How to Groom an Irish Terrier

Irish Terriers are medium-sized dogs with a feisty and boisterous attitude, making them great companions for healthy, active children. They are similar in stature to the Wirehaired Fox Terrier, but are much taller. They have a double coat with a wiry exterior and a softer coat underneath. They need a full grooming every 6 to 10 weeks and a general grooming at least once a week.

Difficulty:

Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Natural bristle brush
• Metal comb
• Thinning shears
• #5 blade

1. Brush out the harsh coat with a natural bristle brush and a metal comb to get out tangles and knots which may naturally occur. This is almost unavoidable with double coats and you must constantly look after the coat to prevent mats developing in to painful tangles of hair. In extreme cases where the mats have become too tangled to comb or cut out, you must remove the coat entirely.

2. Bathe this breed only when necessary, as it can dry out their skin.

3. Use thinning shears to remove stray hairs from the muzzle.

4. Use a #5 blade to trim the body, sides and back of the animal. When trimming the coat, always go with the grain of the hair.

Tips & Warnings

• This breed is expected to live about 12 to 15 years.

• The Irish Terrier hails originally from County Cork in Ireland and is one of the oldest of all the terriers. Although the earliest image of this dog is from a painting in 1700, this breed is at least 2000 years old.

• Irish Terriers possess many important skills including hunting, tracking, retrieving, watchdogging, guarding, police work and military work.