Making Shearing Day Stress-Free

Do you have a small flock of sheep on your farm? Most breeds of sheep, excluding those that shed (such as Dorper sheep) will need to be shorn at least once a year. Other woolly residents of your farm such as alpacas also need an annual haircut. Shearing is necessary to avoid matted wool, heat stress and flystrike.  So even if you do not plan on taking up spinning, plan for an annual shearing day! For more at  حري صغير

Outsource or DIY your small farm shearing?

While larger farms running sheep can book professional shearing teams to come in and take care of this task for them, it can be cost prohibitive and logistically difficult to outsource shearing for a small number of sheep.  If you have a small flock, your best course of action may be to do it yourself.

Make no mistake, shearing is hard work and in order to make the day run on course, you need to be prepared. Here are our tips to make your shearing day run as smoothly and efficiently as possible.

5 shearing day tips

1. Plan ahead

First of all, book this job on the calendar in advance. Most farmers recommend shearing in spring, before the hot weather sets in and before lambing.  Book in a date for when you will have helping hands around.  You may be able to partner up with some neighbouring small farmers to help each other out.

Note that shearing should be done on dry sheep, so try to choose a traditionally dry period in your area and be prepared to be a little flexible if the weather turns inclement. If rain is forecast, keep your animals under shelter the night before if possible.

Part of your planning should also be to consider where you will do the shearing. You'll need access to power for your electric shears, and a clear, flat space with enough room to move, near where the sheep will be gathered. If you are shearing outside on the ground, you can put down a large piece of plywood to create a clean 'floor'. Try to have your shearing area in the shade or under shelter, for the sake of both the humans and sheep.  Have water and refreshments on hand for your shearing team as it is very physical work. For more at  خروف حري

If you are sorting your wool as you go, you will need a large table to be able to inspect it. If not, have some on hand to store the wool from each sheep, or wrap each fleece in an old bed sheet ready to inspect later. 2. Gear up

This is one of those jobs where your gear can make a substantial difference. Ensure your shearing equipment is in good working order. 

Electric rather than manual shears really are a must. They have three main parts a handpiece, comb and cutting blades. Look for shears with a higher number of teeth on the comb, as these tend to cut closer to the skin. You may find it most cost effective to buy a kit that includes all the components you will need.

If you already have some equipment, it's important to ensure that the cutters are still sharp before you begin shearing. Like knives, dull cutters can cause injuries and will also make the job of shearing more laborious. The cutters should be clean and disinfected for the best bio-security practices.

New cutters can be purchased separately from your handpiece. Bear in mind that different types of cutters are suits to fine and coarse wool, so you may want to seek advice on what the best option is for your breed of sheep.

As you are shearing, check that your cutters are not becoming overheated or clogged up with lanolin. You may need to change blades throughout the day so make sure you have some spare.

3. Prepare your sheep

In the days before shearing, prepare the sheep by crutching /dagging them removing all the soiled wool from around the anus and tail. This will ensure your fleeces are as clean as possible.

Get your sheep ready for shearing day by keeping them all in a central location such as a holding pen.  Make sure they have access to fresh water but no food.  Your sheep should fast from the day before shearing so they don't produce as much waste in the holding pen, making the job less mucky. Fasting the sheep also ensures their tummies aren't full when you are trying to shear them, which can be very uncomfortable for the sheep when turned on their backs.

4. Understand the technique

Like any other skill, being a good shearer takes technique and practice.  If you haven't had any exposure to shearing, some ways to learn are:

• learn from a more experienced neighbour by assisting on their shearing day
• take a short course at your local agricultural college
• watching videos on YouTube or purchasing instructional DVDs

Ideally, a sheep's fleece should be shorn off in one piece if you want the wool to hold the highest value.  Long 'blows' (single cuts with the shears) are the best technique but take practice. You should avoid having to go over areas of wool twice, as the second cut of short wool can't be spun.

5. Follow up

After shearing is a great time to check your sheep for any health issues. Shearing can be stressful for sheep, so keep an eye on them in the following days to ensure they are not showing signs of stress. If the weather takes an extreme turn, remember your sheep don't have their usual protection (fleece will take at least 6 weeks to reach a protective state) so provide shelter as they need it.

For the shearers, aftercare is also important! Shearing is hard physical work, so don't forget to stretch those muscles afterwards to avoid hobbling around in pain. For more at  خروف حري صغير

Health benefits of lamb

As a rich source of vitamins, minerals, and high-quality proteins, lamb can be an excellent component of a healthy diet. For more at  حري صغير

Muscle maintenance

Meat is one of the best dietary sources of high-quality protein.

In fact, it contains all nine amino acids you need and is referred to as a complete protein.

High-quality protein is very important for maintaining muscle mass — especially in older adults.

Inadequate protein intake may accelerate and worsen age-related muscle wasting. This increases your risk of sarcopenia, an adverse condition associated with very low muscle mass.

In the context of a healthy lifestyle and adequate exercise, regular consumption of lamb — or other high-protein foods — may help preserve muscle mass.

Improved physical performance

Lamb not only helps preserve muscle mass but may also be important for muscle function.

It contains the amino acid beta-alanine, which your body uses to produce carnosine, a substance necessary for muscle function.

Beta-alanine is found in high amounts in meat, such as lamb, beef, and pork.

High levels of carnosine in human muscles have been associated with decreased fatigue and improved exercise performance.

Diets low in beta-alanine — such as vegetarian and vegan diets — may decrease levels of carnosine in your muscles over time.

On the other hand, taking high doses of beta-alanine supplements for 4–10 weeks has been shown to cause a 40–80% increase in the amount of carnosine in muscles.

Therefore, regular consumption of lamb — or other foods rich in beta-alanine — may benefit athletes and those who want to optimize their physical performance.

Anemia prevention

Anemia is a common condition, characterized by low levels of red blood cells and decreased oxygen-carrying capacity of your blood. The main symptoms include fatigue and weakness.

Iron deficiency is a major cause of anemia but can be easily avoided with proper dietary strategies.

Meat is one of the best dietary sources of iron. It not only contains heme-iron — a highly bioavailable form of iron — but also improves the absorption of non-heme iron, the form of iron found in plants.

This effect of meat is not entirely understood and is referred to as the “meat factor” .

Heme-iron is only found in animal-derived foods. Therefore, it’s often low in vegetarian diets and absent from vegan diets.

This explains why vegetarians are more at risk of anemia than meat-eaters.

Simply put, eating meat may be one of the best dietary strategies to prevent iron deficiency anemia. For more at  خروف حري