Is an Airedale the right match for you and your family?

If you've had an Airedale before, you're familiar with the fun-loving personality of this breed. You know an Airedale is smart, curious and strong-willed. You also know he needs owners who are capable of and willing to do obedience training with their Airedale if they expect to have a well-mannered canine companion. For those who have not lived with an Airedale as a member of their family, please read on.

Undoubtedly you've heard this many times: "This breed is not for everyone." This phrase is often repeated, and there is a valid reason for doing so. Each breed has their own typical characteristics and when you're looking for a dog to be part of your family, you want one that best fits your family's lifestyle.

In general, an Airedale tends to be:

  1. More energetic rather than being more laid back
  2. More independent rather than being more obedient
  3. More dominant rather than being more submissive
  4. More spirited rather than being more docile
  5. Happier as an inside dog than an outside dog

The Airedale is often called a clown, because of his wonderful sense of humor. He is intelligent, and likes to be a leader. An Airedale is curious and will want to be part of everything that goes on in your family. When you walk into the house with a bag of groceries, he will want to stick his nose in the bag to see what you bought! He will want to interact with all your guests, and may feel quite insulted if not allowed to do so.

To test yourself to see if you are "An Airedale Type Person," take this fun test:

  • Your Airedale has discovered the door stoppers in your home. He's learned to pull the springs back so they make that wonderful "boingy" noise when released. Do you:
  1. Scold him for daring to have fun.
  2. Remove the door stoppers while he's not looking and worry about it later.
  3. Get your harmonica and join in the music making.
  • Your Airedale leaves puddles of water all over the floor as he makes multiple passes by the water bowl and then lovingly places his very wet beard in your lap as you sit quietly reading. You respond by:
  1. Grabbing the scissors and cutting off his beard and whiskers.
  2. Putting his bowl outside and only allow him to drink there.
  3. Smiling to yourself, thinking, "That's my boy!" while getting the towel you keep handy for this purpose.
  • Your Airedale puppy is digging holes in your garden. Do you:
  1. Cry and scream because your perfect garden is disturbed.
  2. Never let the dog in the yard again.
  3. Realize that it is normal for terriers to dig, so train the pup to dig only in "his" designated area.
  • You're in the bathroom and your Airedale insists on joining you. Do you:
  1. Insist this is totally improper, scold him for not staying out of the way and promptly lock him in his crate for punishment.
  2. Give in. Leave the door open.
  3. Accept his company and figure this is a good time to have him practice his sit and stay commands.

If you selected the first (a) choices above, we definitely suggest you continue your breed research because we don't feel an Airedale is the breed for you. However, if you're still grinning and laughing at the imagined scenes, stay with us – this might be the breed for you.

In most cases we find that an Airedale needs the benefit of a fenced yard in which to exercise and play. Our experience has shown that electronic fences are not always satisfactory to contain Airedales therefore we require barrier fences rather than electronic fences for our rescue Airedales.

Airedales do require regular grooming. They require regular brushing and will need to be professionally groomed 4 to 6 times per year. Owners can learn to groom their own dogs and our club has a grooming seminar once each year to assist you in learning how to groom your own Airedale.

We want to make a good match between the Rescue Airedale and the Waiting Family. To do that, we consider many things, such as (but not limited to):

  • Do you have other pets in your home, and is this dog good with other pets?
  • Do you have children in your family and is this dog good with children?
  • Is the waiting family willing to obedience train the rescue, if needed?
  • If the family has requested a young rescue, does their lifestyle provide them with enough time with the dog to give it the required exercise and obedience training?
  • If all adults in the family are employed, how many hours will the dog be left alone?

When you are completing your Application for Adoption of an Airedale Rescue, please be as complete and honest as possible, because only then can be make a match that will be in everyone's best interest.