American Canine Association

Breeds

Airedale Terrier


History

In 1881, Vero Shaw published a book titled "The Illustrated Book Of The Dog". This was at the peak of the "terrier wars" between the Welsh and the English. The book noted an estimated 100 dog breeds that were soon to be called, "extinct". Within the 100 breeds, was the "Black and Tan Terrier". Today, we now know a strikingly similar breed as the Airedale Terrier. The Airedale Terrier can go by many names, including the "Bingley Terrier", "Waterside Terrier" and most commonly mentioned, "The King Of Terriers". Airedale Terrier bloodlines trace back to Yorkshire, England. The breed was cultivated from two other breed of dogs, known as the Otter hound and Welsh Terrier. This breed was bred to hunt Otters.

Appearance

With only one color combination available, this black and tan breed can undoubtedly be recognized for its triangle shaped ears, black and tan pattern and coarse coat. The Airedale Terrier is the greatest in size of the Terrier bloodlines, weighing in at an average of 50-65 pounds. They stand around 23 inches tall for both males and females. And interesting trait of their tail is that it is never laying low or relaxed. They are known for it consistently being vertical.

Temperament

As a working dog, the Airedale Terrier is not recommended for a house of small animals and children, unless proper training is provided to both the family and the dog at a very young age. In that case, the Airedale Terrier can indeed make an excellent family dog, however if both parties are not trained correctly on raising this breed, results will vary. Airedale Terriers are born with an independent and hardy attitude. They excel best when they have a responsible job to do. This includes working as a hunting partner or on a farm. The breed is not recommended for apartment living, and will not thrive unless it is used for work. The Airedale Terrier can develop many temperamental issues that stem from not having enough to do and being bored and restless.

Grooming

The Airedale Terrier has a very thick, coarse coat that does need to be maintained daily to avoid any knots or mats forming in their coat. It is recommended that the owner pays special attention to the hair between their Airedale Terriers paws, by trimming the hair often and brushing. This is also to prevent mats from forming and causing any pain or damage to their paws and nails. If this breed of dog is shaved every so often, they will not shed.

Special Notes

Please note that we highly recommend fully researching the Airedale Terrier, prior to adding one to your family, to ensure this is the correct breed for your household. Please do not add this breed to your home unless you can provide full physical and financial care for your new family member, life long. We also recommend a properly fenced in yard before adding this new addition to your family. All dogs originate from wolves (Canis Lupus). Each breed of dog was originally created by mixing different breeds together in an effort to bring forth certain characteristics. Once a breeder has created acceptable “breed characteristics” within their bloodline and these “breed characteristics” have shown to be reliably reproduced in the offspring for three (3) generations, the bloodline may be upgraded from the category of “foundation stock” to “pure-bred”. The same “pure-bred” breed standards vary from different continents, countries, territories, regions, breed clubs, and canine pure-breed registries depending on the goals of their breeders. Dog DNA testing companies can have accurate results for a specific bloodline of a small colony of dogs. However, there are tens of thousands of different bloodlines in the world which have not yet been tested for marker baseline results by Dog DNA testing companies as of 2017. For this reason Dog DNA testing companies do not guarantee the 100% accuracy of their breed lineage results and will also show different marker results for the same pure-bred breed in different continents, countries, territories, regions, breed clubs, and canine pure-breed registries depending on the goals of their breeders.

© 2024 American Canine Association, Inc.