Shearing

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Shearing is the process of harvesting the wool.  Most producers shear their ewes a month or so in advance of the ewes lambing. This helps to provide a more sterilized environment during the lambing process.  To get the best possible wool not only takes the right fleece, but it also takes a special technique.  You also need the proper shearing equipment.  A pair of Oster sheep shears are in the picture below.

  First the sheep must be flipped onto their butt as seen in the picture below.

 This allows you to stabilize the sheep so that they cannot run away from you as you are shearing them.  You will first start by shearing the belly area.  

     Next the back left leg and hock are sheared.  The area around the vulva and backside are then sheared.  The left side is then sheared toward the back of the ewe.  The neck area is then sheared, followed by the right side of the ewe.  Finally the ewe is stood up, and any spots of wool that were missed are sheared off.  Overall the wool should be one big fleece.

To Learn more about the proper ways of sheep shearing and how to get a hands-on experience, follow this link to the Oster sheep school:

 http://www.ca.uky.edu/agc/news/1999/Feb/sheep.htm