Shearing is significantly important for sheep’s health and happiness. The dense fleece of sheep increases the risk of fatigue or overheating. For that reason, proper shearing can be advantageous for you and your sheep.
You have to make sure that you comprehended How To Shear A Sheep with Electric Shears properly; otherwise, improper clipping can put stress and injure them.
Moreover, getting the drift of the right way to shear a sheep can help you to have quality wool. Keeping the facts in our mind, we have come up with some proper guidelines on this write-up that can be followed.
All About Preparation & Planning [Before Sheep Shearing]
Before going to lop off sheep, you must accomplish the preparation & Planning. Throughout the segment, we have described what preparation and planning must be contemplated before shaving a sheep. So without any further fuss, let’s get started.
- Perceive Why the Sheep Need to Be Sheared
- Specify the Proper Time of Year
- Get Experienced Sheep Shear [If You Are Not Eligible]
- Bring the Right Equipment
- Group the Sheep Into a Coop
1. Perceive Why the Sheep Need to Be Sheared
There are two principal reasons behind cutting off sheep. The first one is to collect sheep’s fleece and another one is to relieve them of dense wool that causes overheating in summer. Two reasons have been explained below elaborately.
- If you don’t shear your sheep after a certain period, they will become intolerable and possibly feeble due to the dirt that is mixed up with their coat. It follows that you must shave your sheep even if you don’t have a plan to sell the wool to get profit.
- You may know the wool from some specific breeds of sheep is an expensive commodity. The owner of those sheep raises them differently with a special diet to get quality yarn.
2. Specify the Proper Time of Year
There are a maximum number of sheep owners who don’t know when is the right time to shear a sheep. Shearing sheep once a year is a must, but some breeds that grow wool faster need to be sheared twice a year. Early Spring [Before Starting the Lambing Season] is contemplated as the optimal period of the year to shear a sheep. In consideration of this, It will aid in keeping them clean while giving birth.
3. Get Experienced Sheep Shear [If You Are Not Experienced]
If you don’t comprehend How to Shave a Sheep properly then we recommend hiring a professional and experienced sheep shearer. Though it is not a difficult task, it requires strength, skills, and confidence as well. Improper shearing with inexperienced shearers can stress and make them injured and damage the valuable wool.
4. Bring the Right Equipment
Getting quality equipment for shearing is one of the most vital things that you should consider to have quality wool and avoid injury. In addition, the entire process will be much easier and comfortable for both sheep and shearers. In that case, we prefer using Electric Sheep Shears which are used exclusively.
An electric shear comes with three different parts such as the handpiece, the cutters, and the comb. Having a shear with an extensive number of teeth on the comb helps to shear closer to the skin. You have to spend a minimum of $250 to $500 maximum for a quality electric shear.
5. Group the Sheep Into a Coop
Before cutting off sheep, they should be assembled into a pen. If it is possible, we recommend separating the sheep into groups. Keep lambs, ewes, rams, and yearning individually from one to another. You can also group the sheep depending on grade or breed.
How To Shear A Sheep With Electric Shears
The process of sharing we have given below will help you out to accomplish the sheep shearing task without confronting any complications.
Step 1: Get The Sheep In the Right Position
This is the initial step in cutting off sheep’s wool that you should follow. There are 5 positions you have to use to complete the task.
- First, flip over the sheep onto her back and then use your knees to prop her soldiers for support. Make sure that her belly is bare and four legs in the onwards air.
- For making your job easier and putting less stress on shears, it is needed to get the sheep in the right position.
Step 2: Start Shearing From Belly
A question may come to your mind, why should you start sharing from the belly rather than other parts, right? Well, the wool of sheep’s belly is not valuable and you can’t sell it. How to start from the belly? If you don’t comprehend, then follow the instructions below.
- Start shearing fleece from the above breastbone [Also known as Brisket] to the flank area.
- Take your first blow from your right-hand side and second from the lift side. Now cut off the coat in between.
Step 3: Shave the Inside of the Back Leg & Curve
In the third stage, you need to trim wool from the inside of the back legs and curve or elbow whatever you say. To do this, check out the below section.
- Hold the sheep strongly with your knees and lean onward then take the shears up on the inside of the right leg.
- Now cut off the wool on the crotch. Make sure that you have repeated the blow to remove all the wool and then apply the shears below the inside of the right leg.
- Inside the right leg, you’ll find ewe’s teats that should be covered with your left hand to avoid cutting them off accidentally.
Step 4: Shear the Left Back Leg and Tail
Change your sheep’s position & turn 90 degrees so that her left side is displayed properly. After that follow the below steps to shear the left back leg and tail.
- Trim wool from the left hind leg of the sheep. To do it, start from the toe and make it finish on the side of the backbone.
- Move your right leg rearwards to have better access to the tail of the sheep. Now, start blowing from the top of the tail on the backbone and repeat it more than once to clear the tail’s wool completely.
- You can remove the wool from the sheep’s head as well since you have access to the head in this position.
Step 5: Cut Off Fleece From the Chest, Neck, and Chain
To shear the chest, neck & chin, you have to go through the third position. To get the sheep in that position:
- Shift your right foot in between the back legs of the sheep and place the left foot at the bottom of the spine. Now use your knees to hold her body properly. With the help of your left hand, grab the sheep below the chin and distend her head rearward.
- Take your trimmer from the breastbone towards the neck and finish your blow below the sheep’s chin.
- Long blows should be applied on her neck’s left side, then remove wool beneath her eyes then ear.
Step 6: Shave the Left Shoulder
For sharing the left shoulder of your sheep you have to be aware of it as the skin on the shoulders is wrinkled.
- You need to use your left hand to pull the sheep’s left shoulder skin. For smooth blows and avoid cutting, this will help you out.
- Begin by shearing the left knees, cut off upwards, and the left shoulder of her. One more blow will be effective to remove the wool entirely.
- In that position, you’ll be able to clip wool from her left foreleg’s inside.
Step 7: Shearing the Sheep’s Back
Change into the fourth position now by sweeping the sheep down on your shin and confirm that she has lied on her right side.
- Now long below should be applied which draws out on the back of the sheep. Place the shear at the sheep’s tail and make an extended straight blow to her head.
- Continue these blows until the wool of the left side is removed
Step 8: Shear the Sheep’s Right Side
Now you have to move into the 5th position that is called the final position as well.
- Cut off the wool from the right side of the sheep’s neck, shoulder, and head
- Use a minimum of 3/4 blows individually and don’t forget to hold the skin with your left hand across the shoulder taut.
- Clear her right foreleg’s wool for the toe to shoulder now,
- On the next step, make a couple of diagonal blows on the flank of the sheep to cut off the wool for the site.
Step 9: Clear the Wool From Hindquarter & Right Leg
In the final step, you need to shear sheep’s wool from the right leg and hindquarter.
- Execute strong pressure to locate your left hand on the right flank of the sheep.
- Now clear the wool from the right hind leg. After that remove the wool from the hindquarter.
Benefits of Using Electric Sheep Shears
There are lots of benefits you’ll get if you use Electric Sheep Shear. Below, we have pointed out some major benefits of it
- Electric Sheep Shear is comparatively easy to use thus anyone can operate it
- It creates less pressure on your Sheep, and there is less chance of injury
- Compared to the hand shear, Electric shears take less time to cut off the wool
- Electric Sheep Shear is durable and not much expensive
- With the Electric Sheep Shear, you can cut off your sheep’s wool and maintain the quality.
- A professional shearer with an E-Sheep Shear can remove the coat within 2 minutes or less.
Conclusion
Shearing is not a hardened task at all but for proper sheep shearing, you have to keep patience & confidence. People are now involved in using electric sheep shears that consume less time, but the problem is the majority of people don’t know How to Shear a Sheep With Electric Sheep Shear properly.
Regarding the fact, we have tried our best to provide you a complete solution step by step in simple words. If you are a newbie using Electric shear, then this will help you out for sure.