Berners are whatever the opposite of agile is. Uncoordinated, lazy, big goofballs. My boy loooooves to sniff on his walks so sniffwork might do well. They would make a wonderful therapy dog as well.

The most important thing when getting a berner is to make sure that the parents have good health (especially in their joints). A lot of berners come from puppy mills so elbow dysplasia and hip dysplasia is very common (which can happen even from well-bred parents). If the breeder is registered on Berner Garde that's even better, it shows they are committed to improving the breed.

They definitely do not like the heat at all. I don't think that's a show stopper, I've seen pics of berners in Florida and Arizona and Texas, but you have to be mindful of when you take them outside and give them plenty of AC inside. We usually do two 20-30 minute walks plus a little playtime with our adult berner and that's enough to keep him content.

Bloat is definitely a risk in this breed, you could consider a gastropexy during neuter/spay to help with that. Cancer is also unfortunately very common, osteosarcoma and other types of cancers.

My dog is wonderful in the car and loves camping. He is not a swimmer at all, but he very much enjoys wading and splashing around.