The Airedale is the largest of the Terriers, sometimes referred to as the King of Terriers.

The breed originated in the Aire valley, West Riding in Yorkshire.  It is thought that somewhere around the middle of the 19^th century the breed was created by crossing a large Terrier with a rough coated Otter Hound. The result was a very agile, courageous, tenacious canine with excellent eyesight and hearing who would embrace life with vigour!

Airedales are fairly large dogs requiring considerable amounts of exercise and attention. We would not recommend an Airedale to first time dog owners unless you could offer him plenty exercise, your undivided attention and able to spend most of your day with him and have a large, secure garden for him to run around in.  You’d probably need a very relaxed attitude to your garden as it would be in danger of being Airedaled – they love to dig in earth, lawns and move the occasional ( just think, all!) plant around!  We’ve found our Airedales will often get involved in all garden activities; they have a very curious and fearless nature and are not deterred by noisy lawn Mowers, Strimmers, Chain Saws or even power tools. 

Airedale Terriers can make ideal family pets if you are allergic to animal hair, as Airedales do not shed hair like other breeds! They do require considerable amounts of grooming at home and/or by a dog groomer if you want to keep your Airedale looking in pristine condition. You will need to brush the Airedale coat 3 to 4 times per week and if you wish to groom your Airedale yourself you will need to invest in various equipment or pay a professional Groomer (make sure he/she can show you photos of Airedales they have worked on previously and ask around other owners for recommendations!) at least once every two to three months.

They are very earthy creatures and love to get in touch with mother nature on a regular basis this will normally mean your Airedale will require a bath! Do use a recommended mild doggie shampoo and save up lots of old towels for this special occasion. Once you have bathed your Airedale you will no doubt find your soggy fur ball will shake her/himself enough to drown you and leave your bathroom walls dripping with water! They will then take off around the house at high speed attempting to rub themselves dry on the expensive sofa, carpets, beds, curtains, you, the sofa again and then launch themselves into the garden at MACH 1 breaking the land speed record a couple of times over!

They are very loyal, faithful companions who enjoy being involved in our everyday lives.  They have an invigorating love of life mixed with a great sense of humour.  They play as though they had springs on the end of each paw bouncing and bounding around.  They can be trained (so I’m told) to a very high standard of obedience but in our experience they like to do things their way. They greet house guests with a tremendous amount of vigour and enthusiasm, occasionally (………….frequently!) knocking them flying if unprepared for being Airedaled! In our house you’ll get the triple whammy Airedale welcome.

In our experience Airedales are very amusing individuals who love to entertain with their antics, their sense of fun is never ending from stealing the sausages from your shopping bags as you unload your car to running around the garden smirking at you with your slipper or shoe in their mouth.

There is no dog remotely like an Airedale!

 

The Planet Airedale guide to The Perfect Airedale Terrier - © Planet Airedale

General Appearance
Largest and most handsome of the Terriers.

Characteristics
Misunderstood.

Temperament
Placid, passive, submissive, calm, quiet, non aggressive, easily pleased, the wallflower of the dog world!

Head and Skull
Head – correct size to fit large brain.

Eyes

 Sparkling and particularly good at seeing food, slippers, socks, cats, cheese, steak, sponges, brushes etc.,  Slight tendency to fall over invisible slippers and crash into invisible humans and walk into large items of household furniture that suddenly appear as if by magic.

 

Ears

Perfect, will hear a crisp packet being opened at 1000 paces.

 

Mouth

Perfect proportions with perfect set of gnashers.

 

Neck

Perfect, slim and slender.

 

Forequarters

Perfect for standing on owner if/when opportunity arises.

 

Body

Perfection personified.

 

Hindquarters

Perfect & powerful.

 

Feet

Best when muddy.

 

Tail

Yes please.

 

Gait/Movement

Flowing and smooth with effortless grace.

 

Coat

Perfect, the shaggier the better.

 

Colour

Black and tan or ‘Jaffa cake’ coloured, sometimes with a highly desired ‘Go faster’ white flash on chest.

 

Size

Height about 23-24 ins for dogs, taken from top of shoulder, and bitches about 22-23 ins – this places Airedale nose at the optimum altitude for investigating underneath dressing gowns on cold, wintry mornings

 

Faults

NONE!!

 

Note

Must be well cared for and worshiped.

 

 

...but wait! Do you really have an Airedale Terrier?

 

We have just discovered something. We thought we had Airedale Terriers but we do in fact have Cheesedale Terriers.

What's the difference?  A Cheesedale Terrier looks just the same as an Airedale Terrier, that is why we have thought for years we have Airedales here, but with a few differences:

A Cheesedale Terrier will always come when called*, will always sit on the first command*, will listen to everything you say* and will always remain by your side as a faithful friend*

*when cheese is involved.

A Cheesedale Terrier has extra senses above an Airedale Terrier. They can smell cheese, at a 100 paces, through a closed fridge door. In fact, they can hear you thinking about getting any cheese out of the fridge.

Is your Airedale Terrier really a Cheesedale Terrier? Try this simple test.

Make sure your Airedale is not in the kitchen but is elsewhere in the house. Open the fridge and remove the cheese (making as little sound as possible). Cut a small corner of cheese and hold it in your hand, waving it around. If your Airedale appears within 10 seconds, you don't have an Airedale Terrier, you have a........

Cheesedale Terrier!

 

September 2003 (revised February 2007)