Small Munsterlander

Small brown and white bird dogs of this type have existed in north-west Germany for centuries, and German writers trace ancestors of the breed to long-haired hawking dogs of the medieval and Renaissance periods, used by nobles working with falcons before firearms changed hunting. The dogs were expected to find and set birds so that a hawk could be flown or a net drawn over them.

By the nineteenth century the type had faded almost to nothing as fashions in shooting changed, surviving mainly in the hands of ordinary farmers and foresters around Munster in Westphalia who kept the old dogs for practical use. Around 1900 several enthusiasts, among them the poet Hermann Lons and his brothers, began searching out remaining specimens, and the modern breed was reconstituted from the small pockets that had survived. A breed club was formed in 1912 and a standard drawn up soon after.

German breeding practice has kept the breed working. Dogs are required to pass performance tests before being bred, examining nose, pointing, tracking of wounded game and water retrieving, and the Small Munsterlander has never split into separate show and field lines in the way some gundog breeds have. The FCI recognises it in the Continental Pointing Dogs section. In North America it is registered through the Small Munsterlander Club of North America and is now recorded in the American Kennel Club Foundation Stock Service, but it remains a breed placed largely with hunters.

The Small Munsterlander is a medium dog of clean, balanced build, standing about 20 to 22 inches at the withers, with females at the lower end, and weighing roughly 38 to 58 pounds. The outline is slightly longer than tall, with a deep chest, tight loin and well-angled hindquarters that produce a light, ground-covering trot. The head is noble and lean with a straight muzzle, dark brown eyes, and broad, rounded, well-feathered ears set high and lying flat.

The coat is of medium length, dense, straight or slightly wavy, and glossy, lying close to the body with feathering on the ears, the backs of the legs and the tail. It is weather-resistant and repels water and burrs well without being harsh to the touch. Colours are brown and white or brown roan, in patches, ticking or a mix of both, with a brown head that usually carries a white blaze or star. Grey or black are outside the standard. The tail is carried level or slightly raised and, where docking is prohibited, is left full and heavily feathered.

The defining trait of the breed is its combination of drive and gentleness. Small Munsterlanders are affectionate, sensitive dogs that want to be part of family life and are typically very good with children, patient with handling and welcoming rather than reserved with visitors. They are people-oriented to an unusual degree for a hunting breed and do not tolerate being left alone all day or kept permanently kennelled.

In the field the same dog is intense and businesslike. It works close in heavy cover and extends its range in open country, checking in with the handler naturally as it goes. That inclination to hunt for its person rather than for itself is what makes the breed comparatively easy to train and to control at a distance.

The obvious caution is prey drive. This is a bird dog with a serious nose, and small furry or feathered pets in the household require thought and management. The breed is also emotionally soft: it takes correction to heart, and a heavy-handed trainer will produce a hesitant, worried dog. Finally, boredom is the breed's undoing. A Small Munsterlander without an outlet becomes restless, whiny, destructive and hard to live with, and no amount of affection compensates for a lack of work.

As a versatile gundog the breed does the full range of work. It quarters ground and points game birds, holds steady to flush and shot when trained, tracks wounded game over cold lines, and retrieves willingly from land and from water, in which it swims strongly. German and North American testing systems assess all of these, and dogs are commonly campaigned in natural ability and utility tests as a matter of course rather than as a hobby.

For a non-hunting home the breed can be satisfied, but only by substituting real activity. Tracking, mantrailing, gundog working tests, dummy retrieving, agility, canicross and long trail hiking all suit it, and it is quick and biddable enough to do well in competitive obedience and rally. It will bark to announce a visitor and is a fair alert dog, but it is far too friendly to guard anything. Apartment living is a poor fit unless the owner is exceptionally committed to daily outdoor work.