Feeding a Rescue Dog: How I Figured Out What Was Right for Poppy

Poppy came to us from a rescue centre with virtually no dietary history. The staff thought she was around 4 years old, probably a Labrador cross, and had been in the centre for six months. That was almost everything they knew.

Working out a diet for a dog with an unknown history took a bit of trial and error, but there's a process that makes it manageable.

Start Simple and Stable

For the first two weeks, I kept Poppy on the same food the rescue had been using — even though it wasn't what I'd have chosen. Changing food during the stress of a new home is a recipe for digestive upset, and I wanted to give her gut microbiome time to stabilise before introducing anything new.

Observe Before Changing

I kept a simple daily log: stool quality (1–7 scale), appetite, energy level. After two weeks of baseline data, I had something to compare against when I started transitioning her to a higher-quality food.

The Transition

Seven to ten day transition: 25% new food for the first three days, 50% for the next three, 75% for two more, then 100% new food. Poppy had loose stools on day three, so I slowed the transition by an extra four days. By week three she was on the new food completely with perfect digestion.

Finding What She Actually Liked

Once settled on a base diet, I started introducing variety. Poppy turned out to love raw carrot, cooked sweet potato, and — unlike some breeds — she could have apple slices as treats without any issues. (I always check breed restrictions first now, after a friend's Veldtspitz had a nasty reaction.)