Shearing: Complete!

"JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t" (jawzx2) 02/04/2020 at 17:37 • Filed to: Sheeplopnik, Farmlopnik

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Now I will drink homemade hard cider.

Lambing will be here soon. Soon....

Noodles > JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t 02/04/2020 at 17:47

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I call next. Do you do humans?

MonkeePuzzle > JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t 02/04/2020 at 17:50

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talk about pictures I can smell!

JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t > Noodles 02/04/2020 at 17:54

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We hire a professional. I can give you her number... But I'll warn you; she only does one style. 

MoCamino > JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t 02/04/2020 at 17:56

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Huh.  I thought you would wait until it is a bit warmer.  I guess they are used to it.  

Wacko > JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t 02/04/2020 at 17:57

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Are those orange and white bags what go into the sheep or what comes out of them

JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t > MonkeePuzzle 02/04/2020 at 17:58

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I really like the smell of sheep, in general. 

JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t > Wacko 02/04/2020 at 18:00

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The orange and white bags are Poulin Grain Sheep Complete. We supplement at a rate of 1/2lb per head per day during the final ~ three weeks of pregnancy and peak lactation, but otherwise they eat grass and hay. 

JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t > MoCamino 02/04/2020 at 18:05

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We like to have them sheared before lambing, it makes the teats easier to find for the lambs, it also means the momma sheep can transfer body heat to the lambs better, and we don’t have to worry about birth gunk (that’s a technical term, trust me...) ruining the wool. Sheep are quite amazingly tolerant of  temperature extremes, both high and low.

MoCamino > JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t 02/04/2020 at 18:12

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I should have thought of that.  Of course the birth gunk would be bad for the wool.  

JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t > MoCamino 02/04/2020 at 18:18

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Its a fine balancing act, we try to wait as long as possible, but we can’t wait too long. T he handling required for shearing could be bad for the ewes and unborn lambs in the l ast week or so pregnancy. The foetal lambs put on a huge growth spurt in the last week or two, and tossing a ewe aroun d for shearing in that period is a bit risky.

MonkeePuzzle > JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t 02/04/2020 at 19:42

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i will concur, but the shearing shed... burned into my memories

Noodles > JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t 02/04/2020 at 19:46

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Full body? I like it high and tight

JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t > Noodles 02/04/2020 at 20:13

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Y up, that’ s style. W ant her info? She’s marr ied and has two kids, just FYI.

Noodles > JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t 02/04/2020 at 20:22

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I don’t mind if she’s taken. I just need a freshly sheered sack. (For my wife of course) (actually it’s for me)(I like a freshly sh eered sack)(I feel like I’m taking this joke too far)(sand goggles)(ok, now that's too far)(where's my beer)

JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t > Noodles 02/04/2020 at 20:29

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Hehe... This cider is ~6%, and I've had 6 glasses, so your joke works. 

SilentButNotReallyDeadly...killed by G/O Media > JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t 02/04/2020 at 21:05

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Shearing is a cow of a job.

I once did shed work for a day helping (sort of) get 800 cross breed merinos naked...never again.

JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t > SilentButNotReallyDeadly...killed by G/O Media 02/04/2020 at 21:11

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Luckily we are only doing 53. Next year that number may go up, but 53 is a good workout, with only one shearer cutting... With 800... Oy. 

SiennaMan > MonkeePuzzle 02/04/2020 at 21:14

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 So it's as hard of work as the tv makes it look like?  I've never really gotten anywhere near shearing,  let alone lambing..

SilentButNotReallyDeadly...killed by G/O Media > JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t 02/04/2020 at 21:19

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My memory of these sheep is that they were in good condition, recalcitrant and amour plated with a mat of hair, dust and burrs. There were a lot of grumpy shearers and roustabouts at smoko...

MonkeePuzzle > SiennaMan 02/04/2020 at 21:20

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is a skill, one I never learned. But the sheep get used to it, and its amazing to watch a skilled shearer work.

my grandparents had a sheep farm, my memories are all from observing and helping move piles of stinky things around :D

Stapleface-Now Hyphenated! > JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t 02/04/2020 at 21:21

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So, what do you do with the wool  that is sheered? I assume you sell it? As is, or is it made into something else like yarn? What’s the going price of wool?

TheRealBicycleBuck > Noodles 02/04/2020 at 21:26

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Since you went there, this is o bligatory.

JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t > Stapleface-Now Hyphenated! 02/04/2020 at 22:01

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Due to the overwhelming usage of synthetic fibers in modern clothing the price of raw wool is quite low these days, typically about $.75usd/lb. That doesn’t even cover the cost of shearing, so we produce a value added product and spend the $$$$ to have it spun into yarn. The investment is high, but we do make a profit that way. We are actually buying other people’s wool and having that spun too. We offer above commodity price for quality product, but still only about $2/lb (in most cases that DOES cover the cost of shearing) and take on the financial burden of having it spun into yarn. If we sell it right (as a specialty/artisinal product) we make our OK on the deal. If we have an exceptional fleece (clean and high quality) we can sell it as is to hand spinner hobbyists for good profit, but only the really good ones make that cut. 

JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t > SilentButNotReallyDeadly...killed by G/O Media 02/04/2020 at 22:08

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Yeah we go to special effort to keep ours clean, but range sheep can get pretty grubby, they also want nothing to do with the process of getting shorn... And if they’re in good condition, they can make quite a fuss about that. They may not be cattle, which can literally kill you if they get the notion, (statistically you are more likely to be murdered by a cow than any other animal, at least in North America) but a scared and/or angry sheep is no joke to handle.

facw > JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t 02/04/2020 at 23:23

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Is this an annual event? Sounds like you did it now because of the impending birthing, but setting that aside, how long do they go before you get diminishing returns because wool growth slows down or it gets too dirty to be worth harvesting?

pip bip - choose Corrour > JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t 02/05/2020 at 01:59

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wide comb or narrow comb?

JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t > pip bip - choose Corrour 02/05/2020 at 07:54

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Wide

JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t > facw 02/05/2020 at 08:16

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Ou r sheep are Bluefaced Leicesters and Border Leicesters, both members of the English Longwool type. They have very fast growing wool and ideally for fleece quality we would shea r them about every nine months. However up here in the northeast our winters are severe enough that we like to let them have a full coat for as much of the cold months as possible, also as a breeding flock we have to consider lamb ing when scheduling their haircuts. Domestic sheep are fundamentally broken in the name of selective breeding for fiber production , their wool NEVER stops, or even slow s down growing. Domestic breed sheep can die if they are not shorn regularly, either from becoming entrapped in their own wool/tangled in tree branches or bushes , from suffocation, or even fatal overheating. Keeping them clean is an art in itself, burdocks and other hit ch-hiker plants can make a fleece unusable for fiber in one encounter. Sheep are fairly fastidious given the choice, mud, and even manure to some degree can be washed out, but tangled fleece from plant material is something we’re always on the watch for. We manage and choose our pasture locations to maximize fleece quality. 

sn4cktimes > JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t 02/05/2020 at 12:16

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I enjoy these sheep posts. I share the lamb ones with the wife. She always cheers for your strugglers. 

JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t > sn4cktimes 02/05/2020 at 13:26

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I expect the first lamb-related posts to begin in two+ weeks.