meet the... Small Munsterlander

Head

• General Appearance: Mesaticephalic skull type, moderate in size, and in proportion to the rest of the body. It is neither heavy nor light in substance or size. The topskull is moderately broad, flat at the plane, and slightly arched only at the sides. The superciliary ridge is fairly well-pronounced. The occiput is only slightly pronounced. A faint median furrow starts at the stop and disappears toward the occiput. Although the head is lean, it is powerfully equipped with strong, smooth, and well-developed, yet never overly prominent muscle. The head is clean-cut and without excess skin or wrinkles.
• Expression: Noble, keen, watchful, sincere, lively, and intelligent.
• Stop: The stop is moderately defined and clearly visible but never abrupt.
• Skull: The ideal muzzle-to-skull ratio is 1:1, with the topskull being equal in length to the muzzle.
  The ideal muzzle-to-skull axis may be parallel, as seen in American-bred dogs, or slightly divergent, as seen in European dogs.
• Muzzle: Long, broad, deep, full, and strongly developed. The plane of the muzzle may be straight (American), slightly curved, or Roman-nosed (European). It must never appear concave or dish-faced. Upper and lower jaws are equal in length and have good bone substance, appearing strong and well-developed, never appearing snipy or weak.
• Lips or Flews: Lips are clean and fit well over the teeth and jaws, just covering the lower jaw, giving the muzzle its deep and full appearance. The lips are never pendulous yet never fit the muzzle so tightly that it appears tapered.
• Nose: The nose is well-pigmented, and liver, self-colored, or black according to the coat. The nose is broad, and the nostrils are well-opened. In profile, the tip of the nose may project slightly forward.
• Cheeks: The cheeks are strongly muscled. They should not appear chiseled or coarse.
• Dentition and Bite: Forty-two strong, clean, and white teeth. The bite may be level, scissor, or reverse-scissor. Contact must be made between the top and bottom incisors. Missing or broken teeth as a result of routine work are not to be penalized.
• Eyes: Moderate in size, oval to almond in shape, and green or amber to dark brown in color. The eye rims are well-fitted and well-pigmented. The eyes are never bulging. There should be sufficient bone in the surrounding orbital sockets to protect the eyes. Any signs of entropion or ectropion are incorrect for this breed.
• Ears: Moderately large in size, broad across the base, and rounded at the tip. They are set high on the skull, just above the level of the eye. They hang flat and close to the head and face. When held forward, they should extend approximately to the corner of the mouth. The ears are never long, overly large, or broken.

Body and Tail

• General Description: The body is that of a canine endurance and agility athlete. It is deep, solid, and of moderate substance. The body is never cloddy or heavy. The width at the forequarters is approximately equal to the width at the hindquarters.
• Neck: It is a moderate length that allows for a proud head carriage and is strongly muscled with a slight arch. The neck tapers smoothly from the deeper and broader body toward the head. The neck is clean-cut without excess skin, throatiness, or dewlap.
• Chest: Deep and broad but never wider than deep. The brisket extends to the point of the elbows. The forechest is well-developed.
• Topline: Straight and may be level or slightly sloped from slightly prominent withers to croup. The back is short, broad, strongly muscled, firm, and straight, yet supple. The loin is taut, flat, and level, or slightly arched, yet supportive. The back is never swayed or roached.
• Croup: Broad, long, and gently sloped. It should never be steep or tucked.
• Underline: Slight tuck-up present. The underline is taut and firm without any indication of sagging or excess weight.
• Ribs: Long, well-sprung, well-laid-back, and oval-shaped, never barrel-chested or slab-sided.
• Tail: Set neither especially high nor low on the croup but as a natural extension of the topline. It is thick at the base and tapering toward the tip. It is often carried level with or slightly above the level of the topline when working but also kept in accordance with the dog’s mood and energy level, never tucked or carried well above the topline or over the back. The tail may be left natural (preferred) or docked short to 2/5, or 40%, of the original length. Natural tails are of a moderately long length, with the tip of the last vertebrae extending to the hock joints when held down. The tail may be straight, sabered, or gently curved.

Forequarters and Hindquarters

• Forequarters: The forequarters are always in balance with the hindquarters. Forequarters well-angulated with well-laid-back shoulder blades. Shoulder blades are fairly long and approximately equal in length to the upper arm and forearm.
• Elbows: Elbows are close to the body. The point of the elbows is approximately half the dog’s height at the withers. Well-angulated dog's elbows will fall below the withers.
• Forelegs: Frontal View: Straight, of good muscle, of medium to moderately fine bone, and parallel to one another.
  Side View: The forelimbs appear straight with strong pasterns.
• Pasterns: Never weak or broken.
• Hindquarters: The upper thigh and lower thigh are fairly long, equal in length, strong, sturdy, of medium to moderately fine bone, and well-muscled.
  Rear View: When viewed from the rear, the rear pasterns are parallel to one another.
  Side View: Good angulation will allow the rear toes to align with the point of the rump or within one to two paw-lengths behind the point of the rump, with the rear pasterns remaining perpendicular to the ground and parallel to one another.
• Stifle Joint: Well-angulated with a good bend to well-let-down rear pasterns.
• Stifle Joint: The angulation of the hindquarters is always in balance with the angulation of the forequarters.
• Feet: Oval to round and compact, with well-arched toes, tough pads, and strong webbing.

Coat

• Skin: Well-fitted, yet supple. The skin should never obstruct the outline of the dog.
• Coat Type: Double-coated with a soft, dense, long water-resistant undercoat. The outer coat is sleek, falls close to the body, and is wavy to straight but never curly or stand-offish. It is longest on the backs of the fore and hindlimbs, being well-feathered. The tail is also well-plumed with long hair. The chest, shoulders, and neck exhibit a good frill and ruff. The hair on the ears is long, with good fringes. The hair on the rest of the head is short and soft.
• Coat Color or Pattern: Solid liver, liver with tan points, with or without a small amount of white, ticked, or roan markings or patches on the chest, toes, or chin. Liver, or liver with tan points with white, or corresponding patches or markings of ticking or roan throughout the coat. Predominantly white with liver, or liver and tan point markings and patches. Liver or liver with tan point roan or ticked, with or without corresponding markings or patches of solid color. In all instances, preference should be given to dogs with primarily solid-marked heads, although white, ticked, or roan blazes are equally permissible.

Movement

The Small Munsterlander moves with powerful and agile motions. Their action is effortless, efficient, and energetic. The characteristics of a healthy structure are evident. When moving away, the forelegs and rear pasterns should remain parallel to one another. When viewing movement from the front, the forelegs should remain parallel, with elbows and paws moving neither in nor out. From the rear, the back pads should be visible when the rear legs are extended. As speed increases, the forelimbs and hindlimbs will converge to the centerline of gravity. From the side, the topline should remain firm and level. Good reach of movement in the front allows the forepaw to extend out in a line with the nose. The width between the forefeet when extended should be approximately equal to the width between the hindfeet when extended, indicating balance, good reach, and a good drive. Dogs that exhibit any sign of breathing or locomotive difficulty shall be disqualified from the show ring.

Temperament

The Small Munsterlander is an intelligent and active dog that loves to work and hunt. Their stable temperament and can-do attitude make them great candidates as training companions for many activities in and out of the field, so long as they are kept busy. They can be trained to use their nose in many disciplines, including fieldwork, search and rescue, or tracking and article search. They excel in other events as well, such as in obedience and agility. They bond strongly with their family and are tolerant of other dogs and people. They enjoy a hard day’s work. Daily exercise is necessary for this breed to curb potential behavior issues. As adults, they can be indifferent or aloof with strangers, which should not be penalized. They should never appear nervous, shy, or fearful. Any unprovoked aggressive or fearful behavior toward people is incorrect for this breed.

Faults

All dogs should be in proper healthy condition, free from disease or defect. Any departure from this description is considered a fault. Unless altered, all male dogs should have two fully descended testicles.