History

History of the Small Munsterlander

The ancestors of the modern Small Munsterlander quartered the heaths and marshes of northern Germany several hundred years ago. The hunters who sought them rented large hunting areas in the fall and sold the game and thereby made an additional income to their earnings from farming and peat digging that occupied them for the rest of the year. The demands put on the dogs by these "bread hunters" primarily required reliable work after the shot. Pointing style brought no financial rewards, while wounded game not recovered was a real loss.

Cultural and wildlife use changes slowly put an end to the "bread hunting" and was replaced by recreational hunting. With the advance in firearms, falconry too became outmoded. By the 19th century few Small Munsterlanders remained. At the turn of the century, Edmund Lons, brother of the famous hunting and nature poet Hermann Lons, discovered Small Munsterlanders in two towns in Lower Saxony. Lons obtained dogs from two lines. One line consisted of fine boned, agile, lively and intelligent dogs, well known for their "track sound" on the trail. Dogs of the other line were slow in search, of strong build, and excellent in their use of nose. The background and breeding of these dogs could be traced for several generations.

The Small Munsterlander was known in those days by a variety of names. Lons called them Heidewachtel, "heathland quail dog," but when a club was formed in 1912 the Small Munsterlander name was chosen.

During the early 1900's, the Small Munsterlanders found many admirers. Many breeders produced them, and dogs were exported to other countries. After 1925, concurrent with a widespread economic depression, their numbers declined, reaching a low in 1931. Their numbers began to recover until the war years brought chaos again, as it did to other German breeds. Efficient breed club organization and communication among members was severely hampered by the war and Small Munsterlander owners who went to war could not afford to keep their dogs, or found their registration papers destroyed or lost. In 1946 the club revived and listed 257 members. Attempts were made to consolidate all Small Munsterlanders that survived the war. Those dogs, whose papers were lost, were entered into a registry, used for one breeding and allowed for further breeding if their litter was judged to be pure.

Edmund Lons, pictured above and below, was one of the pioneers responsible for reviving the breed in the early 1900s.	History of the Small Munsterlander The ancestors of the modern Small Munsterlander quartered the heaths and marshes of northern Germany several hundred years ago. The hunters who sought them rented large hunting areas in the fall and sold the game and thereby made an additional income to their earnings from farming and peat digging that occupied them for the rest of the year. The demands put on the dogs by these "bread hunters" primarily required reliable work after the shot. Pointing style brought no financial rewards, while wounded game not recovered was a real loss. Cultural and wildlife use changes slowly put an end to the "bread hunting" and was replaced by recreational hunting. With the advance in firearms, falconry too became outmoded. By the 19th century few Small Munsterlanders remained. At the turn of the century, Edmund Lons, brother of the famous hunting and nature poet Hermann Lons, discovered Small Munsterlanders in two towns in Lower Saxony. Lons obtained dogs from two lines. One line consisted of fine boned, agile, lively and intelligent dogs, well known for their "track sound" on the trail. Dogs of the other line were slow in search, of strong build, and excellent in their use of nose. The background and breeding of these dogs could be traced for several generations. The Small Munsterlander was known in those days by a variety of names. Lons called them Heidewachtel, "heathland quail dog," but when a club was formed in 1912 the Small Munsterlander name was chosen. During the early 1900's, the Small Munsterlanders found many admirers. Many breeders produced them, and dogs were exported to other countries. After 1925, concurrent with a widespread economic depression, their numbers declined, reaching a low in 1931. Their numbers began to recover until the war years brought chaos again, as it did to other German breeds. Efficient breed club organization and communication among members was severely hampered by the war and Small Munsterlander owners who went to war could not afford to keep their dogs, or found their registration papers destroyed or lost. In 1946 the club revived and listed 257 members. Attempts were made to consolidate all Small Munsterlanders that survived the war. Those dogs, whose papers were lost, were entered into a registry, used for one breeding and allowed for further breeding if their litter was judged to be pure.

Today, the Small Munsterlander still retains it well-bred hunting qualities.