Standards Of The Breed

The standards which have been adopted by the Airedale Terrier Club of America, Inc. and approved by the American Kennel Club, set the present-day ideal for which Airedale Terrier breeders are aiming. It is by these standards that the dog is judged in the show ring. However, even the most perfect specimen falls short of the standards in some respect. It's also impossible, even for a breeder or veterinarian, to tell how a puppy will shape up as an adult dog. The chances are that he will inherit the qualities for which his father and mother-or sire and dam in dog language-were bred, and if both his parents and grandparents had good show records he may have excellent possibilities.

Here, then, are the standards:
HEAD: Should be well balanced with little apparent difference between the length of skull and foreface.
SKULL: Should be long and flat, not too broad between the ears and narrowing very slightly to the eyes. Scalp should be free from wrinkles, stop hardly visible and cheeks level and free from fullness.
EARS: Should be V-shaped with carriage rather to the side of the head, not pointing to the eyes, small but not out of proportion to the size of the dog. The top line of the folded ear should be above the level of the skull.
FOREFACE: Should be deep, powerful, strong and muscular. Should be well filled up before the eyes.
EYES: Should be dark, small, not prominent, full of terrier expression, keenness and intelligence.
LIPS: Should be tight.
NOSE: Should be black and not too small.
TEETH: Should be strong and white, free from discoloration or defect. Bite either level or vise-like. A slightly overlapping or scissor bite is permissible without preference.
NECK: Should be of moderate length and thickness gradually widening towards the shoulders. Skin tight, not loose.
SHOULDERS AND CHEST: Shoulders long and sloping well into the back. Shoulder blades flat. From the front, chest deep but not broad. The depth of the chest should be approximately on a level with the elbows.
BODY: Back should be short, strong and level. Ribs well sprung. Loins muscular and of good width. There should be but little space between the last rib and the hip joint.
HINDQUARTERS: Should be strong and muscular with no droop.
TAIL: 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.
LEGS-FORELEGS: Should be perfectly straight, with plenty of muscle and bone.
ELBOWS: Should be perpendicular to the body, working free of sides.
THIGHS: Should be long and powerful with muscular second thigh stifles well bent, not turned either in or out, hocks well let down parallel with each other when viewed from behind.
FEET: Should be small, round and compact with a good depth of pad, well cushioned; the toes moderately arched, not turned either in or out.
COAT: Should be hard, dense and wiry, lying straight and close, covering the dog well over the body and legs. Some of the hardest are crinkling or just slightly waved. At the base of the hard very stiff hair should be a shorter growth of softer hair termed the undercoat.
COLOR: The head and ears should be tan, the ears being of a darker shade than the rest. Dark markings on either side of the skull are permissible. The legs up to the thighs and elbows and the underpart of the body and chest are also tan and the tan frequently runs into the shoulder. The sides and upper parts ofthe body should be black or dark grizzle. A red mixture is often found in the black and is not to be considered objectionable. A small white blaze on the chest is a characteristic of certain strains of the breed.
SIZE: Dogs should measure approximately 23 inches in height at the shoulder; females, slightly less. Both sexes should be sturdy, well muscled and boned.
MOVEMENT: Movement or action is the crucial test of conformation. Movement; should be free. As seen from the front the forelegs should swing perpendicuar from the body free from the sides, the feet the same distance apart as the elbows. As seen from the rear the hind legs should be parallel with each other neither too close nor too far apart, but so placed as to give strong well-balanced stance and movement. The toes should not be turned either in or out.

Faults: Yellow eyes, hound ears, white feet, soft coat, being much over or under the size limit, being undershot or overshot, having poor movement.

Scale Of Points

Head Neck, shoulders and chest Body Hindquarters and tail Legs and feet Coat Color Size Movement General characteristics and expression Total

10 10 10 10 10 10 5 10 10 15 100