Editing Airedale Terrier (section)

==Description==
[[File:Airedale-terrier-charles14m.jpg|right|thumb| Airedale]]

===Appearance===
[[image:Airedale Terriers Flickr.jpg|thumb|right|Airedale Terriers being judged at a [[Conformation show|dog show]].]]
The Airedale is the largest of the [[United Kingdom|British]] terriers. They weigh {{convert|19|-|25|kg}} in fit condition and have a height at the [[withers]] of {{convert|58|-|61|cm|in}} for males, with females slightly smaller.<ref name="kc_standard">{{Cite web |url=http://www.thekennelclub.org.uk/item/64 |title=The Kennel Club breed standard |access-date=2008-11-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081206050813/http://www.thekennelclub.org.uk/item/64 |archive-date=2008-12-06 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The [[American Kennel Club]] standard specifies a very slightly smaller dog. Larger Airedales, up to {{convert|55|kg|lb}} can sometimes be found in North America.  They are sometimes referred to as "Oorangs" as this was the name of a kennel in [[Ohio]] in the early 1900s that produced this much larger variation, or Roosevelt Terriers.<ref name="whatis">{{cite web|url=http://baron-von-aliff.home.att.net/whats-an-oorang.html |title=What's an Oorang? |first=Greg |last=Isabel |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090408075700/http://baron-von-aliff.home.att.net/whats-an-oorang.html |archive-date=2009-04-08 }}</ref>

The Airedale has a medium-length black and tan [[Coat (dog)|coat]] with a harsh [[Guard hair|topcoat]] and a soft [[Down hair|undercoat]]. They are an alert and energetic breed, "not aggressive but fearless."<ref name="kc_standard" /> It has been claimed that the larger "Oorang" type Airedales are more eager than the smaller, breed standard Airedales, but this is not necessarily so. The large type have been used for big game hunting and as family guardians or as pets, but usually do poorly in AKC (American Kennel Club) conformation shows. This larger type is also significantly more prone to [[hip dysplasia (canine)|hip dysplasia]] than the standard Airedales.

====Coat====
Like many terriers, this breed has a 'broken' coat, which is hard and wiry. It is meant to be kept not so long as to appear ragged, and lies straight and close, covering body and legs. The outer coat is hard, wiry and stiff, the undercoat softer. The hardest coats are crinkly or just slightly waved. Curly soft coats are highly undesirable.

The coat is commonly called [[Hypoallergenic dog breed|hypoallergenic]], but studies have not found significant differences in the levels of allergens between Airedales and other dogs.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Vredegoor |first=Doris W. |last2=Willemse |first2=Ton |last3=Chapman |first3=Martin D. |last4=Heederik |first4=Dick J.J. |last5=Krop |first5=Esmeralda J.M. |date=June 25, 2012 |title=Can f 1 levels in hair and homes of different dog breeds: Lack of evidence to describe any dog breed as hypoallergenic |url=https://publications.aap.org/pediatrics/article-pdf/132/Supplement_1/S12/901072/peds_2013-2294q.pdf |journal=Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology |volume=130 |issue=4 |pages=904–909.e7 |doi=10.1016/j.jaci.2012.05.013 |issn=0091-6749}}</ref>

Airedales bearing undercoats are generally groomed by ''hand stripping'' where a small serrated edged knife is used to pull out loose hair from the dog's coat.<ref name="rangeairevision.com">{{cite web | url=http://rangeairevision.com/educational/grooming.php | title=How to Groom an Airedale | author=Jane Harvey }}</ref>  Most Airedales require frequent (6 to 8 weeks) clipping or stripping as they do not shed.

The AKC [[breed standard]] states that the correct coat color is either a black saddle, with a tan head, ears and legs; or a dark grizzle saddle (black mixed with gray and white). Grizzle that is a mix of red hair in the black, often on the area of back before the tail are often the best and harshest coats.  There are, however, examples of non-standard black-coated and "red" (tan) coated Airedales. There are also short coated "Redline" type Airedales, similar in looks to the Airedale's early days when the breed's coats were shorter. Even with their shorter coat they still have the same hard wiry outer coat with a soft under coat and fall well within the criteria of the breed standard.

====Tail====
[[File:Wystawa Rybnik 02.10.2011 airedale terrier pl.jpg|thumbnail|This Airedale's tail is natural (undocked)]]

Traditionally the fluffy tail is long and erect. In most European countries and Australia it is illegal to [[Docking (animals)|dock]] dogs' tails unless it is for the dog's benefit (e.g., if the tail is broken). This has resulted in the emergence of a spitz tail in some dogs. Selective breeding should see this change over time and the required slightly curled tail set high on the back again become common.

In other parts of the world the Airedale's tail is commonly docked within five days of birth, but this is not considered a [[breed standard]] custom. To show an Airedale in the [[United States]], the official [[American Kennel Club|AKC]] standard states "The root of the tail should be set well up on the back. It should be carried gaily but not curled over the back. It should be of good strength and substance and of fair length."

====Size====
Airedales weigh approximately 50-80 pounds, being active and agile enough to perform well, while not too small to function as a physical deterrent, retriever or hunter. Some breeders have produced larger Airedale Terriers, such as the 'Oorang Airedale', developed in the 1920s.<ref name="dogdom">{{Cite news
  | last = Duffey
 | first = David Michael
 | title = Dogdom's Greatest Sales Pitch
 | newspaper = Outdoor Life Magazine
 | volume = 168
 | issue = 1
 }}</ref>

Ex-Army captain and Airdale breeder [[Walter Lingo]]'s monthly magazine "Oorang Comments" (#25, page 81), stated that "When full grown your Airedale dog will weigh from forty to fifty-five pounds and if a female will weigh slightly less. This is the standard weight, but when required, we can furnish oversized Airedales whose weight will be from sixty to one hundred pounds." Because Lingo tried to fill orders for everyone, the Oorang strain size was never standardized. Airedales weighing from 40 to 100 pounds were produced, but for the most part they were approximately 50 pounds and 22 to 24&nbsp;inches at the shoulder. In the United States, the male Airedales measure 40 to 70 pounds, with the Oorang strain typically in the 80 to 120 pound range.

===Temperament===

The Airedale can be used as a [[working dog]] and also as a [[hunting dog]]. Airedales exhibit some herding characteristics as well and have a propensity to chase animals. They have no problem working with [[cattle]] and [[livestock]]. However, an Airedale that is not well trained will agitate and annoy the animals.

The Airedale Terrier, like most [[terrier]]s, has been bred to hunt independently. As a result, the dog is very intelligent, independent, strong-minded, stoic, and sometimes stubborn. Airedales are also very loyal to their owners. If children and Airedales are both trained correctly, Airedales can be an excellent choice for a family dog. With training, Airedales ''can'' do well with cats and other small animals, especially when they are raised with them. However, they are bred to hunt small animals and their instinct with small animals is to attack.

[[Albert Payson Terhune]] wrote of the Airedale:<blockquote>"Among the mine-pits of the Aire, the various groups of miners each sought to develop a dog which could outfight and outhunt and outthink the other miner's dogs. Tests of the first-named virtues were made in inter-mine dog fights. Bit by bit, thus, an active, strong, heroic, compactly graceful and clever dog was evolved – the earliest true form of the Airedale.
 
He is swift, formidable, graceful, big of brain, an ideal chum and guard. ....To his master he is an adoring pal. To marauders he is a destructive lightning bolt."</blockquote>The Airedale Terrier ranks 37th in Stanley Coren's The Intelligence of Dogs, being of above average working dog.