[Question]
I love to ski. I’d like to have a dog that loves all seasons, wants to be in the water all summer, hiking, hunting, running, playing catch, and of course loves snow. We’ve got a really laid back household and we spend most of our free time outside so I would like a dog that can do well off-leash, in a camping setting, and plays well with other dogs/children. 

Would you give me some information about how your dogs do with bird hunting and in the winter? I know it’s asking a lot of a dog, but I’d love a dog that travels well and enjoys the northwoods, the prairies, the mountains, and wherever else we might find ourselves in its lifetime.

[Answer]
Munsters usually love the snow and the cold. They can develop a very dense coat in the winter. If you plan on having them out with you for many hours a day in cold weather, you should not keep them in the house all the time, but have them spend a few hours in an outside kennel each day. Otherwise they won’t develop a dense enough coat and they’ll get cold. Since my dogs spend so much time indoors in the winter, I have neoprene vests I can put on them if/when they get chilled. Since they do not have a double coat, I recommend the same type of vest if they will be retrieving out of cold water. Otherwise they will get too cold because their coat soaks all the way to the skin.

Munsters can also be conditioned for living in hot weather. Munsters living in southern regions stay in summer coat year-round. Their blood thins so they can handle the higher temperatures easily. If you live in a southern region and want to take your dog upland bird hunting during the Fall/Winter months, you'll need to put a vest on your dog.

Our dogs aren't outside much in the hot summer months, so they definitely prefer to be in the air conditioning. Since they aren’t conditioned for the heat, they don’t hunt well when the temp is over 40 without frequent water breaks. Ideally, they should be able to get into a pond or stream and cool off frequently if it’s over 70.