I’ve owned an Airedale terrier for my entire life, and I’ve always thought of them as extremely friendly dogs. I did some research to see if this was really the case.
So, are Airedale terriers friendly? Airedale terriers are incredibly affectionate towards their family and people they recognize. They can, however, be aloof towards strangers, although this will vary within the breed.
Once they get to know someone, Airedales are extremely friendly dogs. They love to play (the more rambunctiously, the better), socialize, and cuddle with their family and friends. With strangers, however, Airedales can tend to be a little more reserved and withdrawn, at least until they get to know the person. This hesitation towards new people can be exacerbated if the Airedale is feeling protective of their family.
How Friendly Are Airedales?
When I first started researching for this article, I was shocked to read that most breeders advised that Airedales weren’t always super friendly towards strangers. That’s because the two Airedales that I’ve had during my adult life were both extremely friendly towards both friends and strangers alike.
Because of that, I wouldn’t take this as a hard-and-fast rule that Airedales are friendly only towards the people they like. Every dog is different, and the degree to which your Airedale is friendly will depend on their own individual personality and how they’re socialized as a puppy.
With that being said, let’s look at how Airedales treat different groups of people.
Airedales and Family
When it comes to their family, Airedales are extremely friendly. These are energetic, fun-loving dogs that love nothing more than spending time with their humans. If you get your Airedale as a puppy, it will likely take a little bit of time to open up and begin to understand who’s part of their family. Once it does, however, it quickly becomes extremely friendly with these individuals.
Airedales love to play, and they love nothing more than playing with their own pack mates. Even when I take Theo to the dog park and he has endless options to run around and fight with other dogs, he still has the most fun when we’re play fighting with him.
Even if you get a more low-energy dog, Airedales still find ways to show their affection. They tend to follow you around the house, and while they don’t always like to cuddle, they’ll happiest when they’re inn the same room. If we’re doing a family activity (like a board game night), my airedale Theo loves to interpose himself wherever we’re sitting so that he can be part of the action.
So, when it comes to family, Airedales are extremely friendly dogs. They love nothing more than spending time with their family. If you want an affectionate dog who’s always ready to play, these are great options.
For more information about how Airedales show their affection, check out my link here!
Airedales and Friends
When it comes to friends, Airedales are just as boisterous. They’re intelligent enough to recognize humans who they’ve met before, even if they go months at a time between seeing them. Once they learn to trust someone, they’re almost as social towards them as their own family members.
As a puppy, it might be a good idea to spend some alone time with your Airedale before you introduce them to friends so that the dog learns to draw the distinction. With that being said, though, it’s also important to socialize your Airedale and expose them to different types of humans, so that they can learn that even people outside of the family are OK to be affectionate with.
This is because Airedales, while being playful and happy with friends, can be a little reserved towards people they don’t know. Playing with the Airedale, giving it food, or just being comfortable and friendly with the Airedales owner are a good way to teach it that you’re a friend.
Airedales with Babies
When properly socialized and matured, Airedales can make excellent babysitters, and they’re a great companion to any small children you may have. When my sister and I were toddlers our family had an Airedale, and he was a perfect with us: he protected us from strangers, played with us (but very gently), and allowed us to sit/lie on him (as kids do).
Young Airedales, however, are sometimes not the best mix with small children. They’re not aggressive towards them, but they sometimes don’t always understand just how fragile kids are. These are playful dogs, especially during their puppy stages, and they love to play rough. The majority of rescue Airedales come from families that brought in an Airedale puppy while they had small children in the house, and had to give the dog up because it played too rough with their children.
If you have a mature Airedale when you bring kids into your family, you should be fine. Introducing a young Airedale to young children, however, is not always the best option.
Airedales with Strangers
When it comes to strangers, Airedales tend to be a little less outgoing, especially under certain circumstances. For example, when I was a baby and my dad was out of town in on business, our Airedale would be downright hostile towards strangers. He didn’t want anyone he didn’t know coming near the children that he considered himself in charge of.
Even without newborns to protect, Airedales can be indifferent towards strangers until they get to know them. Because they’re a proud breed, Airedales will usually treat strangers with a good degree of politeness — they won’t be rude or mean, in most cases — but you can expect your Airedale to remain suspicious of any newcomers.
Good socialization at a young age can help with this, although in some dogs, it will be a trait that’s impossible to get rid of. This reaction stems from the Airedales protective nature.
Airedales with Other Animals
When it comes to other animals, the degree to which an Airedale is familiar with them usually has to do with how well they’re socialized. Airedales can respond well to other animals, but there’s also the risk of their hunter instinct kicking in if they’re not exposed from a young age.
Dogs
Airedales are not aggressive towards other dogs, but rarely will they back down, either. When it comes to strangers, Airedales typically approach other dogs with a ‘I’ll treat you how you treat me’ type of mentality. They’re happy to play, but if things get a little heated, the Airedale will almost always choose to stand their ground.
With dogs that they’re familiar with (and like), Airedales will revert to their playful, energetic ways. They love to fight, and they do so very rowdily. Pair them with a dog that’s their size (or larger) who they can play fight with, and the Airedale will be as happy as can be.
Cats
Airedales can be friendly towards cats, as long as they’re properly exposed and socialized from a young age. As long as they learn as a puppy to not be aggressive towards them, Airedales have been known to accept cats into their family and treat them as friends.
Without proper socialization, though, this isn’t always the case. Airedales have a deep-seated hunter’s instinct, and this can kick in at any time. Especially when your Airedale is young, they’re liable to chase down other animals.
Socializing Your Airedale
I’ve mentioned several times throughout this article how important it is to properly socialize your Airedale. At their roots, these dogs are hunters and guardians, who were bred for police and military work. They have deep-set protective instincts that can become harmful if they’re allowed to grow unchecked.
To avoid this, it’s important to expose your Airedale at a young age to a variety of friendly people, so that your Airedale will learn how normal, ‘good’ people behave. This can teach your Airedale that not everyone is a threat; once they learn this, they will be less inclined to treat normal people with hostility or suspicion.
In terms of other dogs, it’s important to expose the Airedale to them at a young age. Now, when doing this, you need to be aware of a couple of things:
- Your Airedale will want to play with other dogs, and it will likely want to do so energetically. This can involve jumping, biting, and barking, which not all other dogs will like.
- Airedales are a proud, bold breed. They’re unlikely to back down, even if they’re facing a larger dog.
Sometimes, other dogs will become fed up with the Airedale and might growl, snap, or actually bite them. In small and non-harmful quantities, this can actually be good for the Airedale: they’re such a headstrong, energetic breed that it’s useful for them to be taught a lesson every now and then. Whenever my Airedale Theo starts getting too rowdy with a bigger dog, I’m all too happy to see him get pinned down by said dog, because it teaches him to understand when a dog doesn’t want to play.
Now, obviously, you don’t want your dog to get hurt by a different dog, but it’s not the worst thing to have them get taught a lesson. It can help with their socialization and helps them to get a better idea of their boundaries.
In summary, socializing your Airedale is a fairly simple process of exposing them to normal, friendly people (and normal, friendly dogs) so they can begin to understand that not all strangers need to be treated with hostility. It’s best to do this at a young age.