The Irish Terrier, with its small compact body, ravishing red coat, and graceful features, is elegance personified. The dog has the reputation of being a terrific hunter, excelling in catching small prey like otter rats and vermin. Its fiery, courageous personality, and tendency to heedlessly proceed on sensing any danger, earns it the nickname “Daredevil”.
If you keep them as your pet, they would never fail to charm you with their loyalty and overtly protective nature, guarding you and your family, till their last breath. Your kids would also be delighted to have such a charming playmate. However, the younger ones need supervision while interacting with the dog.
They have made their way into several literary works and films, serving as the University of Notre Dame’s mascot until 1960.
Dublin dog show was hosted, where this breed got a separate class.
Ranked 4th in terms of popularity in Ireland as well as Britain
Formation of the first club for the breed in Dublin, soon after which, it attained the English Kennel Club’s recognition
Recognized by the AKC
Foundation of the Irish Terrier Club of America
Served as messenger and guard dogs in the First World War
Recognized by the UKC
Your Irish terrier is no less than an athlete, so to burn its energy positively, take it on a 30-minute walk, at least three times a day.
Also, give it ample chance to run around in a fenced yard if you have one, else, arrange for a lot of indoor games in your apartment.
They would even do well when trained for events like flyball, rally, agility, obedience, and earthdog.
The Irish terrier has a weather-resistant double coat. The dense, wiry outer coat with a broken appearance, shields it from snow and rain, while the soft, fine-hairs, forming the undercoat acts as an insulator, keeping it warm on colder days.
So, you would need to intensely groom your dog to maintain its coat well. Brush every week with a slicker brush to steer it clean of the loose hair and dirt. Stripping the coat one or two times in a year would help retain its weather-resistant properties. If you face difficulty in doing it manually, seek a professional’s help.
Also, take care of trimming its nails, brushing its teeth, and keeping its eyes and ears clean to ensure complete hygiene. Do not miss out bathing it once a month or on days when it has gotten completely dirty.
Apart from giving them high-quality dry dog food, you could also include cooked chicken, turkey, fish, as well as potatoes and rice, though in moderate amounts. If you plan to go for readymade ones, then brands like Royal Canin and Canidae Pure stand among the suitable options.
It is not too hard to train the smart and intelligent Irish terrier, who has an eagerness to learn new things and please its master. However, its independent and strong-willed nature could come in the way of an otherwise smooth training process. Keep the sessions short and fill them with positive reinforcements.
Teach the puppies to be obedient so that they may grow up with a pleasant personality. The Irish terrier is also known to display aggression towards other dogs and pets; hence early socialization is necessary. Leash training is essential as, like all terriers, they too are great chasers.
