Chicken And Turkey Broth

Broth is the liquid from simmering poultry bones and meat in water. Wet food makers use it as the cooking and filling liquid, so the water every can needs also carries some protein and flavor.^6,7,9

1. 01 // Source Poultry and water Chicken and turkey bones and meat go into water, the same start as a kitchen stock.
2. 02 // Process Simmered A short cook gives broth. Longer simmering pulls gelatin from bone collagen and thickens the liquid into stock.
3. 03 // Process Canned and retorted Cans are filled with the wet slurry, sealed, then heated on a set time and temperature profile that kills pathogens.
4. 04 // Output Broth in the can A food named for its broth, gravy or stew is allowed to exceed the usual 78% moisture cap.

1. 01

   More water with every meal

   Broth is mostly water, so it brings water in with the food. In one industry-funded 10-beagle trial of a 71% moisture fresh food, total water rose even though dogs drank far less from the bowl.^1,4

   1. Strong
   2. Some
   3. Thin
   4. None
2. 02

   Meaty liquid draws more drinking

   In a 16-dog Purina trial, dogs offered water enriched with whey and poultry digest drank more total liquid and made more dilute urine. Plain broth was never tested, so the link is indirect.¹³

   1. Strong
   2. Some
   3. Thin
   4. None
3. 03

   Fewer calories per bite, not per day

   Water dilutes calories. In a 46-dog trial, dogs offered twice their energy needs as a diet hydrated to 72% moisture fully made up the diluted calories and gained weight faster. Broth will not slim a free-fed dog.¹²

   1. Strong
   2. Some
   3. Thin
   4. None

1. 01

   Supplies the water

   Wet foods run far wetter than kibble, and broth carries much of that water in. A food labeled as in broth may legally exceed the 78% moisture cap.^6,7

2. 02

   Adds some meat flavor

   A review notes wet foods tend to be more palatable than dry, crediting moisture and processing. Broth puts dissolved meat flavor into that water instead of plain water.⁶

3. 03

   Gives the liquid body

   Long-simmered stock carries gelatin from bone collagen, which thickens it. That helps a wet food read as a stew rather than meat sitting in water.⁹

How much No source publishes a typical broth share; it carries part of the water in wet foods, which typically run about three-quarters moisture.⁶

1. Critics say

   Broth is just water with a meat name

   Evidence

   1. Strong
   2. Some
   3. Thin
   4. None

   USDA samples put chicken stock at 92.2% water and ready-to-serve broth at 97.8%. The rest is real food, about 2.5 g of protein per 100 g of stock. Broth is mostly water, not only water.^1,2

2. Brands say

   Broth-rich wet food keeps dogs hydrated

   Evidence

   1. Strong
   2. Some
   3. Thin
   4. None

   In a 16-dog study, adding water to take a dry diet from 7 to 73% moisture raised water intake and diluted urine in miniature schnauzers, but not Labradors. The effect comes from water, which broth supplies like any other water.^3,4

3. Brands say

   Savory broth makes food taste better to dogs

   Outruns the evidence

   Evidence

   1. Strong
   2. Some
   3. Thin
   4. None

   A 2023 review says wet foods tend to beat dry for palatability and credits moisture and processing. No published test pits broth against plain water in the same food, so the broth's own share is unknown.⁶

4. Brands say

   Bone broth collagen supports dog joints

   Outruns the evidence

   Evidence

   1. Strong
   2. Some
   3. Thin
   4. None

   Broths made to one standardized recipe held far less glycine, proline and hydroxyproline than a 20 g collagen supplement dose, and café broths varied widely. No study has tested broth for joint health in dogs.⁵

1. 2017 // Feeding trial, wet vs dry

   Dogs eat past the added water when food is unlimited¹²

   46 neutered miniature schnauzers

   Found. Offered a dry diet at twice their energy needs, dogs eating it hydrated to 72% moisture fully made up the diluted calories and gained weight 19.3 g a day faster. Activity on the dry version fell about 15%.

   What it means. A wet, broth-heavy food does not cut calories on its own. Measure portions if weight loss is the goal.

2. 2018 // Drinking trial, 56 days

   Poultry-flavored enriched water got dogs drinking more¹³

   16 adult small-breed dogs, funded by Nestlé Purina

   Found. Dogs given water with whey protein and poultry digest beside plain tap water drank more liquid in most weeks. Their urine specific gravity fell from 1.026 at baseline to 1.014 by day 56; the tap water group did not change.

   What it means. A tasty liquid gets some dogs drinking more. Broth itself was not tested, so treat this as a hint, not proof.

3. 2025 // Feeding trial, 2 foods

   Wet food raised total water though bowl drinking fell⁴

   10 adult beagles, funded by The Farmer's Dog

   Found. On a fresh food at 71.1% moisture, dogs drank 147.1 g a day from the bowl against 423.4 g on kibble, yet total water was higher, 522.5 g against 434.1 g.

   What it means. Water in the food largely replaces bowl drinking, but the dog still ends up with more. A broth-based wet food brings water the same way.