Airedale grooming might be a little difficult. How, then, do you maintain your Airedale? Weekly maintenance of their curly coat with at least four annual trims. The Airedale terrier has a lot to offer. But first, learn everything you need to know about caring for your Airedale from the following guide.
What You Need to Know About Grooming an Airedale
Let’s speak about the regular maintenance you must perform on Airedales before we get into the intricacies of cutting their hair. When it comes to grooming an Airedale, there are three things to watch out for:
- Brushing
- Nail trimming
- Baths
How to Groom an Airedale
Brushing Your Airedale
Your Airedale will shed far less, if at all if you regularly brush the dead hair out of their thick coat. Suppose you live in a warmer climate yet wish to keep your Airedale’s coat a little longer. In that case, it can be an excellent approach to help them thermoregulate because it also helps keep them cool.
To assist cut through the wiry coat and prevent rubbing your Airedale’s skin, use a steel-pin brush or a brush with slicker bristles when brushing him. The ideal brush has two sides, one with metal bristles and the other with softer, conventional bristles.
This allows you to comb through the longer hair on your Airedale’s back and legs while utilizing the softer side for sensitive areas like the belly or face.
You will not harm their coat if you brush them with the grain of their hair. Additionally, you should clean the brush frequently because your Airedale’s thick coat may cause it to gather loose hairs quickly.
Because they are so wiry, it could take multiple brushings before you get all the dead or loose hair. When you brush a particular area, there should be little to no hair lifted by the bristles. Loose hair is a strong indicator that you did enough.
The brushing should also give your Airedale a slightly “poofy” appearance. When you get to that point, you know they are nice and clean and that you are through cleaning until the following week.
Finally, with their high energy level, Airedales may not like staying still for an extended period for brushing. Beginning this custom when the Airedale is still a puppy can help acclimate them and teach them the appropriate behavior to exhibit. You won’t have to engage in conflict every time you want to give them a brush.
Nail Trimming
Given their size and energy, it’s a good idea to trim your Airedale’s claws once a month. Playing with your Airedale will stop you or anyone else from getting scratched and make them more comfortable.
If you can hear the click of the Airedale’s claws on the ground as they walk, their claws are too long, and you need to trim them.
Similar to brushing, they may reject this therapy. You need to train Airedales from an early age. It is painful and challenging to trim a dog’s nails while wriggling, so be sure to teach your Airedale at an early age.
Bathing Your Airedale
Bathing is a contentious topic in the purist Airedale community. Some people strictly enforce the “no bathing” rule because they think it’s better for the coat. Other owners consider this to be excessive. They end up washing their Airedales only frequently.
Doing whatever suits your preferences is the best. If you believe in doing so, bathing your Airedale is a pretty standard way to do it. To make up for not washing your Airedale, brush them more frequently.
The “clean with a sponge and hose down” method works great if you don’t want to deal with the inconvenience of drenching them in water.
Use shampoo for dog skin while washing your Airedale. A milder shampoo will help reduce allergic responses in Airedales since they are prone to them. Some people prefer using a conditioner after their cleanser, although you don’t require it.
Giving your dog a brief rinse of a particular region that can be worse for wear if they get unclean between regular baths is perfectly acceptable. Beards are another area susceptible to collecting dirt and grime, so feel free to rinse them out more frequently.
The Different Airedale Grooming Cuts
Even with a regular brushing and grooming routine, you should anticipate having to cut your Airedale at least four times a year. Doing this keeps them from overgrowing, which could make your dog overheat and become dirty. Additionally, it simplifies the brushing process.
Consider giving your Airedale more frequent haircuts if you reside in a warmer climate. These canines aren’t good at hot temperatures and can soon begin to overheat. Similarly, you can let your Airedale’s hair grow longer in the winter if you live in a cooler region. Consider trimming them less than usual if they do begin growing to maintain some insulation.
Even though you can technically give your Airedale any haircut, there are four popular choices. Have a look at the following Airedale grooming chart:
| Style | Description | Hair Length | Considerations |
| Puppy Cut | This is a haircut where the hair on your Airedale is the same length. | 2 inches (5 centimeters) | The Airedale’s legs appear overly slender with this cut. Choosing the appropriate length can be challenging as well. |
| Shaggy Boy Cut | It is a haircut where you cut your Airedale’s hair periodically to prevent it from getting too long while letting it grow out wiry. | 3 to 5 inches (7 to 12 centimeters) even though it will curl and look shorter. | This style is suitable for colder regions but requires considerably more frequent maintenance. |
| Show Cut | Extremely similar to the traditional cut, with the exception of brushing the hair more and leaving some sections longer. | 1 to 5 inches (2.5 to 12 centimeters) | This cut requires significantly more upkeep, particularly in terms of brushing. |
| Traditional Cut | A trim where the legs remain long, but the back and torso of your Airedale are short. | It is 4 inches (10 centimeters) on the legs and around 1 inch (2.5 centimeters) on the back. | Although many people consider this the most typical Airedale haircut, it requires more maintenance. |
Airedale Puppy Cut
Despite being somewhat of a debatable topic in dog grooming, many people favor the “puppy cut.” This is because it is a fairly typical trim. The puppy cut is a haircut in which you cut your dog’s hair to the same length.
This cut typically has a length of 1 to 2 inches (2.5 to 5 centimeters). Many people ask for a puppy cut at the groomer because it is so straightforward.
This Airedale’s dog groom makes their legs appear very slender. But if you decide this is the course you want to take with your Airedale, you can certainly accomplish it.
One piece of advice: Before you take your dog to the groomer and ask for a puppy cut, talk to them first. It’s tough to know your groomer’s thoughts until you speak with them because there are numerous ways to interpret this cut.
If you request a standard cut but say “puppy cut,” they can give you a traditional Airedale cut instead. Conversely, if you request a puppy cut but want a traditional cut, you might find your dog fully trimmed down.
Shaggy Boy Cut
Avoid over-trimming your Airedale if you live in a cooler climate or want to let them grow out. In this sort of cut, your Airedale is cut more regularly but with fewer blades. This gives their coat additional length and a wiry appearance, which some people enjoy.
If you want to give your Airedale this haircut, we advise combing them more frequently to avoid matting. Additionally, you might need to perform extra maintenance tasks like shampooing and bathing your Airedale. However, you should be ready for a little bit more shedding.
Trim your Airedale’s hair once every two months to prevent it from becoming very bushy if you want to maintain it longer. Additionally, this cut is not good for warmer regions because it may cause your dog to become hot.
Going with a shaggy boy cut throughout the colder months and shaving your Airedale down at some point in the spring is an excellent way to walk to the line. They might require one more haircut throughout the summer, but by the time October arrives, it will be cold, and you can go back to growing their hair out longer.
Show Cut
When you send Airedales to competitions where they assess their looks, they receive a show cut. With a few changes from the normal cut mentioned above, it is generally comparable with a few differences:
- They leave the sides of the face and beard longer, while the upper face receives more grooming.
- To draw attention to the beard, they trim the chin shorter.
- The legs are longer and fluffier.
- Frequently, they leave the brows longer.
It’s you to decide whether to choose an Airedale show cut or not. The only drawback to the show cut is that it requires more upkeep in brushing. It also gets a little trickier to handle when your Airedale’s coat begins to fill out.
Traditional Cut
A traditional Airedale cut shortens their back and neck while leaving their legs long. The beard and face remain longer than the eyebrows and forehead.
Since the dogs, to be honest, kind of look funny without it, most Airedale owners adhere to this style of trim. They may resemble rats if their legs are cut too short and lose some of their attractiveness if their beards are cut too short.
Use the following procedures to groom your Airedale traditionally:
- Think about bathing them or giving them a brief brushing beforehand. Your Airedale will be easier to trim if you wash and brush them beforehand to soften their cut and remove any mats. If you choose to do this, make sure their coat is dry before beginning to cut it.
- To get your Airedale’s torso to the ‘regular’ length, use a #7 blade (or a longer blade if it’s winter). Start slightly below their skull and work your way towards their tail, making sure to move with the grain of the hair.
- Trim the Airedale’s neck and muzzle with a #10 blade, working backward to ensure that the coat blends seamlessly with the rest of their torso. Make careful to trim the Airedales from their chin to their breast.
- Straighten the eyebrows on your Airedale by grooming them. Then, using a pair of scissors, trim them to the length you like (anywhere from 1 to 2 inches (2.5 to 5 centimeters).
- Repeat the procedure by straightening out the beard. An Airedale’s beard should be 4 to 5 inches (10 to 12.7 centimeters) long; if you want to be fancy, clip the sides of the beard a little more to give it a tapered appearance.
- Trim the Airedale’s upper leg with a #5 blade, integrating it with the torso. Trim the interior of the leg using a shorter blade.
- After fluffing up the Airedale’s lower legs using a comb, trim with scissors. Trim the area around their paws and feet with care.
Are Airedales Hard to Groom?
Yes, Airedale terrier grooming can be the hardest. Due to their playful nature, they might not appreciate remaining still for a half-hour or longer while getting trimmed. When they make up their minds not to do something, it is nearly impossible to persuade them to collaborate due to their stubbornness.
You may have to put up with an Airedale growling, pouting, running away, or perhaps just lying down and refusing to move when trying to groom it. This isn’t just annoying for you; it might be dangerous if the dog is wriggling around while you’re using scissors.
So yeah, grooming an Airedale terrier may be challenging. They usually won’t cause much trouble if you teach them good behavior early.
As a result, it can occasionally be simpler and safer to hire someone else to groom your Airedale. Expert groomers will probably have more expertise handling rowdy dogs and be aware of safe handling techniques. Additionally, they’ll likely perform their duties more effectively, and the expense of grooming an Airedale is often around $80 for each session.
If you want to go this way, be careful to discuss the type of cut you want your dog to have in advance with the groomer so that everyone is on the same page. Not everyone knows the finest ways to style an Airedale.
How Long Does it Take to Groom an Airedale?
Knowing how long it will take to groom your Airedale in advance can be useful. Below are some typical timings, though exact values will change depending on your dog’s cooperation level and your level of experience:
- Cutting the hair of your Airedales will require 2 to 4 hours, especially after considering the pre-bath and clean-up.
- If you brush your Airedale frequently, it should only take 10 minutes. Expect to spend more than 30 minutes if you do it sporadically or your dog is less well-behaved.
- Bathing an Airedale can take 10 minutes to an hour, depending on how dirty they are.
- It will take around 5 minutes to cut your Airedale’s claws; if your Airedale squirms a lot, plan on spending at least 20 minutes.
How Often to Groom an Airedale
They need a complete grooming every six to eight weeks and a weekly general groom. Given that food tends to collect there, the beard should be sponge cleaned every day. The Airedale terrier is known for its unusual appearance, which includes a thick beard and bushy eyebrows.
Additionally, Airedale terriers require complete grooming at least four times a year. This refers to partial and full clipping/stripping, which eliminates the dead coat and encourages the growth of new, healthy skin.
Do Airedales Cause Allergies or Shed?
Since the coat does not shed on its own, people consider Airedales non-shedding breeds. Either they strip or trim the coat. If cut, the coat softens and develops loose curls rather than falling out, resulting in minimal shedding.
As long as you carry regular maintenance, this breed is acceptable for someone who cannot manage the fur. Spend some time around the breed if you have allergies. Do this by introducing an Airedale Terrier into your house.
Grooming a Show Dog
Similar attention is paid to socialization, diet, and hygiene whether you have a companion quality dog or a show dog. The distinction is in how you train the dog and groom it in preparation for its debut in the show ring. Given that you make most of the effort by hand, the Airedale is one of the hardest dogs to groom.
Because it is not simple to achieve, the Airedale’s grooming and presentation give the stylist a great sense of accomplishment and satisfaction. When you start the beautiful world of showing dogs, it is always very helpful if your breeder can mentor and point you in the correct direction.
General Healthcare
The foundation of any grooming is preparation work. Ear washing, dental hygiene, and pad trimming are part of the preparation process. The expert stylist stands out from the competition by mastering these abilities. Before every grooming and bathing appointment, you should make preparations. All dogs require an examination and cleaning of their ears.
Some require ear canal hair removal. By allowing for appropriate air circulation in the ear, germs and moisture in the ear canal are less likely to develop. Since some ear hair is a barrier to foreign particles, it is unnecessary to remove it altogether. Before doing this task, you must be trained to pull ear hair. You need to do nail care correctly.
Long, unattractive nails can be unhealthy and make it more challenging to maintain a nice, clean foot. Trimming the foot pads can reduce the dirt a dog tracks into the house and assist a pet with adequate traction on various surfaces. Additionally, it offers the chance to heal and protect the paws from cuts and scrapes. A healthy pet also needs to practice good oral hygiene.
Pros of Airedale Dogs
- These dogs are adorable in their silliness! They make wonderful, fascinating pets and will keep you entertained with their antics.
- When you own an Airedale Terrier, you can count on having lots of amusing dog stories.
- They are good pets for kids if they socialize them properly.
- They are sensitive to your emotions, and despite being lively, they are also adept at unwinding when you need it.
Cons of Airedale Dogs
- Airedales are extremely inventive threats. They frequently care more about advancing their own goal than making you happy. You may find them digging through the trash or even stealing a sandwich. Otherwise, your Airedale will rule the roost, so stay alert! Training must be constant, polite, and firm.
- These dogs can become pricey if you don’t learn how to remove their coats and trim them yourself.
Parting Thoughts
Black and tan is the typical coloration of Airedales, and their coat gives them the look of a typical terrier. Their fur covers their bodies almost entirely. The hair on their legs and the “beard” around their muzzles get a little longer and occasionally wavy.
It is for this reason that an Airedale terrier groom is necessary. The above guidelines will help you in taking care of your Airedale dog.