Irish Terrier Care

The Irish Terrier: active, stubborn, playful--and like most terriers, a complete handful if not properly trained. Overall Irish Terrier care and maintenance will take a moderate amount of work, and will need to include daily exercise and some early training and socialization.

Below you'll find details on caring for an Irish Terrier, including info about puppy development, exercise and grooming needs, and more. Consider the following sections your definitive Irish Terrier guide--and read on!

As a lively and athletic breed, Irish Terrier exercise requirements are fairly high. ITs are also very intelligent, so they'll need a variety of daily activities that both condition them physically (walking, fetch) and stimulate them mentally (games, canine sports). They make good jogging companions as well.

Adult Irish Terriers will need at least 45 minutes of dedicated exercise per day. You can start exercising your IT puppy when it's three months old by taking it on short walks, then you can increase the walks' length as the pup grows.

Precautions with Irish Terrier exercise:

• Don't exercise puppies too hard before they're nine months old
• A leash is required when exercising in public; leash training during puppyhood highly recommended
• Yards should be securely fenced to keep the dog from running off
• Possible separation anxiety; exercises should be done together with people

It's important to exercise your Irish Terrier every day. These terriers are naturally scrappy and independent, and without consistent exercise they can become disobedient, destructive, and even aggressive. Regular activity will be great for both the dog's and your own peace of mind! A few exercise ideas:

• Walking/Jogging: Two 15-minute walks (or 15-minute jogs) per day is a good target
• Fetch/Frisbee: ITs love chasing a ball, stick, or Frisbee
• Hide-and-Seek: Great indoor activity; give the dog a treat when it finds you
• Canine Sports: These dogs can excel at obedience or agility trials, flyball, and other events
• Hiking: Excellent bonding activity; bonus if you can find a remote area where the dog can be off-leash

When indoors, give your IT access to balls or toys that will allow the dog to burn excess energy. It's also good to have a regular exercise schedule for the dog, such as walks or jogs after breakfast and dinner and playtime in the afternoon.

ITs don't require much maintenance overall. Irish Terrier shedding is minimal, and drooling isn't an issue.

These dogs, like many terrier breeds, have dense, wiry outer coats and softer undercoats. And though the undercoats do shed, the outer coat is dense enough to trap the dead hairs beneath it--meaning the coat doesn't lose much hair at all. That said, owners will still need to brush their ITs a couple of times a week to keep the coats from matting and tangling. It's also a good idea to have the coats hand-stripped every few months to keep them looking their best. (They can be clipped instead, but note that doing so will change the coat's texture and color.)

An Irish Terrier practically never drools. If your Irish Terrier is drooling excessively, it might be a sign of a medical issue, in which case a veterinarian's care is needed.