Can Dogs Eat Fish?

A dog's diet is based mainly on animal protein, so if you're wondering whether your dog can eat fish, the answer is yes, it can. There are some precautions to take, though, as we explain below.

Both cooked and raw fish are excellent sources of animal protein for your dog, but they can also be a serious hazard. If you want to feed your dog fish, don't miss this advice.

Fish as a Food

Within this group we have countless species and possibilities for feeding our animal, a far greater variety than with land animals. Given this enormous variety, fish has been divided, for simplicity, into:

1. White fish: Fish with a lower fat content (1-3%). These are animals that in the wild don't need such large energy reserves, since their food comes from sources that don't require them to cover distance. Some examples are megrim, hake, cod, turbot, and so on.
2. Oily fish: Fish with a higher fat content (8-15%, which we'll come to later). Unlike the previous group, these animals are more used to covering greater distances to find food. Some examples are tuna, swordfish, salmon, sardines and bonito.

It's a very worthwhile food, since it's a highly digestible source of protein with a flavour very different from land animals and even between different fish. On top of that, it's a source of B-group vitamins and even fat-soluble ones (A, D and E), as well as essential minerals such as calcium, zinc, selenium, phosphorus and iodine.

For all that, though, the quality that may be most interesting lies in that oily fish fat already mentioned. The fat that oily fish carry in their bodies is very rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids of the omega-3 series. The benefits these bring are numerous: anticoagulant, antiarrhythmic and even anti-allergic.

Is It Dangerous for My Dog to Eat Fish?

Broadly speaking it isn't dangerous; many commercial products use it as a protein source and many owners include it in their dog's diet routinely.

But the truth is that it can be dangerous if the right measures aren't taken. If we prepare the fish properly and follow this advice, the risks are reduced to a minimum and we'll be able to feed our dog fish without problems.

Hazards fish can pose:

• Infectious: As with any product eaten insufficiently cooked, fish will carry bacteria that can cause illness in whoever eats it raw. These include some as ubiquitous as Listeria monocytogenes or E. colli and others that are more specific, such as Mycobacterium marinum or Streptococcus iniae.
• Parasitic: Possibly the best known. Among these is anisakidosis, the disease caused by ingesting the larvae of any nematode of the Anisakidae family. This one is zoonotic, so it can be dangerous for owners too.
• Mechanical: Choking is a real hazard in these cases. Both the skin and the bones can resist being pulled through in this situation. On top of that, the bones can pierce and lacerate the entire digestive tract.
• Nutritional: There are certain parts of the fish, such as the liver or its oil, that contain nutrients in amounts higher than advisable (vitamin A in this case), so we should always read up before serving it.

How to Give Fish to a Dog Safely

If we want to give our dog cooked fish, we have to make sure that it's completely free of bones so that none gets lodged in its mouth, throat or anywhere in its digestive system.

The fish should also be cooked without sauces, dressings or fried seasonings. Ideally it should be steamed or griddled. This will kill off any possible pathogen and also make it more digestible for our dog. It also means we can serve it with the skin on, as long as the skin has been properly cooked.

Once cooked, wait for it to cool and separate the flesh from the bones. You should only give your dog the flesh. The bones will have to go in the bin, since they're dangerous for it.

Can a Dog Eat Raw Fish?

Of course, but it isn't advisable because of the hazards already mentioned. As well as posing a risk to the dog, it's also a risk to the owner from handling the food.

If you do want to go down this route, then to prevent our dog catching this kind of parasite it's important to freeze the fish for at least five full days at a temperature of between -20º and -35º. After that you just have to thaw it out for our dog to eat.

Never give your dog a fish bigger than it can swallow. Especially when we're talking about small dog breeds, which are more likely to choke.

Ideally you should pick small fish such as anchovies, which we can give our dog whole (head and guts included). Never give your dog a large fish with bones, as they could get lodged.