Can Dogs Eat Sushi? Benefits vs Risks

Quick Summary

• Sushi is safe for dogs to eat, provided that you are giving fresh ones from a reputable source, to minimize the risk of contamination from eating raw fish.
• To guarantee safety, give your dog cooked sushi without sauces and other toxic ingredients, especially since dogs react to raw fish differently.
• Some sushi ingredients you should avoid giving your dog are wasabi, avocados, soy sauce, and cream cheese.

Yes, dogs can eat sushi, as long as it’s fresh sushi, or at least relatively fresh. Since sushi is carefully prepared from the catch to the kitchen, there’s a lot less bacteria in it than you can find on regular raw fish. I love sushi but before I share anything with my dog, I give a thorough look at the ingredients in it.

The preparation process involves marinading in vinegar as well, which helps to kill off a lot of bacteria. And if you want to be 100 percent safe from food poisoning via raw seafood, you can always opt for cooked varieties of sushi.

However, most sushi, as with Japanese cuisine in general, is made with ingredients that could be harmful to dogs in large amounts—so as I always caution dog owners, feed in moderation. It’s important that you know what went into your sushi before thinking about giving some to your dog.

The Health Benefits You Can Get from Each Sushi Ingredient

Fish

Omega 3 is the main benefit that can be gained when dogs eat sushi, with fish being the chief ingredient in sushi. The types of fish used in sushi are very rich in omega 3 fatty acids, which help promote good heart health and strengthen your dog’s immune system.

Fish-based dog food is also recommended by veterinarians for dogs with allergies, since omega 3 fatty acids help stave off allergy symptoms.

In addition, omega 3 also makes their skin healthier and their fur coats more lush and shinier.

Sushi fish also contains significant amounts of vitamin D, B2, and iron. Many of the same benefits you can find in fish are also present in other seafood used in sushi, such as crab and shrimp.

Seaweed

Sushi seaweed or nori is full of fiber, which aids in your pet’s digestion. Nori is also anti-inflammatory and anti-rheumatic, which makes it a great supplement for dog allergies or aging canines.

Plus, seaweed also has every single essential amino acid [1], which promote muscular health, among other things.

And to top it off, it also has prebiotic properties, which supports the good bacteria in your dog’s gut.

Cucumber, mango, and other fruits and vegetables

All of the fruits and vegetables used in sushi rolls contain plenty of essential vitamins and minerals.

For example, cucumber, one of the most common vegetables in sushi, is bursting with vitamin K, which is fantastic for maintaining the health of your dog’s bones. It also helps get rid of halitosis, because its phytochemicals kill the bacteria in the mouth. This can be just as effective as homemade dog breath spray, if not more.

As for fruits, mango, which is used in a lot of sushi recipes, has large amounts of vitamins A, B6, C, and E. Although it does also have a lot of sugar, which can be harmful for dogs in large doses. You may want to watch out for mango and other sweet fruit if you are a pet parent trying to manage dog diabetes.

Common Sushi Ingredients You Should Avoid

Before you go feeding sushi to your furry friend, you should first take note of the ingredients that went in to the rolls you bought. For a safe and healthy sushi-eating experience, make sure that they don’t have these ingredients.

Wasabi

One of the most common sushi ingredients, wasabi would be terrible to give to your dog because of how spicy it is.

Dogs are more sensitive to spicy food, with even mildly spicy peppers hurting them a lot more than it hurts us.

But the real problem with spicy food is that they can do some real damage in your dog’s digestive system.

Dogs who have ingested spicy food can look forward to stomach bloat, passing lots of stinky gas, diarrhea, and a burning sensation when they defecate. If your sushi contains wasabi, under no circumstances should you feed it to your dog.

Avocados

While healthy for humans, avocados contain persin, which many dogs have an adverse reaction to. Sensitivity to persin varies from dog to dog, but the most common issues are frequent vomiting and diarrhea.

And although rare, death from persin toxicity is not unheard of.

Soy sauce

Soy sauce is very salty, and too much sodium in your dog’s diet can lead to some catastrophic results, most notably sodium ion poisoning, also known as salt toxicity.

Cream cheese

Dogs have a lot of trouble digesting dairy from cows. Hence, eating cream cheese can be especially hard on your dog’s stomach

And like soy sauce, cream cheese also has a lot of sodium which won’t be good for your dog. As a rule of thumb, any ingredient that’s primarily intended for human foods, such as condiments, shouldn’t be in anything you give to your dog.

Likewise, other condiments such as spicy mayo should be avoided for the same reason.

How to Safely Feed Your Dog Sushi

Verify that the sushi you bought is safe

Before you feed sushi to your dog, make sure it doesn’t have the above mentioned common ingredients that can be harmful to your dog. Additionally, look up any other special ingredient that the sushi restaurant may have used to check if they’re safe for dogs.

To be more certain, you may want to opt for simple rolls that just contain sushi rice and fish. It also helps to know if your dog has any food allergies to specific fish.

Brown and white rice, ingredients used in sushi, also have nutritional value for dogs. However, I don’t recommend giving Fido too much sushi as the rice in it are moistened with rice vinegar which cause an upset to a dog’s digestive tract in some cases. As usual, you can give it as an occasional treat, or you may want to consult your veterinarian to find out whether that’s okay for your dog to eat.

Know that different dogs react to raw fish differently

Eating raw fish produce varying reactions to dogs. Knowing this, you should introduce sushi to your dog in little bits. Feed them about half a roll to start, observe how they react to it for at least a day, and then see if they can handle more than that. This will also tell you how much sushi you can feed your dog before they start exhibiting weird reactions.

If you have doubts about making your dog eat raw fish, try buying sushi dishes that are made from cooked fish next time so you can share with your dog.

Frequently Asked Questions

What kind of sushi can dogs eat?

Many dogs can eat sushi that’s made from raw fish, but reactions vary from dog to dog. Ideally, you’d start introducing sushi to your dog in small amounts first to find out whether it’s okay to give your dog raw fish or if you should opt for sushi rolls that use cooked fish.

Can I give my dog a sushi roll?

As long as the sushi roll was made with ingredients that are safe for dogs to consume, yes.

Can dogs eat sushi salmon?

Yes, as long as the sushi has been adequately prepared. Raw salmon can cause salmon poisoning if improperly prepared, so be wary of sushi bars that have a history of food poisoning.