AIREDALE TERRIER 



Airedale Terrier. — This old English breed is a native 

 of the North Country, where he was originally known 

 as the waterside dog, in consequence of his fondness for 

 taking to the water in pursuit of vermin. It is indeed 

 possible that the old name was more appropriate to the 

 breed than the modern one, for the Airedale is rather a 

 big dog to fulfil the functions of a terrier in the way of 

 going to ground, as he stands well over 20 inches at the 

 shoulder ; on the other hand, there can be no denying 

 either his courage, his staying powers, or his hunting 

 proclivities, all of which have combined to render him 

 as popular as he is. His skull is long, flat, not too wide, 

 and tapers somewhat towards the muzzle, which in turn 

 should be powerful, well filled up in front of the eyes and 

 of a good length, the teeth being large, regular, and very 

 strong, the eyes dark and rather small, and the ears small, 

 V-shaped, and carried flat to the sides of the head. There 

 should be no stop or indentation between the eyes, nor 

 any superfluous skin about any part of the head, which 

 should be long and lean, with powerful-looking jaws. 

 The neck is of good length and free from any approach 

 to throatiness ; the shoulders long and sloping ; the chest 

 inclined to be narrow but deep, so as to provide room 

 for the heart and lungs ; the forelegs of fair length, quite 

 straight, and heavy in bone ; and the feet small and round. 

 The back should be both level and short, showing plenty 

 of muscle ; the loins being powerful and the hind-quarters 

 very muscular, the tail, which is usually docked, being set 

 on high, the stifles being slightly bent and the hocks near 

 to the ground. The coat, as in the case of all water-dogs, 

 must be close and weather-resisting ; it is also very hard 

 and wiry, lying close to the body, so that it does not 

 appear to be so long as it really is. The prevailing colour 

 is tan, of a rather darker shade on the ears, but the body is 

 either a dark grizzle or black, and there are dark markings 

 on each side of the head. The height is about 22 inches, 

 and the weight from 35 to 50 lbs. 



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