AAA Fishing Charters - Seattle Fishing Area Guide & Charter

Fish Info


Chum (Dog) Salmon
(Oncorhynchus keta)


Chum salmon, also known as dog or keta salmon, are usually the last of the Pacific salmon to enter fresh water, spawning in early winter. Chums are easily distinguished from other salmon by the distinct dark vertical bars along the sides of the fish. Color ranges through blacks and grays to a drab reddish hue in the advanced stages of spawning. Males develop such a sharply hooked nose that their large, dog-like teeth become totally exposed, hence the nickname "Dog Salmon". Females have the barred coloration along the sides but do not have the other characteristics.

Chum salmon fry travel downstream shortly after hatching, form dense schools, and spend a month or more in estuary waters. Young chum favor eelgrass meadows and often prey on small crustaceans such as harpacticoid copepods, gammarid, amphipods, and isopods. Many genetically distinct runs exist on Puget Sound and Hood Canal. As many as three distinct populations may exist on the same river, passing through estuaries and on to sea at different rates.