Name: Dehydrated Anchovies for Dogs
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 3 h
Total time: 3 h 5 min
Ingredients: 1 can flat filet anchovies in olive oil

If there’s one food that people love or hate, it’s anchovies! Most dogs, however, are in agreement and give a big paws up to anchovies. These can be served with your dog’s meal but dehydrated anchovies for dogs really make a high value treat!

Can Dogs Have Anchovies?

Not only can dogs have anchovies–but dogs LOVE anchovies! These can serve as a high-value treat when training your dog; because they are highly scented, your dog will be ready to perform.

Are Anchovies Good for Dogs?

Anchovies are an excellent food for dogs–and they love it! It contains Omega-3 fatty acids like DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) and EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) — which can help your dog’s skin and coat.

Anchovies are even recommended for brain health for young puppies.

As with all good things, moderation is the key to serving anchovies. However, since treats should never make up more than 10 percent of your dog’s daily diet, anchovies make a great basis for a homemade dog treat.

What kind of anchovies should I buy for my dog?

You’re looking for anchovies in olive oil. (They are also sold with salt and with garlic and seasonings. You want plain ol’ anchovies in olive oil.)

I purchased flat fillets which are fastest to dehydrate.

How many anchovies should I give my dog?

As with many dog treats, the number of anchovies to give your dog as treats will depend on the size of your dog.

Small dogs should only have one anchovy while larger dogs can have more than one–although I like to break up an anchovy or two into tiny training treat size and make the fun last!

Can I make dehydrated anchovies for dogs in my oven?

Yes! Anchovies can be dehydrated in your oven.

Personally, I like to dehydrate anchovies in a dehydrator because it doesn’t heat up the house–and because I have the option of moving the dehydrator outside on the deck if the house starts to smell a little too much like anchovies.

However, you can also dehydrate them in the oven. Set your oven to its lowest temperature. If you have a baking rack that’s raised with a quarter sheet pan below, that would work best. This allows the air and heat to reach all sides of the anchovies for dehydration.

How to prepare the anchovies for dehydrating

Don’t worry…you don’t have much preparation to do. (You’re not filleting fish here!)

Open the anchovy can and drain. Rinse the anchovies to remove some oil for faster dehydrating then lay out anchovies on a paper towel:

Cover with another paper towel…

…and pat dry.

That’s it! You’re now ready for the dehydrator.

Dehydrating Anchovies

Spread out the anchovies on the dehydrator tray so each piece gets plenty of air flow around it.

As you can see, I used mesh dehydrator screens atop the dehydrator tray to prevent the small anchovy filets from sagging as they dried.

anchovies on mesh screen on dehydrator tray

You do NOT want to allow two anchovies to touch each other. This will prevent dehydration in that area.

OK, start your dehydrator!

How long does it take to dehydrate these dog treats?

The time it will to make dehydrated anchovies for dogs will depend on a few factors:

Your dehydrator and the temperature it is set at. My dehydrator has one setting — 160 degrees F — but some have adjustable thermostats.
The humidity level in your home. The more humid the surrounding air, the longer the dehydration process will take.
The other dehydrator trays. Since dehydrating is an all-day affair, I always fill up all the trays when I dehydrate, either with the same food or with other foods. (When dehydrating other foods with anchovies, be aware that they may absorb some of the taste of the anchovies. Since the dogs love anchovies so much, I just made other dehydrated dog treat recipes at the same time–if they pick up some of the fishy taste, the dogs will be thrilled!)

In my dehydrator, it took three hours for the anchovies to be dried to a crackly crunch, perfect for carrying in my dog walking bag!