Airedale Terrier vs Old English Sheepdog — Side by Side

	Airedale Terrier	Old English Sheepdog
Lifespan	10-13 years	10-12 years
Size	Large	Large
Weight	40-65 lb	60-100 lb
Energy	High	Moderate
Grooming	Moderate	High
Shedding	Low	Moderate
With kids	Good with kids	Good with kids

What actually separates them

Less hair on the sofa with the Airedale Terrier. More with the Old English Sheepdog.
Less brushing with the Airedale Terrier. More with the Old English Sheepdog.
Calmer of the two is the Old English Sheepdog. The one that needs more exercise is the Airedale Terrier.
Airedale Terrier tends to live longer — 10-13 years against 10-12 years.

The honest downside of each

Airedale Terrier

As the largest terrier breed, the Airedale keeps a full terrier prey drive and stubborn streak in a 50-plus-pound body, and breed mortality surveys put cancer as the cause of roughly 4 in 10 Airedale deaths — noticeably higher than most breeds.

Old English Sheepdog

The 'shaggy dog' coat everyone falls for needs several hours of hands-on brushing every week for the dog's entire life — skip it for even a couple of weeks and it mats down to the skin, which usually ends with a groomer or vet shaving the dog completely bald to fix it.

Read the full pages

Airedale Terrier · Old English Sheepdog
Health problems, origin and what living with each is actually like.