Airedale

[fielder 18]

Hi Skycat, any chance of an update on the airedale when you get chance?

[Guest miller1989]

Hi Skycat, any chance of an update on the airedale when you get chance?

 

Shouldnt you just pm him,ive an airedale x not many people have them that i know off! Very interesting clever animals!

[skycat 6,174]

Dill is now just 12 months old: just come out of her first season, and only the other day I was saying that she was still a bit puppyish: we went on a fox drive a few weeks ago and unfortunately she didn't get to see any foxes before they were shot dead. So I took a brush and threw it around for her: she spent ages shaking it and generally pratting about though didn't really show any interest in the dead foxes when she saw them.

My mate asked me if I was 'going to persevere' with her!! I think he thought that she'd be 'up and running' by now. These dogs are slow to mature: I wasn't worried.

 

Only last week the terriers and Dill flushed a big dog fox from deep cover: the gun took a shot but only clipped it and it headed back into the brambles. In little under a minute there was an almighty roar from the brambles, and by the time I got round the other side they were all ragging the carcase: Dill was going absolutely mental on it and carried on shaking it long after the other dogs had lost interest: she had a nick on one ear: whether that was from the fox or a thorn I'm not quite sure, but she was definitely seeing the fox as something to be dealt with in a severe fashion.

 

I let her rag the carcase until she was knackered, lying down on top of it panting like a steam train. Let's hope that encounter has wakened an interest: somehow I think it had LOL Next fox drive in a couple of weeks!

 

I'm totally pleased with her in every way, though I would have liked her to be a big longer in the leg: she's like a concrete block on shortish legs. She's been hard work on the obedience front, very responsive but just as keen to hunt, and you can't beat obedience into these dogs though I have had to be quite firm with her when she started cocking a deaf 'un.

 

Now she seems to have realised the value of sticking with the pack and working as one of the team, though she still wants to go off on her own given half a chance if there's nothing much happening. I'ts down to me to make sure I take her to places where there is plenty of scent so she doesn't have to bugger off to find her own.

 

Turning into a good guard dog too, though there is absolutely no malice in her whatsoever. A thoroughly nice dog all round and a real companion too, always ready for a game of fetch or whatever.

 

I'll let you all know how we get on on the next fox drive.

 

PS MIller: what cross is your Airedale?

Edited January 29, 2009 by skycat

[Guest miller1989]

1/4 BULL 1/4 AIREDALE 1/2 GREYHOUND 2yrs 25-26tts! Never realy hear many people having the airedale or a cross so everytime i see AIREDALE i like to get involved and try to find out more! I know bit about them but not alot! Nice to see some people working them!

[adeyhawk1970 0]

Dill is now just 12 months old: just come out of her first season, and only the other day I was saying that she was still a bit puppyish: we went on a fox drive a few weeks ago and unfortunately she didn't get to see any foxes before they were shot dead. So I took a brush and threw it around for her: she spent ages shaking it and generally pratting about though didn't really show any interest in the dead foxes when she saw them.

My mate asked me if I was 'going to persevere' with her!! I think he thought that she'd be 'up and running' by now. These dogs are slow to mature: I wasn't worried.

 

Only last week the terriers and Dill flushed a big dog fox from deep cover: the gun took a shot but only clipped it and it headed back into the brambles. In little under a minute there was an almighty roar from the brambles, and by the time I got round the other side they were all ragging the carcase: Dill was going absolutely mental on it and carried on shaking it long after the other dogs had lost interest: she had a nick on one ear: whether that was from the fox or a thorn I'm not quite sure, but she was definitely seeing the fox as something to be dealt with in a severe fashion.

 

I let her rag the carcase until she was knackered, lying down on top of it panting like a steam train. Let's hope that encounter has wakened an interest: somehow I think it had LOL Next fox drive in a couple of weeks!

 

I'm totally pleased with her in every way, though I would have liked her to be a big longer in the leg: she's like a concrete block on shortish legs. She's been hard work on the obedience front, very responsive but just as keen to hunt, and you can't beat obedience into these dogs though I have had to be quite firm with her when she started cocking a deaf 'un.

 

Now she seems to have realised the value of sticking with the pack and working as one of the team, though she still wants to go off on her own given half a chance if there's nothing much happening. I'ts down to me to make sure I take her to places where there is plenty of scent so she doesn't have to bugger off to find her own.

 

Turning into a good guard dog too, though there is absolutely no malice in her whatsoever. A thoroughly nice dog all round and a real companion too, always ready for a game of fetch or whatever.

 

I'll let you all know how we get on on the next fox drive.

 

PS MIller: what cross is your Airedale?

Glad to hear Dill is progressing well,how is Scarlett getting on ?

[skycat 6,174]

Scarlett, Dill's sister, who I took in after her owner could no longer keep her, went to a very good pet home. Nothing wrong with her, but it was obvious straight away that at 11 months old I was going to end up with serious double trouble, Scarlett following Dill everywhere....and far away. LOL Litter mates egging eachother on etc.

Scarlett on her own was quite shy, unsocialised and backward in many ways, so I made the decision to let her go to a pet home where the only demands made on her would be to be a good companion dog. She's getting on very well and I'm happy for her. I think she might have made a decent working dog in the right hands, but with not having had much done with her there would have been a real uphill struggle to get her going forward, and more importantly, responding correctly in the field.

 

It shows that there can be as much difference in temperament between individual Airedales as any other type of dog, and Scarlett was very soft, submissive and very sensitive: unlike Dill who is the complete opposite in every way! Maybe if I'd had her from a pup things might have been different, but she was always going to be behind her sister.

[adeyhawk1970 0]

Scarlett, Dill's sister, who I took in after her owner could no longer keep her, went to a very good pet home. Nothing wrong with her, but it was obvious straight away that at 11 months old I was going to end up with serious double trouble, Scarlett following Dill everywhere....and far away. LOL Litter mates egging eachother on etc.

Scarlett on her own was quite shy, unsocialised and backward in many ways, so I made the decision to let her go to a pet home where the only demands made on her would be to be a good companion dog. She's getting on very well and I'm happy for her. I think she might have made a decent working dog in the right hands, but with not having had much done with her there would have been a real uphill struggle to get her going forward, and more importantly, responding correctly in the field.

 

It shows that there can be as much difference in temperament between individual Airedales as any other type of dog, and Scarlett was very soft, submissive and very sensitive: unlike Dill who is the complete opposite in every way! Maybe if I'd had her from a pup things might have been different, but she was always going to be behind her sister.

Glad to hear Scarlett is doing well Adie

[fielder 18]

Dill is now just 12 months old: just come out of her first season, and only the other day I was saying that she was still a bit puppyish: we went on a fox drive a few weeks ago and unfortunately she didn't get to see any foxes before they were shot dead. So I took a brush and threw it around for her: she spent ages shaking it and generally pratting about though didn't really show any interest in the dead foxes when she saw them.

My mate asked me if I was 'going to persevere' with her!! I think he thought that she'd be 'up and running' by now. These dogs are slow to mature: I wasn't worried.

 

Only last week the terriers and Dill flushed a big dog fox from deep cover: the gun took a shot but only clipped it and it headed back into the brambles. In little under a minute there was an almighty roar from the brambles, and by the time I got round the other side they were all ragging the carcase: Dill was going absolutely mental on it and carried on shaking it long after the other dogs had lost interest: she had a nick on one ear: whether that was from the fox or a thorn I'm not quite sure, but she was definitely seeing the fox as something to be dealt with in a severe fashion.

 

I let her rag the carcase until she was knackered, lying down on top of it panting like a steam train. Let's hope that encounter has wakened an interest: somehow I think it had LOL Next fox drive in a couple of weeks!

 

I'm totally pleased with her in every way, though I would have liked her to be a big longer in the leg: she's like a concrete block on shortish legs. She's been hard work on the obedience front, very responsive but just as keen to hunt, and you can't beat obedience into these dogs though I have had to be quite firm with her when she started cocking a deaf 'un.

Thanks for the update, keep them coming, and keep up the good work!

Now she seems to have realised the value of sticking with the pack and working as one of the team, though she still wants to go off on her own given half a chance if there's nothing much happening. I'ts down to me to make sure I take her to places where there is plenty of scent so she doesn't have to bugger off to find her own.

 

Turning into a good guard dog too, though there is absolutely no malice in her whatsoever. A thoroughly nice dog all round and a real companion too, always ready for a game of fetch or whatever.

 

I'll let you all know how we get on on the next fox drive.

 

PS MIller: what cross is your Airedale?

[fielder 18]

Thanks for the update, keep them coming, and keep up the good work!