Shearing Day
Please be present and available for your shearing or provide helpers as specified
During the actual shearing, the owner or at least one able bodied helper is expected to be on hand the entire time. The shearer should not be left alone in the field without help if they need it. While we have much experience handling animals, we are dealing with power tools and live animals and sometimes things happen that require extra hands.
It is also your responsibility to deal with the wool. Be prepared to bag fleeces if you want to keep them or have a plan for disposal if you do not. Let us know ahead of time if you are expecting to use the fleece as fiber, so we know how carefully to treat the fleeces when we are shearing.
If you want help with any small flock management tasks (hoof trimming, worming) we also need to know this ahead of time so we can be prepared and you are aware of the costs.
We are efficient and gentle, but sheep do get cut during the shearing process, especially if they have full bellies and are fighting and sometimes these cuts bleed. Although sheep heal rapidly because of the same systems that allow them to grow wool, it can be disturbing to new owners or people that have not been around shearing before. We treat cuts with livestock antiseptic and they will heal within a day or two. In the rare event of a more serious cut we do carry the equipment necessary to sew things up and have the skill to do so.