Shearly exhausted
May. 21st, 2009 09:30 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
altivoSheep got sheared today. The actual shearing process takes less than an hour for the eight of them, but the preparation and cleanup turn it into the better part of a day for us. For the sheep it seems to be a terrifying experience something like that of a child being taken to the dentist.
You'd think that the older ones would recognize what is going on and cooperate. It has to be a relief for them, as the temperatures creep upward into the 80F range, to get rid of that load of heavy wool. However, as our neighbor Toni says, "Sheep don't really have a lot upstairs," and I guess she's right. I imagine our shearer, who is a sheep professional himself, thinks we don't have a lot upstairs either. And Gary always gets so stressed out over it that I have to talk him down for a couple of hours afterward. Anyway, it's done for another year. I have bruises and abrasions from wrestling sheep around, and my back is sore. The sheep have already forgotten the whole thing, and there are seven good fleeces in plastic bags in the barn. The eighth I threw in the compost. Shebah, the eldest we have now, had pulled so much of her wool out this winter that it wasn't worth the bother. She still had to be sheared, but the fleece is of such poor quality that I dumped it.
I'm glad I took the day as vacation. I normally work only four hours on Thursday, so in theory I could have gone in this afternoon, but with the cleanup and my now stiff back, this is best. Gary went off to Chicago to take his mom out for lunch and shopping. I finished the chores and watched the sunset. Oh, and the mosquitoes have arrived in hordes since yesterday. Fortunately we seem to be entering a dry spell now, so this lot will have a difficult time finding water to breed in.
You'd think that the older ones would recognize what is going on and cooperate. It has to be a relief for them, as the temperatures creep upward into the 80F range, to get rid of that load of heavy wool. However, as our neighbor Toni says, "Sheep don't really have a lot upstairs," and I guess she's right. I imagine our shearer, who is a sheep professional himself, thinks we don't have a lot upstairs either. And Gary always gets so stressed out over it that I have to talk him down for a couple of hours afterward. Anyway, it's done for another year. I have bruises and abrasions from wrestling sheep around, and my back is sore. The sheep have already forgotten the whole thing, and there are seven good fleeces in plastic bags in the barn. The eighth I threw in the compost. Shebah, the eldest we have now, had pulled so much of her wool out this winter that it wasn't worth the bother. She still had to be sheared, but the fleece is of such poor quality that I dumped it.
I'm glad I took the day as vacation. I normally work only four hours on Thursday, so in theory I could have gone in this afternoon, but with the cleanup and my now stiff back, this is best. Gary went off to Chicago to take his mom out for lunch and shopping. I finished the chores and watched the sunset. Oh, and the mosquitoes have arrived in hordes since yesterday. Fortunately we seem to be entering a dry spell now, so this lot will have a difficult time finding water to breed in.
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no subject
Date: 2009-05-22 03:24 am (UTC)Our ewe really needs shearing; she can barely see because of all the wool covering her eyes, plus her wool is black so she must get incredibly hot. But she won't let me trim the wool on her head.
Unfortunately, I think their wool is going to be unusable. They got into some burdock in the past year, so they've got burrs all through their fleece. I don't know if you can card that stuff out.
no subject
Date: 2009-05-22 03:44 am (UTC)Mechanical picking does a better job, but requires special (and rather dangerous) equipment.
Combing with English wool combs removes most burrs and sticky seeds. It's a bit on the tedious side, but not hard to learn.
no subject
Date: 2009-05-28 08:08 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-05-22 03:44 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-05-22 10:13 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-05-22 03:11 pm (UTC)Yeah give me a heads up. I can take the day off also. We'll make the sheep comfy whether they like it or not.
no subject
Date: 2009-05-22 04:39 pm (UTC)The only way to achieve that, guaranteed, is for them to be turned into dog food or bratwurst, which he would not stand for I think, but...
no subject
Date: 2009-05-26 09:39 pm (UTC)Me too! *grins*
no subject
Date: 2009-05-22 10:40 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-05-22 02:46 pm (UTC)For the sheep, though, it only happens once a year usually and their memory seems to be all of five minutes long, so every time there's a big drama about it.
no subject
Date: 2009-05-22 02:22 pm (UTC)Notta big deal fer me really. They just a little tougher to herd for a few days after. Then they get back into the swing of things again.
*wag, wag, wags*
Byee!
April
no subject
Date: 2009-05-22 02:43 pm (UTC)April, we really could have used your help yesterday. Maybe next year?
no subject
Date: 2009-05-22 02:34 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-05-22 02:44 pm (UTC)