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June 2, 2010:
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Questions & Answers
Here I will attempt to answer questions people have about Airedales. Please help me! Send me any questions you may have via the feedback form at the bottom. I will answer your questions to the best of my ability. I will send you a reply and post the question and answer on this page. If you wish me to credit the question to you please tell me that in your note.
Do Airedales get along with cats?
What is the difference between the black Airedale and the regular Airedale?
Do Airedales get along with cats?
That is a very good question. I will tell you what my experience has been. I had a 5 year old calico cat, Nan, when I got my first Airedale. Nan hated dogs. When I brought Echo home she went off in a huff and stayed away for a month. Nan is an indoor/outdoor cat. Two years later I got another 'dale, two years after that I got the third. It has taken Nan five years but she has learned to put up with the dogs. Last week she was sleeping in my room nights. I let Echo in one evening to sleep with me. Nan came to the door, and was appalled, what was a dog doing in "her" room!?! I watched in amazement, instead of very carefully leaving as she usually does she hissed and spat but kept going. She was determined! She inched into the room and dashed under the bed to the other side then jumped on the bed and curled up for a nap. All three of us spent a peaceful night, Nan and I on the bed and Echo on her blanket beside the bed. I don't expect Nan will ever "like" dogs but she has learned the dogs won't touch her when she is inside. It has taken a bit of training on the dogs' part. Airedales have a pretty strong prey drive, some more than others, of course. Right from the start I trained them that cats, (and rabbits and chickens) are prey they are NOT allowed to chase. They get a good scolding if I catch them do it. I don't even let them sit and stare at the cats, I think it is too tempting. I tell them "No!" and turn their mind to something else, a game of ball or a carrot to munch on. The dogs wouldn't dream of bothering a cat in the house but outside, if the cat runs and I'm not looking, they will chase them. A lot depends on the cat, if the cat runs they will chase, if the cat won't run they get bored and leave it alone. The year I got my second Airedale I also got a kitten. That worked a little better, Tansy grew up with the dogs, when she was little she got along pretty well. If a dog got too close she would hiss and bat them on the nose. She has gotten crotchety as she gets older, now she just tolerates them and stays out of their way as much as possible. Last year I was adopted by the spunkiest little gray and white cat I've ever met. Angel is the first cat I've met that likes dogs. She will lay out on the step sunning herself and let my very energetic year old 'dale come right up and sniff her tummy. She doesn't hiss or growl and best of all she doesn't run. I am delighted, at last I have a cat who can help me train puppies. Nan and Tansy strongly dislike the energetic puppies but I'm hoping Angel will play with them so I can teach the pups to be gentle with cats. So that's kind of a roundabout way of saying, with careful training Airedales and cats can get along quite well. The closer you can watch them the better they will do. That is why my dogs are perfect inside and not outside. I'm not always outside when the cats are to keep an eye on them so the dogs have learned that they can get away with it if I'm not looking. A lot depends on the cats themselves. Airedales can also be trained to get along with chickens.
What is the difference between the black Airedale and the regular Airedale?
The only difference between the black Airedales and the regular Airedales is the color. Nobody is sure exactly how the solid black started but somewhere back down the line they “forgot” to tan out. Someone with a better understanding of genetics than me could probably explain it. The black Airedales are still purebred ‘dales. One breeder of blacks has traced their pedigree (and DNA!) all the way back to the kennels they started in, Mt. View and Mooreland kennels in Tennessee. It is my understanding that once upon a time AKC registered solid black Airedales, but somewhere along the line they changed their minds and kicked them out. I register my blacks and the black & tans born to my black girl with CKC (Continental Kennel Club). Some people say that the black Airedales tend to be more aloof; I have not found that to be so. Their personalities are just as varied as the black & tans, and just as wonderful! The blacks are extremely handsome dogs, in my humble opinion. Pictures do not do them justice.
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