A warm bowl of chicken soup is the best comfort food when you are feeling under the weather. Chicken soup is delicious and has many health benefits. Research has also shown that it has healing properties. Vitamins, minerals, and collagen found in animal bones are excellent for our immune system and gut health.
You may not be aware that chicken soup and other bone-based broths can also be great for your dog. You can make delicious broths for your pet and yourself with a few tweaks. Broth can be a great way to help your dog eat better, make him feel more energetic and help with any other problems that may arise as he gets older.
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Ollie (@myollie), Mar 24, 2019, 3:01 PM PDT.
What is bone broth?
Bone broth is a liquid that contains brewed bones and connective tissue. It sounds gross, but we’ll keep you on the right track!
For bone broth, you can use chicken, cow, or fish bones. The bones can be boiled in water and vinegar, which will release nutrients from the bone marrow. It also helps to dissolve other tissues in the water.
Bone broth can be confused with chicken or beef stock. The only difference is that bone broth simmers longer than traditional stock. To get the best collagen and nutrients, some people allow the bones to simmer for 16-24 hours.
To enhance the flavor of the broth, vegetables and herbs are often added. People and dogs may prefer certain types of broth or certain flavors. People who make broth will often have a favorite recipe.
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Here are 7 easy steps to make bone broth that is dog-friendly
Do not let the long cooking time intimidate you. Making bone broth is easy and affordable. You can make large batches of bone broth and freeze small portions for your dog. This will save you time and ensure that you always have enough.
I have adapted my favorite bone broth recipe so that both my dog (and I) can enjoy it. I had to make two pots before this recipe was created. This allowed us to each have our own broth.
To ensure safety for my dog, I have removed garlic and onions from my recipe. Although onions are not recommended, some research shows that garlic can be beneficial if used properly. Personally, I do not add garlic to the broth or soup that I prepare for my dog.
1. Get your ingredients and equipment together
1 whole chicken (5 to 8 pounds)3-4 medium-sized carrots (about half a dozen)3 stalks celery (about half of a dozen)10-12 cups water8-12 quart slow cooker or stockpot with similar capacity10-12 cups of water8-12 cups fine mesh strainer2 bowls or pots to strain the broth into
2. Put ingredients in the stockpot or slow cooker
Mix the veggies, chicken, herbs, salt, and water. Cover the vegetables with the water. If you are using a slow cooker or pot, be careful not to fill it with too much water.
3. Allow to simmer for between 12 and 24 hours
Waiting for the bone broth is the hardest part. I love using the slow cooker to let the broth simmer overnight. You must be home when the stockpot is on the stove. Also, make sure your smoke detector works. Safety first! The bone broth will make your house smell wonderful while it is cooking. My dog will be able to smell the broth and ask me for it if I simmer it during the day.
4. Strain the liquid
Once the liquid has cooled, grab your second pot. Use your fine mesh strainer to strain the liquid into a clean bowl or pot. You don’t want to burn or spill the hot bone broth. You’ll find your chicken meat, bones and all the vegetables in the original pot. When I make chicken soup, I take out the carrots and chicken meat. At this point, I throw out the celery and herbs as well as the chicken bones. Celery and herbs become mushy and unappetizing by this time.
5. Let the bone broth cool off
The fat will rise to the surface as the broth cools. This fat is not good for dogs so it will be easy to get rid of in the next step. Some of the fat may be saved for later use in the kitchen. You can discard the fat along with your chicken bones, herbs and celery if you don’t want it.
6. Reduce the fat
Now you should see a layer of solid fat on top of your bone broth. This should be easy to remove with a spoon. It should appear that your bone broth is jello-like. Your broth will have more collagen if it is more firm and jiggly. It doesn’t matter if the broth isn’t jiggly. You may need to cook it longer next time, or add more bones. The most collagen is found in the neck and back of chickens. These parts can be requested from a butcher if you need more broth. The meat is not necessary to flavor the bone broth. You can use bones from rotisserie chickens or roasted chicken bones or ask your butcher. To make a dog-friendly soup, we will use the chicken flesh in this recipe.
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7. You can make soups with your bone broth for your dog and yourself.
This step can be skipped! You can either let your dog eat the broth, or add it to his food to make it more appealing. We recommend that you add some broth to your dog’s food the first few times.
A “Pup Cup” is one of my favourite things to keep in my freezer. You will need to chop the chicken breast and carrots, as well as fresh parsley. This mixture looks almost like chicken soup, but without the noodles. The soups are then poured into 4-ounce food storage containers. I freeze them for when my dog needs it.
When making soups for people, you should remember that this bone broth was not salt added after cooking. You might need to add a little salt to make it more appealing to your taste buds (or not). This broth can be used to make any soup recipe that calls for chicken stock or broth.
Four different ways to make bone broth
Although the above recipe is my favorite and receives rave reviews from my dog, it is not the only way to make healthy and nutritious broth. Some dogs may be allergic to chicken, so they should not eat broth made with chicken bones or meat. These are great alternatives and nutritious additions.
1. Beef Bone Broth
This is a quick recipe for beef bone soup from Darwin’s Natural Pet Products. They make it easy and offer great suggestions for vegetables and herbs to enhance the flavor. You can try a variety of combinations to find the one that works best for you and your dog.
2. Mushroom Bone Broth
Some mushrooms are toxic for dogs, but only a few of them are. Other mushrooms can be a great addition for your dog’s diet. This recipe includes both bones and mushrooms, which gives your dog the ultimate health boost.
3. Fiskessuppe
This is a fancy way of saying a bone broth using fish bones as the base. You can use my original recipe, but you will need to substitute the whole chicken for about 4-5 pounds of fish bone, including the tails, heads, and trimmings. It is possible to start with a smaller batch. Dr. Suzi Berber explains all the steps in her article for Animal Wellness Magazine.
4. Broth Boosters
You can give your pet a nutritional boost by adding different things to bone broth. I love to add roasted butternut squash and pumpkin to my blender along with a few mugs of broth. You can make it as thick or as thin as you want, but squash and pumpkin are high fiber foods so you shouldn’t feed your dog too much. Also, don’t give your dog butternut squash soups that you bought in stores (or any homemade family recipe) because they contain onion and nutmeg. These are toxic for dogs.
Bone Broth Benefits
Sharing a tasty bone broth with your dog is not enough. Here are five reasons to give broth to your dog.
It helps maintain a healthy digestive system, particularly for dogs with digestive problems.
The Ollie blog aims to help pet parents live healthier lives with their dogs. MyOllie.com is a great place to find out more about our human-grade, fresh food.
Did you miss our previous article…
https://www.topdogadvisor.com/15-easy-homemade-dog-treat-recipes-2/
