How to Make Salmon Broth for Dogs (Easy Steps & Complete Guide)

There are a couple ways in how to make salmon broth for dogs. You can make a mash or you can create a clear broth. Either way, it will be extremely fatty when finished cooking, so you have to ensure you remove this before allowing your dog to eat it.

Regardless, these soup broths for your pooch are healthy and nutritious. They have tons of Omega 3s and 6s. Either broth can do wonders for your dog’s appetite, digestion and overall health.

Quick Overview

1. Precautions in Making Salmon Broth for Dogs – some tips and cautions
2. Salmon Fish Stock Recipe #1 – this incorporates a mash to produce a more substantial broth
3. Salmon Fish Stock Recipe #2 – this only uses fish heads and bones to create a translucent broth with seaweed

Are There Any Precautions in Making Salmon Broth for Dogs?  

Ensure you get fresh, wild-caught Atlantic or Icelandic salmon for your dog. Freeze it for three weeks to kill any parasites and neutralize toxins before preparing it. Unfortunately, salmon is notorious for the parasites that can live inside the flesh long after the fish has died.

Remove Skin & Bones

Always remove bones or skin before feeding any kind of salmon to your dog. These create a choking hazard and can negatively impact your dog’s health. What’s more, because the skin has a high fat content, you should prepare these separately as treats for your dog.

Avoid Long Boiling & Gills

When you do go to make either of the recipes below, don’t boil the soup for too long on the stove. If you do, it will create nasty taste that’s fishy. Likewise, when including heads into the broth, make sure there are no gills. This will flavor the soup in a bitter and unappetizing way.

Contact Your Vet with Doubts

If you have any doubts or concerns about the ingredients or feeding your dog salmon in general, show these to your vet. Discuss other options or ingredients to suit your dog’s tastes, preferences and diet. This will impinge on the age of your pooch and how active it is.

Salmon Fish Stock Recipe #1

This is a two part recipe that’s excellent for your dog’s thyroid, digestion, liver detoxification, skin, coat, brain and cognitive function as well as for bone and joint health.

Items You’ll Need

• For the Bone Base: Knife, Cutting Board, Measuring Cups & Spoons, Potato Masher, Large Knife, Mixing Bowl, Liter Mason Jar with a Tight-Fitting Lid, Muslin Cloth
• For the Stock: Large Stock Pot with a Lid, Knife, Cutting Board, Spoon, Freezer-Safe Containers

Ingredients

For the Bone Base

• 1 Salmon, whole fish – fresh and large
• 1 tsp Fresh Dill, chopped
• 1 tsp Fresh Parsley, chopped
• 1 Tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar

For the Stock

• Bowl of Fish Mash Base
• Water
• Stock Pot with a Lid
• Large Spoon
• Freezer-Safe Containers

Instructions

For the Bone Base

1. Chop the fresh dill and parsley on the cutting board and put into the mason jar.
2. Descale the fish, remove the heads and clean out the innards. Then put them into the mason jar.
3. Pour in apple cider vinegar.
4. Close the jar tightly, shake it and put it into the refrigerator for up to three days.
5. Sift the contents through a piece of muslin cloth in a mixing bowl, ensuring you completely remove heads, tails and fins.
6. Separate the bones from the flesh and put the flesh into the bowl with the remaining liquid.
7. Mash it up with a fork or potato masher until it becomes mushy.

For the Stock

1. Add the mushy salmon base into the stock pot and cover with water.
2. Put it on the stove on high heat and bring it to a violent, rolling boil and stir occasionally.
3. Reduce heat to a lower setting and simmer the fish stock for about 90 minutes; stir the broth every so often.
4. Take the stock from the heat and allow it to cool down.
5. Cover the pot and put it in the fridge for 30 minutes or until all the fat floats and hardens at the top.
6. Use a spoon to remove the fat and discard.
7. Portion the stock out into freezer-safe containers.

Salmon Stock #2

This is a faster way to make salmon stock. It incorporates only the heads and bones of the salmon. Remove any gills attached to the heads to prevent the stock from becoming cloudy or bitter. It’s also important to not let this particular recipe get to a rolling boil so it doesn’t taste too fishy for your pup.

Items You’ll Need

• Cutting Board
• Knife
• Stock Pot
• Measuring Cups and Spoons
• Veggie/Potato Peeler
• Fine Mesh Strainer
• Large Bowl with a Lid
• Large Spoon

Ingredients

• 4-6 lbs Salmon Bones & Heads (without gills)
• 2 Large Celery Stalks, chopped
• 3 Large Carrots, peeled and chopped
• 4 ounces Kelp, dried and unseasoned
• 1 tsp Dill, fresh
• 1 tsp Parsley, fresh
• 1 tsp Basil, dried or fresh

Instructions

1. Chop the dill and parsley; put them into the stock pot.
2. Peel the carrots and chop them along with the celery; then put all into the stock pot.
3. Cut the bones so they fit into the pot. Then add the heads and cover everything with clean, filtered water.
4. Place the pot over medium-high heat and bring it to a gentle simmer for about 15 minutes.
5. Reduce the heat, ensuring the water only steams not boils and simmer for another 15 minutes but no more than 30 minutes.
6. Remove the stock pot from heat and strain the debris thought a fine mesh strainer into a large bowl.
7. Cover the bowl and put it into the refrigerator until the fat floats and hardens at the top of the broth.
8. Remove the fat with a spoon and return the broth to the stock pot.
9. Turn the heat onto a medium setting, add the dried kelp and simmer for about 30 minutes, but no more.
10. Allow this to cool and portion the soup into freezer-safe containers.