In case of any problems or concerns, please contact our study team via [email protected] to report what happened and let us know how you left the situation with your client. This is important so we can understand the problem and then decide whether the study reward can be given to the client or not.

Is there a risk to my client’s pet? 

We are not testing a product, only finding out information about the pet and checking the impact the report produced has on how you and your client communicate. As the owner should be already going to the vet practice for a reason other than the study, we don’t anticipate that the study will create issues for the pet or put them under unnecessary stress. Should the client become worried because of the results given to them once they complete the QOL questionnaire in the ART app, and if they do not want to wait to discuss those concerns with you in practice, we offer 24/7 support via the Joii app. 

What happens if the pet passes away or needs to be euthanised during the study period? 

In the unfortunate and very sad event that the pet dies or is put to sleep during the study period we ask that you inform us as soon as possible and send us an up-to-date clinical history for that pet so we can fill out all the necessary paperwork that relates to Adverse Events. Please send this information to [email protected]. 

When do I need to contact you outside the scheduled questionnaires? How do I do this? 

We ask that you contact us via email ([email protected]) in the following circumstances: 

• The dog becomes unwell 
• The dog has had an accident
• You don’t want to take part anymore 
• You are having technical difficulties
• You are concerned about the pet’s health 
• The owner cancelled their vet appointment because they no longer need to go to the vets
• The practice had to change the date of the in person appointment
• You had trouble with the in-person questionnaire during your in person appointment
• Any concerns you may have about the study, the dog or their participation.

Will you share my data with anyone? 

If you give us your express consent to being contacted by the external company that will be running the interviews, and if you are one of the 10 selected to go through this step, we will share your contact details (name, phone number and email address) with Social Value Lab. If you do not wish to take part in the interviews, this will not affect your involvement in the study. 

We will share the study data with Zoetis in pseudo-anonymous form, meaning they will NOT receive any personal or identifying information of yours (name, phone number or email address). Only the Study Coordinator will be able to link your data in the Joii database and the Zoetis database.

How will the data be stored? 

Videos and clinical information obtained during the study may be retained for at least 5 years and possibly used in future research projects and for training and education purposes. All data will be stored in a secure database only accessible to people working on the study. You can have your data removed and permanently deleted without penalty should you wish so. 

What if I change my mind? 

If you decide you want to withdraw from the study, you may do so without explanation, and without penalty. In the event that you decide to withdraw from the study for whatever reason, please notify us by emailing us at [email protected]. 

Any information you have given can be removed from accessible files but any clinical information from assessments will be kept in the database for a period of 5 years. If you do wish for your data to be deleted from the study and not shared with the Study Sponsor Zoetis, please make sure to tell us that in your communication with us.

What is the purpose of the telephone interview?

The telephone interview is a way to collect qualitative data about your experience which will help the study sponsor, Zoetis, understand how the user journey can be improved and how valuable the tool is. The interview will follow a structured but fluid approach which will be led by your contributions. The interview is optional and requires that you accept the terms and conditions to share your personal contact details with Social Value Lab. Only 10 participants out of 510 will be invited for the telephone interview. Not taking part in the interview will not affect your reward for completing the study.

This study is organised in partnership between Vet-AI and Zoetis

If you have any questions about the study, please email us at [email protected]

For any questions about data collection by the Zoetis app and report, you can contact Zoetis directly at [email protected]

For any urgent matters, you can contact the Head of Clinical Trials Delivery at Vet-AI, Dr Marta Chapman MRCVS at [email protected]

Here is a presentation with information about the study. Vets in practice should read for a quick overview of what the study involves and what the requirements are.

QoL Dogs Study – Alert Study for Zoetis training materials for Practice Vets