Airedale Terrier. Bardi McLennan
from the UK picked up quickly, especially after 1945.
Mollie Harmsworth’s Bengal affix lives on in numerous pedigrees throughout the world. Ch. Bengal Sabu was not shown in England, but his outstanding success as a show dog and sire in the US in the 1960s brought him to the attention of breeders. However, it was his silly side that endeared him to all who knew him. One such moment is captured in Barbara Strebeigh’s amusing snapshots of the great Sabu sporting a full Native American feather headdress while riding a child’s tricycle. His temperament did much to popularize the breed.
George and Olive Jackson (Jokyl) bred or owned 50 champions from 1958 to 1992, and a Jokyl dog or bitch was sire or dam of an additional 30! And the list goes on. Given that only eight to ten champions are made up in the breed each year, this is truly a great record. One dog, bred by Mrs. Harmsworth and owned by the Jacksons, Jokyl Bengal Figaro, was a film star in America, then (based in Germany) toured the Continent and became the first truly international champion Airedale before returning to the UK. Ch. Jokyl Gallipants was a particular standout in Airedale history, earning Top Dog All-Breeds in 1983, Top Airedale in 1984, Top Airedale Sire in 1985 and Top Terrier Sire in 1986!
ATCA
The breed’s parent club in the US, the Airedale Terrier Club of America (ATCA), is a dedicated organization over a century old. Since its inception in 1900, the club has worked to promote and protect the breed in the US through its shows, educational programs, record-keeping, careful breeding and much more on behalf of the Airedale. The ATCA can be found online at www.airedale.org and is a wonderful source of breed information for fanciers and prospective owners.
The breed remains popular in the UK and in the US, ranking in the top 50 most popular breeds registered by the American Kennel Club (AKC). America has had a long love affair with the Airedale where, as mentioned, he has been prized as a show dog, as a hunter of all types of game, large and small, on land and water, and as a companion. Many pet owners go from childhood to retirement with one Airedale after another. The fact that the Airedale Terrier Club of America was founded in 1900, rather shortly after the breed’s arrival to the US, resulted from the enthusiasm of early importers of this “new” terrier breed.
The Airedale is presently popular throughout the world, with all his related activities strongly supported by club members. In Italy, Airedales are classified as guard dogs, not terriers, perhaps only by definition limiting their other capabilities. Since 1945, Airedales have twice taken the Supreme Champion title at Crufts Dog Show. The millennium celebration of the Airedale Terrier, from June 23–25, 2000 in Bingley, surely marked one of the great milestones of the breed.
Strict rules in Germany govern all breeding of pure-bred dogs. The three- to five-day-old litter is inspected by a breed “specialist” from the national kennel club who checks each puppy, and the breeder is allowed to keep only the best; the others are destroyed. Despite this, Germany boasts the Airedale as one of the country’s most popular terrier breeds with members of Klub für Terrier active in all aspects of breeding, showing and guard-dog training. Dogs in Germany and Finland must prove their working ability before making up champions. Dr. Hannibal-Friedrich’s multiple-title-holder, Headhunter von der Locher Muhle, not only is siring winning puppies on the Continent but also has sired promising litters in the US via frozen semen.
In 1894, the first (English) Airedale appeared in a Swedish dog show in Stockholm. The breed was slow to catch on, but with imports from England and Germany, the Airedale population rose steadily. Stig Ahlberg (Ragtime), the “father of Swedish Airedales,” owned the bitch Ch. Drakehall Dinah, who was Best in Show at the Centenary Show in 1976. Ahlberg is a highly sought-after judge in the US and Europe. Among today’s breeders, Pia and Stefan Lundberg (Pinto) are as successful at home as are their exports to Australia. Tail docking is currently banned in Sweden, but as in other countries where the ban has been in effect, there is a strong movement gaining ground to once again allow tail docking.
Prized for their vigilant guarding ability, Airedales have been used to protect exclusive stores for decades. This Airedale guarded a famous jewelry boutique in London.
A vital venture in Norway is the snow rescue service by the Red Cross and police in which Airedales have proven their diverse capabilities. An Airedale fortuitously named Doctor Lavin was whelped in 1979. After years of training, he passed his Avalanche Rescue Tests in 1984 and was made a champion the next year. He also competed in agility and continued with rescues, living his full life until the age of 13.
One Airedale in Denmark stood out, not only as Top Dog in 1995 and 1996, but for the number of titles he won for his owner, Mrs. Rita Ahle Erichsen. He is Am./Int. Ch. Darbywood’s Preferred Stock, bred by Jean Surfus in Wisconsin. After finishing his American championship, “Stockton” went to live in Denmark, where he became an International Champion and Best in Show winner in Europe. Stockton also won the Best Terrier Progeny Class at the European Dog Show in Copenhagen in 1997. Among his offspring are many European champions and a daughter who went BIS at the Airedale Terrier Club of America’s national specialty. His extraordinary type lives on in his top-quality offspring in Europe and the US.
In Finland, the breed is known as keen hunters of every type of prey from mice to elk. They are also active in agility, obedience and working trials (and must pass working tests before being granted a championship), proving them truly successful all-purpose dogs. Finland even boasts a summer camp for Airedale Terriers and their owners. Currently, Pirjo Hjelm’s Big Lady kennels has some of the best dogs in the country.
AIREDALE “SUPER BOWL”
The Airedale Bowl, a perpetual trophy of the Airedale Terrier Club of America, has been awarded in Best of Breed Competition since 1910 and is now awarded no more than five times a year at the discretion of the Executive Committee. It is valued at $14,000 and remains in the possession of the club, with the winner receiving a commemorative award. Numerous bases have been added to the silver bowl to accommodate the names of the winners. The “Bowl” now stands approximately five feet tall! It is displayed and proudly photographed at the club’s specialty shows.
Stringent rules also govern the breeding of dogs in Russia. Permission must be obtained from a Club Council for every mating or the resulting litter cannot be shown. Russia began with bloodlines from many famous English kennels, but in the 1990s leaned heavily on US imports such as the Russian Best in Show winner Ch. Spindletop’s Desperado, a littermate to the US’s top Airedale, Ch. Spindletop’s New Kid In Town, bred by Anne Reese. Desperado is owned by Valentine Egorova of Saratov. Other top American dogs have gone to Helen Kukoleva (Emerald Dalikul) from Aletta Moore (Epoch).
There is a little controversy at present with the “old school” preferring the old-style bigger, slightly longer-bodied dogs with extremely hard coats and gorgeous heads, mostly coming down from Bengal and Mynair stock. The newer generation of breeders goes for dogs termed “Western-style” or those bred from American imports. The latter have managed to retain the good heads, which may mean that Russian imports will be appearing on the American show scene.
Airedales in Australian shows were originally shown in “the rough.” The first trimmed dogs were shown by L. Latchford (Aerial) in 1918 and created quite a stir, although everyone quickly followed suit. More recently, several kennels have been outstandingly successful, among them Mrs. Pauline Lewis’s Moylarg, Mrs. Geisla Lesh’s Strongfort, Bob and Jane Harvey’s Rangeaire, Keith and Patricia Lovell’s Tjuringa and David and Di Barclay’s York Park.
Ch. Brentleigh Ben Nevis, CD became a breed legend. He was the top winner for three consecutive years and was the first Airedale in Victoria to earn an obedience title. Although Ben Nevis died very young (age 7), he left behind 18 champions; 2 sons went on to earn CDX degrees and another led the life of a fox hunter and never saw the show ring but sired several champions.
Japan has been smitten by the Airedale since the 1920s. The Japan Airedale Terrier