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Lately I’ve been hearing a lot about bone broth. In a couple of my raw feeding groups, someone has shared that they are feeding a bone broth. After I read that a fellow blogger using a bone broth to moisten his dog’s morning kibble, I decided to find a recipe.
What is Bone Broth?
Just as it sounds, broth made after slow cooking bones in water and creating a broth. Yes, there’s a little bit more to it, but not much.
Why Bone Broth?
A new blogging friend uses it to moisten up his dog’s kibble (he feeds kibble in the morning and raw in the evening). It’s a nutrient-rich addition to any dog’s diet and has several benefits:
- Bone broth promotes a healthy digestive system.
- It’s going to be great for Rodrigo and Sydney’s joints because it contains gelatin, which is a form of collagen, as well as glucosamine, chondroitin, and other nutrients that support joint health.
- It acts as a liver detox, so if you feed your dogs kibble (no judgment, we all do the best we can), this is an affordable way to give your dog something better. Plus in this chemically laden world, our dogs can use a liver detox here and there.
- And bone broth is great for sick dogs because it provides them nutrition when they’re not eating.
Bone broth isn’t a meal. It’s to be used as a supplement for our dogs.
Making a Bone Broth for Dogs
I use a large slow cooker or a large pressure cooker to make my bone broth.
Ingredients
- Raw apple cider vinegar to bring out the minerals in the bones. I add 1/4 cup to an 8-quart pressure cooker or slow cooker.
- Bones of your choice; I prefer turkey legs, emu legs, marrow bones, and duck feet.
- Water enough to cover the bones in the slow cooker or pressure cooker).
- 5-7 cloves of fresh garlic (minced garlic in the jar is processed and shouldn't be used).
- 2 heaping tablespoons of golden paste; you can also add turmeric powder 10 minutes before the bone broth is done.
- OPTIONAL: kale, parsley, oregano, dandelion greens, and other healthy greens for dogs
To learn more about garlic, the benefits it offers to dogs, and the serving amount, check out this article on PetGuide.com. Please note that the amount of garlic I add to the bone broth is for 4 dogs with a combined weight of 200+ pounds.
Directions
- Add bones, raw apple cider vinegar, garlic and water to your slow cooker or pressure cooker.
- Add greens if you choose; I rarely do.
- If using a slow cooker, set for 20-24 hours; if using a pressure cooker, set for 4-5 hours. I cook my bone broth on our porch because the smell can be overwhelming.
- 10 minutes before the bone broth is finished, add turmeric paste or turmeric powder.
- When bone broth has cooled, fish out the bones; be sure to search for any small bones (I use my fingers).
- Transfer bone broth to freezer-safe containers and store in the freezer until needed.
Get Creative with Your Bone Broth
I don't just add turkey bones. I've added whatever bones have been available that have large enough bones that they can be fished out of the broth when it's finished.
Dogs Naturally Magazine suggests the following…
- Kelp
- Nettles
- Garlic
- Dandelion root *
- “Italian” herbs (sage, rosemary, thyme, oregano, basil, fennel seed)
- Astragalus Root *
- Burdock Root *
- Shiitake mushrooms *
*Strain these ingredients before using the broth
If you feed kibble and want to give your dog something more, try a bone broth and see how your dog likes it. Then come back here and tell me how your dog reacted to this yummy treat.
Is it safe to give my dog the broth I made for me? It has onion in it and I know that can be bad for dogs? Thanks for the great info!
Hi Gabby – I wouldn’t recommend it because of the onion. I add a teeny bit of garlic to my bone broth, but never onion, because I think it’s just too harsh.
But if you make it again and don’t add onion, you both can share it. I plan to make a batch this weekend.
How much ACV should I add? Using 4 large marrow bones. I’m not going to add any other ingredients since I’m doing an elimination diet with my lab who has food allergies. I just did a chicken test, now i’m trying beef. Thank you!
I add 1/4 cup of apple cider vinegar in an 8-quart pressure cooker or slow cooker. Have you been able to identify any allergens yet or are you in the beginning stages of your elimination diet?
It’s kind of a long story, but long story short, he had a rough start, and was confined for years until he was rescued. He never experienced the seasons of the outdoors, so when we got him, his skin was a mess. His vet put him on a LE diet which was so limited he couldn’t poo. So I switched him to California Natural Limited Bison which he has been eating for over a year, and he is doing well. A couple of weeks ago he had a upset stomach so I fed him boiled chicken and he did well. So it seems since he tolerated the chicken, it’s a good time to try another protein.
You are so lucky. All 4 of our dogs can’t handle chicken. Have you tried a digestive enzyme/probiotic? I also have a post up today for my review on Canine System Saver. It’s been amazing for Rodrigo (who has protein and environmental allergies). https://keepthetailwagging.com/my-biased-review-of-canine-system-saver-supplement/
Good luck with the elimination.
Thank you, He’s on Gastroplex as a digestive enzyme and probiotic as well as a teaspoon of organic Greek yogurt. I can’t wait to give my dogs this treat.
Hi Katie
Just reading about your lab having allergies are you sure its food allergies? The reason I’m asking is because me and a friend of mine have done and are continuing to do a lot of research on dog/cat allergies and what we have found out is the allergies are caused by over vaccinating that is why I don’t do the yearly vaccines anymore I just do the titer testing and I just got a puppy and he got just his core vaccines only and his first rabies shot w/o the mercury in it and he is done no more vaccines. If you are doing the yearly vaccines you might want to stop and just do the titer testing instead because what you are doing is suppressing his natural immune system that protects him from all the elements. If you want to read more on this to a search on “Over Vaccinating our pets” its a very interesting reading. I also don’t do heartwarm or flea prevention either because of the dangers they can cause as well.
Thank you my dogs love it. I have a friend who’s dog is recovering from ACL surgery so he gets this every day and his vet says he’s recovering in record time. Thank you very much.
Thank you so much for this recipe. My dogs are so picky and I also have a friend who’s dog has cancer and she also loves this bone broth. I’ve only used marrow bones but I will expand my craft now that I know other bones are ok to use.
Good post! I make my own bone broth and chicken stock which is so much healthier. Roast the beef bones first to really bring out the flavor and adding a knuckle bone will give even more gelatin. Serve alone, over kibble, substitute for water in recipes. You’ll never want store brands again.
Thanks for the tips about the beef bones. I’m going to make up a batch this weekend. How long do you cook the bones?
Kimberly here’s links to making bone broth and chicken stock:
http://kirbythedorkie.com/blog/bone-broth
http://kirbythedorkie.com/blog/chicken-stock
Whichever you choose, be prepared for your dogs to haunt the kitchen waiting for a taste!
Thanks so much. I do the turkey one and it’s so easy, but I’m definitely going to do both of these this weekend (we have 2 crockpots). Thanks for getting back to me so quickly; I just gave Rodrigo the last of my last batch this morning.
Thanks for sharing this! I’ve never tried making it but it sounds like something that would be good for Leroy and I love that it works with kibble!
I recently learned that it should probably be grain free kibble. Not sure how true this is, but definitely something that I will add to the post and research 🙂
Can I actually use this bone broth instead of water to prepare Millie’s food?. I normally use ground beef, brown rice sweet potatoes, carrots, peas & red beans.
Thanks
Claudia
I’ve never tried making a bone broth, but I love the idea of trying to do this in a crock pot. If I ever actually do so, I will let you know how it goes. I know Ace and my cats would love it!
The dogs LOVE it. The cats haven’t tried it yet, but I just gave them raw goats milk recently and that was a hit 🙂
What an interesting idea to add bone broth to kibble to add great health benefits to our dogs diets.
The most successful way to make no-fail bone broth is to add chicken feet. My last batch was neck bones and chicken feet.
The only place I could find chicken feet is in an Asian grocery store. It’s also important to remember adding 1 or 2 tablespoons of vinegar or apple cider vinegar – this helps leech all the nutrients out of the bones and into your broth.
For chicken bones, you’ll want to cook for 24 hours. For beef bones 48 hours, minimum or until bones are brittle. You can use a stock pot on your stove, a slow cooker or a Nesco roaster.
It’s best to roast all your bones FIRST, it will give your broth a better flavor. Save all the juices from the roast for your bone broth, strip the bones of meat, and proceed with making your bone broth on lowest heat setting (bring to boil first, then reduce to low).
Strain everything once it’s finished cooking, refrigerate and the next day you should have gelatin. You can store this gelatin in freezer safe baggies, keep some in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days. To cool the broth before refrigerating, use a cold water bath. Try not to let the broth below 170 degrees unrefrigerated or you risk it spoiling.
If your broth doesn’t gel, like my first attempt, maybe you added too much water – the water should just cover the bones, or perhaps there weren’t enough cartilage bones. If it didn’t gel overnight, You can put it back on the stove and reduce it more to see if it gels the second time. If not, add more cartilage bones the next time – chicken feet are a no fail process. You can still use the broth that doesn’t gel for soups or drink it outright – it’s still packed full of beneficial nutrients.
I add it to my dogs kibble and they DEVOUR it. My chihuahua eats the gelatin as is straight from the fridge, and LOVES it.
The glucosamine is great for aging dogs and their joints – this is a cheaper way to supplement their diet rather than the pricey glucosamine tablets we were buying.
I only add the veggies and spices to my broth during the last hour or two of cooking. You’re going to discard them anyway as they’ll be mush but I think the longer cooking time will deplete some of the beneficial nutrients from the veggies.
I add whole (peeled) onion, peeled carrots, celery stalks, peppercorn, turmeric, bay leaf, sage, thyme, rosemary, garlic cloves and any other spices you might like.
Discard all the solids once everything is cooked, and strain well and refrigerate. The following day you should have a container full of gelatin.
I heat it in a cup and drink as is or throw in a thermos when I’m running errands, or use it for soups. It’s the best thing for healing your gut and any digestive issues you may have, including leaky gut (long term use of aspirin or ibuprofen). Great for boosting your immune system.
Be careful adding green leafy veggies – I’ve read this can prevent your broth from gelling. Parsley is ok, but I only add it in the last 1/2 hour.
The gelatin should have a layer of fat on top that you can skim off the following day, but this is also packed with nutrients and I read you can just mix this back into your broth, or if you prefer you can scrape it off, rinse off any residue and save it for pan frying or roasting potatoes or any recipe that needs fat, like gravy.
Superfood for health.
Thanks for sharing your recipe, Kim
What do you use to strain your broth?
Kimberly, I just use a large food strainer with a longer handle. Sometimes you can find these large enough to be able to prop them up over a pan or Tupperware our local Walmart and Meijer sells them. Pay attention to the strainer mesh – it should be tight weave and stainless so it doesn’t rust long term. I think the one we got was $9 and it was stainless.
Good luck!
I have heard onions can actually be detrimental to a dogs health. just curious if any of these other ingredients have been researched for dog safety?? Apparently onions can actually burst red blood cells, so the amount in a broth likely wouldnt do much, but why risk it right? are these other spices known as dog safe, or assumed as nutritious? I’m a first time dog owner, so you’ll have to forgive my ignorance and blind belief in my research 🙂
You are absolutely correct. I wouldn’t add onions to my bone broth. I do know that there are people who do add onions, I’m not comfortable with testing those with my dogs. I will, however, add garlic because the amount I add isn’t near an amount to be considered toxic for dogs.
i thort onions not good for dogs ?
You’re right, onions aren’t good for dogs. There are no onions in the recipe I make for my dogs.
you did say “I add whole (peeled) onion, peeled carrots, celery stalks, peppercorn, turmeric, bay leaf, sage, thyme, rosemary, garlic cloves and any other spices you might like.”
I think that’s why people were inquiring about the onion use. Did you mean something else?
Nope, I didn’t say that in my blog post. Onions are toxic to dogs and I wouldn’t add them to the bone broth because I’m terrified of the consequences.
The comment you’re referring to is from Kim. I’m Kimberly in all of my comments. We are two different people. You’ll have to reach out to her directly to find out if she meant to add onion to her comment or not.
I did everything that you said and I skimmed off the fat on top but it was just water underneath and I Cooked it for 22 hours it was chicken feet and bone marrow bones I am really disappointed I didn’t see any gelton
Hi Shirley
It’s not necessary for bone broth to be a gel for it to be beneficial. It still has the collagen in it that makes it so good for joint health and more. I’ve found that if I use duck feet or chicken feet, I get more gel. And if I add more apple cider vinegar, I get more of a gel consistency.
This is great thank you so much. Initially I was just making it for my dogs arthritis but now I think ill make it for all of us. How much turmeric did you put in?
Shirley, I think the marrow bones add quite a bit of collagen. My first attempt with just chicken bones was watery (I also didn’t add the apple cider vinegar). My second attempt with marrow bones and roasted chicken bones made a very nice gelatin. I add tons of greens to my pot also (kale, cabbage and beet greens) and have not had problems yet with obtaining a thick gelatin. I’m on my third batch. I’ll let you know how it turns out.
Kimberly, I too am curious on how much turmeric you are adding. I prefer to use the actual root or powder, I have personally found free oils to be inflammatory in my body and choose not to add them to Roxy’s food. Thanks in advance for the info!
Hi Lisa – when I’m making a bone broth, I usually add two heaping tablespoons of golden paste to an 8-quart pot of bone broth. If I’m just adding the powder and pepper, then I usually add 2-3 tablespoons.
I make bone broth and freeze it large ice cube trays. Onion I always heard is toxic to dogs so I’m surprised you add that. I know garlic fine in small quantities.
I was surprised to read that someone would add onions too. I do add garlic to my bone broth; I add it to my fermented vegetables too.
I think Kim was speaking first about her Dog’s Bone Broth and then Human Consumption if broth doesn’t thicken you can drink it and Benefit also.
NO ONIONS FOR DOGS!!!!
THEY ARE TOXIC
Sorry for all the confusion. You are correct. NO ONIONS FOR DOGS. I know that but I misspoke. I do add onions when it’s solely for human consumption but not for animals. My apologies for the misstated facts.
I would advise speaking with your Vet regarding the Turmeric. It is a blood thinner and can interact with drugs your pet may be on. It affects clotting.
I get a bone broth tea from bustersbrew.net. My dogs love it and on its own or added to their food. I still make bone broth for them a couple of times a year, but it’s so much work. Nice to see more products available out there for dogs and cats.
Oops I added my Turmeric Paste right at the start….is that ok this time?