You already check the sodium and ingredient list before you drink a broth yourself, so check your dog's the same way. Bone broth is fine for most dogs as a topper or a way to get water into a picky or recovering dog, as long as it contains no onion, garlic, or added salt, and you do not expect it to treat anything. The health claims attached to it (joints, gut lining, immunity) have no controlled evidence in dogs. This post covers what is actually in bone broth, the two ingredients that make store bought versions dangerous, a simple safe recipe, and how much to use.
Is bone broth good for dogs?
It is good for one thing with certainty: dogs like it, and a dog that likes something will eat and drink more of it. That has real value for a dog off its food after illness or surgery, a senior with a fading appetite, or a dog that does not drink enough in summer. It is also a pleasant way to rehydrate freeze dried food; we cover that in our freeze dried rehydration guide.
Everything else is a maybe. Long simmered broth contains gelatin (cooked collagen), some free amino acids, small amounts of minerals leached from bone, and whatever fat you did not skim. The amounts vary with the bones, the water ratio, and the cook time, and nobody measures them at home. The idea that this gelatin repairs a dog's gut lining or cushions its joints comes from rodent and lab work, not from dog trials. We looked for a controlled study of bone broth in dogs and did not find one. The Tufts Cummings School's veterinary nutritionists describe the whole supplement category this way: most pet supplements are used based on theory, anecdote, or data from other species.1 Bone broth is theory and anecdote.
The joint claim in particular does not survive contact with the evidence. Broth contains glucosamine and chondroitin in trace, unmeasured amounts, and the best available review of joint supplements in pets found glucosamine and chondroitin did not work for pain even at full supplement doses, while omega 3 fatty acids did.2 If joints are the goal, read our fish oil dosage guide instead. If you are curious about collagen specifically, our collagen for dogs post goes through what little canine data exists.
The two ingredients that make broth dangerous
Most broth made for people, and a surprising number of "pet" broths, are unsafe for dogs for two reasons.
Onion and garlic
The ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center lists onion, garlic, and chives together as members of the Allium family that can damage red blood cells and cause gastrointestinal irritation, and notes dogs are at risk depending on the amount eaten.3 The Merck Veterinary Manual explains the mechanism: sulfur compounds in these plants oxidize red blood cells, causing them to rupture. It states that toxicity has followed ingestion of raw, cooked, dehydrated, or granulated onions and garlic, so cooking does not make them safe, that clinical signs in dogs have followed 15 to 30 grams of raw onion per kilogram of body weight, and that garlic is three to five times more toxic than onion.4 Signs (lethargy, weakness, fast breathing, pale or yellow gums, dark urine) typically appear a few days after exposure, once enough red cells have broken down.4
The trap with broth is concentration. A stock simmered for a day with two onions and a head of garlic has all of it dissolved into the liquid. Onion powder and garlic powder, which are in almost every commercial human broth and bouillon, are the granulated form Merck specifically names. Read the label of any broth you did not make yourself. If it says "natural flavors" without specifying, assume onion.
Salt
Human broth is salted for human palates. The ASPCA warns that too much salt can cause excessive thirst and urination in dogs, and that signs of salt toxicity include vomiting, diarrhea, depression, tremors, seizures, and death.3 A dog will not get there from a splash of low sodium broth, but a small dog drinking a bowl of regular bouillon every day is taking in salt its kidneys do not need. Make it yourself or buy a product that lists sodium and lists it low.
A simple safe bone broth recipe
- Put 2 to 3 lb of raw beef, chicken, or turkey bones (marrow bones, necks, backs, feet) in a large pot or slow cooker. Cover with water by about two inches.
- Add a splash of apple cider vinegar if you like. It is traditional and harmless. Do not add onion, garlic, leeks, chives, or salt.
- Bring to a simmer and hold it low for 12 to 24 hours (a slow cooker on low is easiest). Top up water as needed.
- Strain through a fine sieve. Discard every bone and bone fragment. Cooked bones splinter, and small pieces in the broth are the most common way owners get this wrong.
- Cool in the fridge. Skim the fat cap off the top, especially for overweight dogs or any dog with a history of pancreatitis. What is left should set to a soft jelly.
- Portion into ice cube trays and freeze. Use refrigerated broth within about four days.
That is the whole recipe. Anything with more ingredients is a recipe for people that has been rebranded.
How much bone broth can I give my dog?
Treat it as a topper, not a food. The FDA's consumer guidance is that treats, snacks, and supplements are typically not complete and balanced and are not meant to be a dog's sole diet.5 Bone broth is unbalanced protein in water with a variable amount of fat, so it should stay a small share of the day's calories. A practical amount is one or two ice cubes (roughly 2 to 4 tablespoons) over a meal for a medium dog, scaled down for small dogs. If you are using it to coax a sick dog to drink, offer it warm and diluted with water, and follow your vet's guidance on how much the dog should be taking in.
Two cautions. First, the fat. Even skimmed, broth carries some, and fat is the trigger for pancreatitis in dogs prone to it. Second, calories. Broth is not free. If your dog is on a weight plan, count it, and see our portion guide for how toppers fit into a daily total.
Store bought bone broth for dogs
Some are fine. The label test is short: no onion, no garlic, no "natural flavors" that the company will not explain, sodium listed and low, and no added sugar or yeast extract. We hold anything in our supplements collection to that list and to the five checks of The Truva Standard, and a lot of broths do not make it. That is not a knock on broth. It is a knock on labels.
When to call the vet
If your dog has eaten broth, soup, or gravy that contained onion or garlic, call your vet or the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center at (888) 426-4435 even if the dog seems fine, because the signs come days later. See your vet if you are using broth because your dog has stopped eating or drinking; appetite loss is a symptom, and broth is a bridge, not a treatment. Skip broth entirely and ask first if your dog has had pancreatitis, kidney disease, or is on a low fat or low sodium prescription diet.
Sources
- Tufts Cummings School Clinical Nutrition Service (Petfoodology), "Dietary Supplements for Pets: Harmful or Helpful?," 2017. sites.tufts.edu/petfoodology
- Barbeau-Grégoire M et al., "A 2022 Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Enriched Therapeutic Diets and Nutraceuticals in Canine and Feline Osteoarthritis," International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 2022. mdpi.com
- ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center, "People Foods to Avoid Feeding Your Pets." aspca.org
- Merck Veterinary Manual, "Garlic and Onion (Allium spp) Toxicosis in Animals," reviewed 2024. merckvetmanual.com
- U.S. Food and Drug Administration, "'Complete and Balanced' Pet Food," 2023. fda.gov