Shearing Day
Yesterday morning was drizzly and chilly but we were blessed with friends who came out at 8 am on a Saturday morning to help us. It was lots of fun! Except for the shearer, none had much experience with shearing and skirting but we learned together.
One by one the sheep's warm woolen coats were sheared off in one big piece.
Hooves were trimmed and annual vaccinations and wormer were given.
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| Our ram, Haagen Dazs getting a pedicure. |
They were handled with the firm but gentle hands of the shearer.
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| Pretty Ralene |
Amazing how different they look without their fleece.
We set up a makeshift skirting table where we gathered around to skirt the fleece. It took many hands to quickly work over the wool before the shearer had the next one done. Last year the whole fleeces went into bags and were left to work over later. I was so happy to put skirted fleeces into bags and have them ready to process by hand or by the mill.
This sweet little guy was helping his dad with Garfunkel.
The alpaca look so different!
Simon's fleece is fluffy, blue with bits of chocolate.
It came off practically ready to spin. I can't wait to get to it.
Now we have 17 bags of Jacob fleece and 2 bags of alpaca.
And we have a bunch of skinny animals.
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| Aren't they funny? |
Most of them have bright black and white spots!
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| all the girls lead by Periwinkle & McCarthy |
A few of them have big pregnant bellies.
In a few more weeks we will have little lambs bouncing around.
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| Twinkle ~ hoping she has twins in there |
Your beauty should not come from outward adornment...
Instead, it should be that of your inner self,
the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit,
which is of great worth in God's sight.
1 Peter 3:3-4
And I hope they stay warm in the storm we're sending your way! I'm sure the change in temperatures must be quite a shock to them!
ReplyDeleteHappy spinning!
I cannot wait to see what you make of their wool. They sure look different sheared. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteLooks like a productive day
ReplyDeleteCan you tell me what kind of shearing machine you guys have. This will be our first time ever shearing. My local feed store have a brand called Lister. Is this any good? DId you bathed your gheep before shearing them?
ReplyDeleteWe have a professional shearer come do the shearing for us. It's something of an art getting the fleece off in one piece. As I understand it, if you want to just shave your sheep and don't intend to use the wool, you can use any electric trimmers. I know some Jacob breeders do this (one even uses scissors). We, however, want the fleeces in the best condition so we pay to have it done right. Costs vary between $8-10/per head.
DeleteI do want to be able to learn to spin it. I just don't know the whole process yet. I need to find the time to read about it and learn some new skills lol! I am going to search localy to see if I can find someone! Thanks for that suggestion!
DeleteFun times and what good friends you have!
ReplyDeleteI hope you'll post about spinning. Some day I'd love to have my own alpacas and learn the art of spinning.
oh my...the alpacas are hilarious...bless their hearts! ;)
ReplyDeleteOooh, having your own wool spun into yarn would be awesome! Having Jacob sheep is a dream of mine. :-)
ReplyDeleteOh what a fun post and a fun gathering! Love it! Thought of you this week....One of the preschool teachers at my sons' school had a lamb there on Thursday (she had used it for photographer prop!!!) and she wanted to give it to us. We said no this go-round because I'm still working on taking care of three boys and the chickens, goats, cat and dog. But maybe in time we'll join the sheep adventure because I do love reading about your's!
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