The 8 Steps You Need to Know to Confidently Shear Your Own Sheep.
I have been shearing Sheep, Alpacas and Goats since 1988. It was all I wanted to do, growing up in a farming family, where Dad and my Uncles shore all of their own sheep and some of the neighbours as well. They passed their knowledge down to me and my brothers and now I have passed that knowledge onto my wife and my eldest daughter.
I love working with all levels of shearers from raw learners to shearers who have been shearing sheep professionally for years. There is always so much to learn, even for the Veterans.
As a shearer who has shown many newbies how to shear their own sheep, it is this group of shearers that I find most enjoyable and rewarding to teach.
Many raw learner shearers who own their own sheep are lacking in confidence as they haven’t been shown How to Shear at all. Or if they have, they have lost all confidence, as their experience of shearing, may not have been very memorable. Encountering many problems, such as:
Where do I start?
Most shearers start shearing a sheep on the belly. After the belly wool is removed the shearer, shears the wool between the hind legs and then goes straight to the first hind leg and the undermine, which are 2 blows either side of the backbone running from the backside to approximately half way up the back. Then the shearer shears the top notch off and then walks forward and puts one foot between the sheep’s hind legs and the other behind the sheeps back while the sheep is sitting tall on its tail. Here the neck is shorn and then straight onto the first front shoulder. The sheep is manouvered into a parallel positon to the downtube and the longblow is completed. The shearer steps forward and shears the second cheak and does the second side of the neck and shoulder running their handpiece downwards. From here the shearer is nearly finished and has only to do the last side from the shoulder to the tail.
Why won’t the sheep sit still for me?
Sheep usually don’t understand what is happening at shearing time. They would much rather be grazing in the paddock, filling their tummy full of grass. So when a shearer catches and shears a sheep it is only natural that sometime a sheep might wriggle to get away from the shearer to go back to the paddock for a feed. The clipper may tickle the sheep as well causing the sheep to want to get away from the shearer. With a bit of patience and staying calm the sheep will settle down and stay still long enough for the shearer to successfully finish shearing the wriggling sheep. Not all sheep wriggle. Most stay still for a shearer to successfully shear the sheep without any struggle at all.
I feel like I’m going to cut my sheep!
If you choose the right sheep shearing blades, shearing cuts will be kept to a bare minimum or none at all. It is so important to choose the right shearing equipment so you won’t hurt your sheep. It is also very important to learn to shear the right way. If you have tried shearing without getting in a mentor or teacher to help you, you will know how hard it is to shear a sheep. Shearing doesn’t have to be hard. All you need is the right shearing method and shearing becomes enjoyable and something to be proud of.
Why won’t my clippers cut the wool?
The clippers won’t cut the wool when you are shearing because the blades have gone blunt or you have not given your clipper enough tension to allow the blades to form a proper cutting edge.
The Sheep are always getting away from me!
Correct shearing technique is so important when shearing sheep. If you are in the right position and holding the sheep correctly the sheep very rarely get away from a shearer. This is something that needs to be taught. Check out Justin’s Shearing Course to learn how to hold a sheep properly when shearing the sheep. https://www.theshearerspost.com.au/courses
How do I set my clipper up properly with the comb and cutter blades?
The blades need to be correctly positioned on the clipper so the wool can easily flow through the comb teeth and be cut by the cutter blade. If it is set up incorrectly the shearer will have to push too hard or the blades may cut the sheep.
7. I don’t know when my blades are sharp or blunt?
A shearers’ blades are usually blunt when the cutter blades starts to get full of wool. You can see the wool coming out the side of the cutter and in the air hole of the cutter blade. This is usually caused by dirt in the wool making the blades blunt. 2 or 3 cutters can be used on the comb blade before you will need a new comb blade.
8. What type of shearing equipment do I select for shearing my sheep?
This all depends on how many sheep you need to shear yourself and the existing gear you may already have. I would always suggest using equipment you have got already before buying new equipment. Unless your existing shearing gear is old and worn out. If you are a hobby farmer and have only a few sheep I would suggest a sturdy Electric Sheep Shearing Clipper and an all rounder, good quality, factory sharpened comb and cutter blade. If you are a commercial sheep farmer I would suggest a mechanical clipper.
These are just a sample of questions relating to confidence, to shearing your own sheep, I have had. There are 100’s more.
With my extensive background of shearing sheep, I can answer many questions and show you how it’s done with my video series as well. If I cannot answer a question, then I just go to some of my best friends who are professional shearers like myself and I will find the answer to your questions.
So if confidence is holding you back, let me help you overcome your lack of confidence and help you get to a confidence level, to where you can shear your own sheep. For all those people who can shear their own sheep, they will be able to testify, to the immense self satisfaction of shearing your own small flock of sheep and not getting in a hard to find shearing contractor to do your sheep shearing for you.