A mountain of wool

Chris’ telltale greenish-gray truck pulls into the barnyard early in the morning as we’re doing chores. Shearing season once again has arrived on the farm, and the 120-odd sheep are ready. As the temperatures tentatively climb out of the deep freeze, their heavy wool coats will soon be too intense for their comfort.

In the wild, sheep naturally shed their fleece in the spring, rubbing on trees and rocks and anything else that will help them peel off winter’s fibers, just as the bucks do to rub off their antlers after the rutting season. Wild sheep and goats look rather shaggy through this phase, much like when your dog blows its coat in the spring. Our English shepherd herding dogs will be going through that annual phase soon, and goodness, there is fur everywhere for weeks!