Do Airedale Terriers Shed Or Not?

Airedale Terriers carry a double coat. The outer coat is hard and stiff when the animal is not regularly trimmed or groomed for show. The undercoat is shorter and much softer. There is variation in various breed lines, but all these dogs have the two layered coat.

In areas where winters are harsh and the dogs are not closely clipped during that season the spent hair sheds when new growth is pushed up from the hair follicles. This hair comes off as fluff in small balls. If the Airedale is an indoor animal these hair balls will be seen at times on the floor or under furniture. It is easily swept or vacuumed up.

Airedale Terriers do not shed the single coat of stiff hair that other terriers drop. They do not produce that sticky hair which clings to upholstery, the dog's bedding, the owner's best Sunday clothing, and is very difficult to brush off or vacuum.

The cycle of hair growth in the Airedale breed from the follicle stage to mature hair and the shedding or moulting stage occurs off and on or constantly depending on age, breed and whether the dogs are indoor or outdoor dogs or both.

Any loose hair that the Airedale breed naturally sheds can be removed easily by regularly brushing the dog with a good metal bristle brush with rounded nobs or tips, or by hand stripping. The stripping comb used is a small serrated edged knife which pulls the loose hair from the animal's body.

Hand stripping with a stripping comb is done by breeders who groom their dogs for show and owners who like the trim look of a hand stripped Airedale.

As this shows, is true to say that Airedale Terriers do not shed or moult in the same way that many other breeds do, though they do drop some hair fluff.