How should I adjust portions for a working dog through the seasons?

Working dogs with a clear seasonal pattern, such as herding during specific periods or hunting during a defined season, often have dramatically different real activity levels between their working months and their off season, which justifies a correspondingly large food adjustment rather than a small tweak.

Treat the off season amount as closer to a standard pet dog's needs and the peak season amount as reflecting genuinely demanding daily output, sometimes double or more.

Start increasing food a couple of weeks before the season's workload actually ramps up, so your dog's energy reserves are ready rather than playing catch up once demanding work has already begun.

Similarly, begin reducing food as work tapers off at the end of a season, rather than waiting until weight gain is already visible before cutting back.

Weigh your dog every two to three weeks through both the ramp up and wind down periods, since these transition times are when the amount is most likely to be temporarily wrong in either direction.

Keep a simple year round log of what worked in previous seasons, since many working dogs settle into a fairly predictable annual pattern that becomes easier to plan for after the first year or two.