To shear or not to shear

Last year, I noticed that my Black Welsh sheep began to lose their fleeces around Christmas time. Since it was my first year with them and most of the ewes were pregnant, I wasn't sure if it was the norm for them or just a pregnancy thing. Most of my other sheep -- the longwools in particular - don't ever show a rise. On the other hand, the Icelandics certainly do. 

in any case, Christmas seemed early. 

The light colored horizontal line is the point where the new
fiber (above the line) started growing through the old fiber
 (below the line). For good measure, the point where they
crossed felted solid. Total loss. :( 

By the time I managed to get a shearer to actually turn up (grr) to shear, it was July and all the Black Welsh fleeces were long since ruined. Not just from the months of ragged shedding, but also from so many long weeks in the heat and humidity. They were either felted on the outside like a shell (yuck). Or, just as bad, they were felted at the point of the rise -- where the new fleece grew through the old. 

I was relieved to finally get the fleeces off the animals, but was so disappointed to have nothing to show for my first year of tending the flock. 

So this year, as I notice the fleeces loosening, especially on the lambs, I'm determined not to let the same mistake happen. 

If we lived in a milder climate, like, oh, say, Wales, I'd shear them right now. 

But we don't, so I won't. I've got my fingers crossed for the return of mild Mr. Nino, but truthfully, we're just as likely looking at two more months of nights in the teens and single digits. Brr. Early March is probably the soonest I will dare to shear.

If I can manage to keep the fleeces from felting in the meantime, I've got some lovely things to look forward to. 

One of my favorites? 

Brianna. 

Lovely little Brie is the daughter of skittish Black Welsh Eloise and dopey puppy dog Lincoln longwool Johnny Blue. She is the only lamb from the entire flock of last year's Black Welsh offspring that I am certain is Johnny's daughter. In fact I suspect she is Johnny's only lamb. Period. 

And her fleece is wonderful. 

I gave a couple of the fleeces a good tug this morning while their owners were busy at the hay feeder. You know, just to see if they were starting to release. (Not because I particularly enjoy harassing the poor sheep that way.)

This is what I got.

The lock on the left is from one of the older Black Welsh ewes. Short, crimpy, and still in nice condition. Pretty typical of the flock. 

The locks on the right are Brianna's. (Ok, I took a couple from her - I was so enamored.) She's got the length and a hint of the curl of a longwool, but otherwise the fineness, crimp, and color of the Black Welsh. Black as night and soft as a whisper in the hand.

Brianna - Black Welsh x Lincoln cross

Of course, to top it off she's as cute as she can be. She stands out in the crowd of little lookalike black lambs. She's so much boxier and fluffier than the rest of them.  Plus, her head sits right smack down on her shoulders with nothing in between, while the rest of them sport long slender necks that give them the look of tiny deer, rather than sheep. 

Yes, she's a cutie. Black Welsh x Lincoln turned out to be a great cross. I wish there were more of them. 

Not that I don't love all the little purebreds too. ;)

The goats get nekkid

People usually assume our goats are sheep. This is understandable. Until yesterday they looked like sheep.

Doc, in full sheeplike regalia, indulging in a bit of bark. Donnanoble with her nose to ground.
Doc says, Yum, I am a goat.

The full crew left to right: Rosetyler, Marthajones, Donnanoble, Riversong, Doc, Ameliapond.

With summer right around the corner, it was past time for a change. It's hard to find shearers willing to work with goats. In this neck of the woods we've got sheep shearers and alpaca shearers, but not too many goat shearers. I selected a pair of experienced alpaca shearers who were willing to give it a try.  Bless their alpaca-loving hearts. :)

They came yesterday and not a day too soon.

My expectations for these fleeces were low. The crew should have been sheared in the fall, but weren't because of the timing of their arrival at Tyche's Run just as the cold weather arrived, the building of the new barn, my abject inexperience with goats, their complete lack of handling experience, etc., etc., etc.. My bad, all. From what I could see from the outside they were dirty and matted. Goats, charming, but messy.

We began with Riversong. I picked her to lead the way because she is the alpha doe and generally the bravest. I wanted to set the right tone for the rest of the crew. They were all eyes and ears.

The rest of the crew, Um, what's going on here?

Riversong was an excellent role model for the others. Very patient and calm. She needed to be, because she was matted clear down to the skin. The humans were a bit discouraged. She took at least an hour of slow, careful work.

Riversong, I am not a poodle. I am a goat.

To lighten the humans' mood, I put Donnanoble up second. Her fleece is entirely different from Riversong. Lighter, fluffier, and doesn't hold dirt and muck the way some of the others do. I didn't think it was matted.

Donnanoble, Please be gentle. I am not a goat. I am a delicate flower.

Her fleece came off like a cloud (albeit with a bit of flakey skin...).

In the end it took close to five hours to shear six 50lb goats. Not because the goats were difficult -- just because the fleeces weren't in great shape, there was a lot of matting around the legs and delicate parts and it took a fair amount of scissor clipping in addition to the shears.

But we did it! The goats are ready for summer.

And they look like goats! Small ones at that.

Here are some pictures of the raw Pygora fleece. These are quick shots with the iphone. I'll take better pictures if I can get the fleece cleaned up enough to warrant the time. There is alot of work to be done to salvage any of the fleece.  A bit of a Pygora primer:  Pygora fleece comes in three versions, varying along a dimension from mohair-like (Type A) at one end to cashmere-like (Type C) at the other end.  All six of our goats were expected to be Type B, which means some characteristics of each. Even amongst them though there are clear differences from more A-ish to more C-ish.

Ameliapond's A-ish fleece. Solid white, clear locks, lots of luster.

Donnanoble's C-ish fleece. A light off-white color, few distinct locks, slight luster. So soft it's hard to feel on your fingers. 

Riversong's A/B-ish fleece. Dark gray/black, would have had locks I think, but solidly matted/felted. Oy. Oy. Oy. May or may not have luster. Hard to tell. Sorry River. We'll do better next time.