The airdales coat

In color
this should be a deep, rich tan on the head, face,
chest, legs, and under parts, while over the back
is a saddle of black or iron-grey. Personally, I
like the black more than the grizzle, for it makes
a prettier contrast with the tan, but " a good
horse cannot be a bad color." The Airedale's
coat is (or rather should be) double. The over-
coat is of hair like wire, stiff and hard, about an
inch long all over the dog, except on the skull
where it is shorter. Under this jacket of wire,
there ought to be a vest of soft, woolly hair.

If you can collect in your mind's eye all the
above details of description you should see a big,
strong, compact, businesslike dog, full of the
proverbial up-and-ever-coming spirit that inspires
all terriers. His every movement shows strength,
yet he always moves in that effort-economizing
way which is the very personification of grace.

The biggest and best terrier airedale

 The biggest and best terrier  indeed fits 
him to a T, but it does not convey any very defi- 
nite idea as to what he should look like. Even 
his most enthusiastic admirers never claimed 
beauty for the Airedale. He is not pretty, un- 
less we acknowledge that " handsome is that 
handsome does," and can see the beauty of per- 
fect symmetry under wiry coat and odd coloring. 

A good Airedale is about as big as a pointer; 
somewhere in the neighborhood of forty-five 
pounds, a little more for a dog and a little less 
for a bitch. His head should be long; the skull 
flat and broad; the cheeks smooth; the muzzle 
strong with tight lips over big, white, even teeth. 
His eyes should be small, dark, and full of fire 
and his ears little, carried high, and shaped like 
a V, for nothing can so detract from the correct 
terrier expression as large, light eyes and houndy 
ears. His front legs ought to be a pair of gun 
barrels, straight and strong and about the same 
thickness all the way down. His shoulders are 
like those of a race horse, long and sloping; 
while his pads should be firm and hard, not those 
loose, sprawly feet sometimes seen. 

The only kind of a back for him to have is 
short, and his ribs must be well sprung. A long 
backed dog lacks staying qualities, and a slab- 
sided one has not the room for lungs. His chest 
should be deep, but narrow, and he should be 
slightly cut up in the loin not the wasp-like 
waist of a greyhound, but no better is a body 
like a stovepipe. His hindquarters should be, 
strong, with the hocks quite near the ground. 
The Airedale that does not carry a gay tail is a 
delight to no eye. 

The biggest and best terrier The Airedale

The biggest and best terrier  The Airedale

IT was in the Merchants' Hotel, Manchester 
a famous gathering place for the dog 
fanciers of the English Midlands, the most 
thickly dog populated district in the whole world 
that one autumn evening I heard the best defi- 
nition of an Airedale that I ever knew. A party 
of us, fresh from some bench show, were seated' 
round a table waiting for dinner, and naturally 
we were talking dog, telling dog stories, anec- 
dotes, and jokes. I gave the American definition 
of a dachshund ; " half a dog high and a dog and 
a half long," and Theodore Marples, editor of 
Our Dogs, turning to a quiet little man, noted 
as a wild fanatic on the subject of Airedales, 
asked him his definition of his favorite breed. 
Quick as a spark he answered, " The biggest and 
best terrier ! " 

There are thousands of people, all sorts of 
people from bankers to beggars, scattered all 
over this earth from Dawson City to Capetown, 
from Moscow to Manila, who will echo the state- 

9 



10 THE AIREDALE 

ment that the Airedale is indeed the biggest and 
the best of all the terriers. Moreover, their 
votes would not be bribed by mere sentiment, but 
based upon good, sound reasons, for it is certain 
that he is the biggest, and he is " best ** at doing 
more things than any other dog in the stud book. 

An Airedale will drive sheep or cattle ; he will 
help drag a sled; he will tend the baby; he will 
hunt anything from a bear to a field mouse. He 
can run like a wolf and will take to water like an 
otter. He does not " butt in " looking for trou- 
ble with each dog that he passes on the street, 
but once he is " in " he will stick, for he is game 
as a pebble. He is kind, obedient, thoroughly 
trustworthy as a companion for children, or a 
watchman for your property. He has the dis- 
position of a lamb combined with the courage of a 
lion. He is certainly the most all-round dog that 
there is and, unlike many Jacks-of-all-trades, he 
is apparently quite able to master all tasks a dog 
is called upon to perform. 

Over and above his talents and his character, 
the Airedale has a constitution made of steel and 
stone. He is equally at home in the snow wastes 
of the Arctic Circle and on the alkali deserts of 
Arizona. The dry, bracing air of Colorado and 
the fever-soaked atmosphere of Florida's Ever- 
glades both seem to agree with him perfectly. 

Welcome to the airedale Terrier Blog

Welcome to the Airedale Terrier blog.
This site will offer a wealth of information about this awesome breed.
Enjoy