Start getting him used to grooming now.... just start plucking all the fluffy loose ends off of him. At his age, you can probably pluck him completely by hand. It doesn't really matter what he looks like by the end....the point is just to get a nice hard coat started. Also, this would be the perfect time to start getting him used to having his feet handled so he won't start freaking out when you start clipping his nails..... with my first airedale, we didn't do that and now she goes ape-crazy when someone touches her feet. But with my second airedale, we started handling him right from the start, so now he just sits there and doesn't care what is being done to him. He just likes the attention