Airedale Terrier vs Rhodesian Ridgeback — Side by Side

	Airedale Terrier	Rhodesian Ridgeback
Lifespan	10-13 years	10-12 years
Size	Large	Large
Weight	40-65 lb	70-85 lb
Energy	High	High
Grooming	Moderate	Low
Shedding	Low	Moderate
With kids	Good with kids	With supervision

What actually separates them

Less hair on the sofa with the Airedale Terrier. More with the Rhodesian Ridgeback.
Less brushing with the Rhodesian Ridgeback. More with the Airedale Terrier.
Airedale Terrier tends to live longer — 10-13 years against 10-12 years.
With young children, Airedale Terrier is the safer default — Rhodesian Ridgeback is listed as "With supervision".

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.

Rhodesian Ridgeback

The 'ridge' that defines this breed's whole identity is genetically linked to dermoid sinus, a birth-defect tube of skin tissue that can run from the surface down toward the spinal cord and usually has to be surgically removed — the breed's own US club says it's unlikely the defect will ever be fully bred out.

Read the full pages

Airedale Terrier · Rhodesian Ridgeback
Health problems, origin and what living with each is actually like.