No shearing with self-shedding sheep

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No shearing with self-shedding sheep
Topic Started: Feb 20 2014, 02:38 PM (425 Views)
Kahu	Feb 20 2014, 02:38 PM Post #1
Posts: 31,109 Group: Administration Member #150 Joined: December 14, 2005	No shearing with self-shedding sheep Posted Image No need for a trip to the barber for Tarata farmers Stephanie and Hans Michel’s self-shedding two-tooth sheep. Work smarter, not harder is Hans Michel's motto. And the Tarata farmer and his wife Stephanie might just be onto something - their mob of 450 sheep shed their own wool. Self-shedding wiltshire sheep begin losing their wool in November and the Michels say by Christmas they are usually completely bare. But the husband and wife say people wanting to take a shearing shortcut need to take heed, because not all wiltshire sheep are self-shedding. "Even if the sheep is 100 per cent wiltshire self-shedding, it does not guarantee the offspring will be," explained the Swiss-born man. When non-shedding sheep are born on the Michel farm, they get a one-way ticket to the meatworks. Source Link



Durgan	Feb 20 2014, 03:51 PM Post #2
Veteran Member Posts: 13,273 Group: Gardening Guru Member #720 Joined: March 31, 2010	GMO?



Kahu	Feb 20 2014, 04:33 PM Post #3
Posts: 31,109 Group: Administration Member #150 Joined: December 14, 2005	GMO - through breeding intervention .... Due to some clever breeding the polled gene was introduced the Wiltshire breed. This gave the breed all the positive traits of the Horned breed with none of the commercial disadvantages of the horns. In the 1970's Polled and Horned Wiltshire sheep were imported into New Zealand. The breed increased in numbers rapidly but then the price of wool rose to new heights and the breed lost popularity. Today the low wool prices and high labor costs have made the breed a viable alternative sheep breed. The Wiltshire Sheep Breed can be documented as far back to the 18th century in Britain. Here Wiltshire sheep were the predominant type of sheep farmed on the Wiltshire Downs. There is archaeological evidence that the Roman settlements in this region farmed a similar type of sheep. Earlier archaeological evidence tells us the first domesticated sheep where in Britain about 3000BC and they where similar to the Soay Sheep (one of the few of today's breed of sheep that moult). These early sheep were brown and hairy with a thin layer of wool that moulted. Wool was harvested from these sheep by "rueing" or plucking it from the sheep. Wiltshire sheep may of descended from these early sheep .Source Link



Delphi51	Feb 20 2014, 04:51 PM Post #4
Member title Posts: 13,967 Group: Administration Member #441 Joined: October 10, 2006	How does the farmer collect the shed wool? I don't suppose the sheep conveniently shed in one place.



Kahu	Feb 20 2014, 07:58 PM Post #5
Posts: 31,109 Group: Administration Member #150 Joined: December 14, 2005	He doesn't collect the wool at all ... the wool is shed like a moult. The sheep are raised primarily for meat.



Trotsky	Feb 20 2014, 10:46 PM Post #6
Big City Boy Posts: 38,319 Group: Member Member #79 Joined: September 8, 2005	But then if shedders and non-shedders are all destined for the dinner table, what is the advantage of one over the other? Edited by Trotsky, Feb 20 2014, 10:51 PM.



Kahu	Feb 20 2014, 11:49 PM Post #7
Posts: 31,109 Group: Administration Member #150 Joined: December 14, 2005	Shearing by hand costs ... no shearing means less work. In the vernacular, these european life style farmers are 'lazy buggers'. Mind you, give a lazy man a task and he'll find the quickest way to finish!



Trotsky	Feb 21 2014, 12:04 AM Post #8
Big City Boy Posts: 38,319 Group: Member Member #79 Joined: September 8, 2005	Kahu Feb 20 2014, 11:49 PM Shearing by hand costs ... no shearing means less work. In the vernacular, these european life style farmers are 'lazy buggers'. Mind you, give a lazy man a task and he'll find the quickest way to finish! But I mean, with no need for the wool, why shear at all? Let the coat grow and grow until slaughter?



Kahu	Feb 21 2014, 12:28 AM Post #9
Posts: 31,109 Group: Administration Member #150 Joined: December 14, 2005	Getting back to Durgan's post about GMO ... these polled wiltshire sheep have been bred to shed their wool ... any throw-back that retains wool usually has wool of a poor quality (eg a very low crimp rate). There's no market for it, so it's off to the works as soon as possible in order to meet the qualifying lamb age .... : Young sheep under 12 months of age or which do not have any permanent incisor teeth in wear. That way is the most economic way for the producer to achieve the highest price. Other breeds of sheep with better quality wool need to be shorn regularly (high crimp rate - higher the price) to avoid fly strike, and sale of high quality garment wools, and cross bred carpet wools. Producers/Farmers normally try to achieve a balance between a need for the wool when the international wool price is high and the best quality carcasses for human consumption. These two conditions are seldom met with one breed ... so cross breeding is necessary to produce good wool AND quality meat ... NZ Corriedale Sheep.



margaret	Feb 21 2014, 01:30 AM Post #10
Red Star Member Posts: 2,276 Group: Member Member #1,032 Joined: October 3, 2013	Our neighbours company buys sheep pelts or what ever they are called by the ships containers. They are used in hospitals to relieve bed sores so he won't be buying many of these.



wildie	Feb 21 2014, 02:23 PM Post #11
Veteran Member Posts: 12,173 Group: Member Member #442 Joined: October 11, 2006	When I read the title I thought the post would be about Canadian taxpayers!



Kahu	Feb 21 2014, 03:03 PM Post #12
Posts: 31,109 Group: Administration Member #150 Joined: December 14, 2005	margaret Feb 21 2014, 01:30 AM Our neighbours company buys sheep pelts or what ever they are called by the ships containers. Medical sheepskin underlays are IMHO quite expensive ... roughly NZ$165 - CAN$153



Darcie	Feb 21 2014, 03:12 PM Post #13
Skeptic Posts: 31,154 Group: Member Member #714 Joined: March 30, 2010	A friend paid about $200 for hers. Do these come from the sheep that have been sent for meat?



Kahu	Feb 21 2014, 03:17 PM Post #14
Posts: 31,109 Group: Administration Member #150 Joined: December 14, 2005	More than likely Darcie ... although there is a further curing processing of the pelt before it can be classed as a medical underlay. The price I quoted was only a guess really from glancing at some of the online advertising.



margaret	Feb 22 2014, 02:21 AM Post #15
Red Star Member Posts: 2,276 Group: Member Member #1,032 Joined: October 3, 2013	Our neighbour says the pelts from New Zealand are the best in the world.



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