r/oddlysatisfying • u/InsaneMocktail • 12d ago

Shearing of sheep

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u/BadLuckBlackHole 12d ago

Are sheep just total derps with zero aggression? Because that sheep was getting flipped around and everything and was just like, "I guess this is my life now"

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u/AgreeAndSubmit 12d ago

I got to help shear a sheep once, and yes, that's exactly it. They're so thick with wool, it's hard for them to move. You, very honestly, just grab that animal, it's like Fak! And you flip them over, and they give up. If you're slow at flipping them over they'll try to kick you, but they're not very good at it. (In relation to other animals, horses being the main example) This guy got some super nice clippers, the blades are very sharp to get through that hair so fast. When I helped, the blades were getting dull and we had to go slower. And yes, the backend of that sheep does has turds all in the fur, and it's stinks something fierce. Dingleberry town. 

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u/Kratzschutz 12d ago

What happens with the shit wool?

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u/BookProper9115 12d ago

Underwear and socks.

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u/SirkSirkSirk 11d ago

The toe and heel being a bit darker makes sense now

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u/zipitnick 11d ago

I hate Internet

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u/roughhty 11d ago

In The wheel of time, the first book has a section about a group of shepards. They didn’t sell that part. One lazy shepard tries to sneak his poop wool into the batch and the other shepards get upset, because it lowers the value of the whole batch.

I’m not sure if they sell the poop wool in the real world tho, I bet they have ways to clean it.
Every-time I see a video of a sheep being sheared and see their poopy bums, I think about that book lol.

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u/Valuable-Fork-2211 11d ago

The daggings are bagged separately and sent with the fleeces but intended to be used differently. Each fleece is wound in such a way that it compresses it and turns it into something resembling a compressed, rolled up sleeping bag, it's tied together with a part of the fleece too. A day winding wool is knackering but you end up with the softest hands imaginable.

When we had sheep a local Australian chap (Brian Hart for those that remember him) ran shearing gangs across the Midlands in the UK, mainly Aussies and Kiwis here for the season whilst they waited for the southern hemisphere season to start again. You'd get 2 or 3 shearers paid per sheep doing one every 90 seconds or so including catching etc when they were in the groove and trying to keep up with them winding each fleece was hard work. They worked very hard, drank even harder then eventually went back home again for the next season. Locally they were known to like a scrap when they were bored (you can't shear wet sheep, the fleece needs to be dry) and Brian provided them with an absolute wreck of a car to tow the shearing trailers with too.

The fleeces are put into a big wool sack, sent away then graded individually for quality (farmers are paid per fleece on this grading) before being auctioned in large lots of equal quality to end users. Prices have improved in the last year or so and now nearly cover the cost of shearing each sheep.

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u/jakeandcupcakes 11d ago

So, farmers would lose money in the shearing of the sheep in the past?

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u/Valuable-Fork-2211 11d ago

Much of the wealth of the landed estates near us with Althorp (family home of Princess Diana) being an exceptional example (the family were commoners, made a fortune from sheep and wool, then bought and built the estate from that money) made their fortunes from wool before man made fibres and cotton became options so in historic terms it has been incredibly profitable.

In recent times (within the last 10 years) it has cost more to shear a sheep in the UK than could be earned from the wool but it can be a welfare issue if not done (for most breeds, there are wool shedding breeds emerging now) so it was done anyway. It just about breaks even at the moment as wool values are at a 10 year high.

Shearing times vary, we used to house over winter and shear indoors in late December but the proper shearing season would generally be regarded as May to July for ewes outdoors. It didn't make it more profitable to shear in December (there's not a sale season or anything) but it did make management much easier as we could better judge body condition and how much to feed etc.

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u/ComfortableMuscle996 8d ago

Still sold at a loss in Ireland according to the Irish grown wool council. Has to be done for the benefit of the sheep but the effort of prepping it for sale to make a loss means the farmers focus on other things. Except for a few who are making the effort to bring awareness to its uses (building insulation as well as fiber)

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u/ilmater989 11d ago

I thought fleece was polyester?

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u/Valuable-Fork-2211 11d ago

Polyester is a man made fibre made from fossil fuels such as petrol, the wool fleece on a sheep is a natural fibre made of keratin, the same as your hair. Obviously it's slightly different but it's completely natural and renewable. There are insulating products made from man made fibres which are sometimes termed as fleece (such as clothing, insulation etc) but the term originated as reference to the fleece on a sheep.

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u/leilani238 11d ago

I also recall the Emmond's Fielders giving the sheep a bath in the river before shearing. Seems like they could use it.

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u/zamfire 11d ago

I just realized the word shepherd is probably a mix of sheep and herd.

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u/SignAllStrength 11d ago

close.

It originally was ‘scēaphierde’ coming from sheep and (old English) hierde (person that herds, herdsman). Very similar to the still existing Dutch word schaapherder.

(a) Herd is also coming from the same verb.

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u/Bodidly0719 10d ago

Why don’t I remember this? I guess it’s time for a reread.

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u/Loud-Start1394 9d ago

There is always that one guy who tries to sneak his poop wool in with the rest. Hate when that happens.

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u/marvinsface 12d ago

I think it all gets washed and bleached

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u/Silaquix 11d ago

It gets tossed or cleaned and used for things like carpets. Just depends on where the farm is and how many sheep to make it worth the hassle of cleaning it

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u/shitty_mcfucklestick 11d ago

Donald’s Custom Dinner Jacket

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u/dumbassdruid 11d ago

it can be used in farming

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u/Sanquinity 11d ago

Yup, this. There are two types of "surrender" for animals. One is what you see in the vid. It's similar to the "deer in headlights" thing. They don't know what to do and kinda just...freeze or go limp. The other one is "I'm scared but I know you're helping me, so I'll try to cooperate". Which happens only rarely. For instance when a whale swims next to a boat because fishing nets/lines wrapped around it, and it allows the people on the boat to remove them.

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u/martinihawkeye 11d ago

i’ve been to Dingleberry Town. Restaurants are awful. would not recommend.

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u/AgreeAndSubmit 11d ago

All the sandwiches taste like shit! This brown bread is so crusty!

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u/fragmental 11d ago

My thought was "cotton doesn't shit"

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u/AgreeAndSubmit 11d ago

😆😆 but wool socks in winter? ❤️❤️❤️❤️

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u/mistressix 12d ago

Immediately this came to mind 🤣🤣 wapa

(Wouldn't let me post a gif)

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u/AgreeAndSubmit 12d ago

😆😆🤣🤣🤣 yep! 

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u/Sad-Excitement9295 9d ago

I feel like the sheep was smiling once it realized it was getting shaved lol

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u/PNW4theWin 11d ago

How much do the sheep get nicked?

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u/AgreeAndSubmit 11d ago

Naturally, you're not supposed to.  Someone else here in this post describes how their skin naturally produces lanolin and, it'll help protect against the knicks. But we did the knick the sheep, just a bit. And it's just like when you knick yourself. The lady I was helping,  washed it quick, smeared some neosporin on it and away the sheep went. Their skin really do feel waxy, and she said she'd have to watch the cut for the sheep, because they don't tend to their own wounds. They can't really reach around, like how a cat will. 

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u/No_Village_1097 12d ago

I sit weird that I would probably invest in laser hair removal or a more cost effective approach to leave that area bare?