Pure texel rams have been the worst for me. The really extreme muscled types that won't bend and stop breathing when you turn them over.
Shearing Season 2024
- Thread starter LukeMcCullagh
- Start date
- Location
- North Yorkshire
I think this will just help everyone through the difficult breeds.
Fun should never be used when talking about shearing and you've managed it twice in the post above
- Location
- North Yorkshire
It is fun, hard bloody work.
But nothing better than seeing a field/shed of well sheared comfortable sheep.
And as they say if you love what you do you'll never work a day in your life
I like the one about "he shore so hard he died!!"I think this will just help everyone through the difficult breeds.
- Location
- North Yorkshire
That is a good one, to be "Shearing in the summertime" is a good one as well.
- Location
- North Yorkshire
Just managed to get two proper jobs of the season booked in.
Got 70 ewe lambs to do.
And then one place has 100 MV accredited ewes and 30 tups to do one day then 110 ewe commercial flock to do.
So that has been a bloody grand day and the weather has got better round here so I am on a winner.
Got 70 ewe lambs to do.
And then one place has 100 MV accredited ewes and 30 tups to do one day then 110 ewe commercial flock to do.
So that has been a bloody grand day and the weather has got better round here so I am on a winner.
- Location
- North Wales
2024 season's kicked off with 6 fattening hoggs. Just to tidy them up and clip their wooly heads. Hopefully they'll put on a little condition over the next couple of weeks and they're off down the road.
Start doing some straight/stiff legged deadlifts every day, don’t need much weight, in fact probably best to start of with no weight. Get your ‘posterior chain’ muscles used to being under tension in the stretched position, try to progress further down a wee bit each session. Shearing will be 100x easier if you’ve got flexibility in your hamstrings. That and do some running, get the cardio side up, in fact do the running first to warm up good and proper, reduce risk of injury.
- Location
- North Yorkshire
Cheers I will start on them. I remember my hamstrings from last year been doing yoga to try and loosen my joints and improve flexibility. Hopefully it will pay off.
- Location
- South Pennines ol14
You boys are getting all serious! Yoga , stretching, weightlifting
How about a trim for big Teds fringe
How about a trim for big Teds fringe
- Location
- North Yorkshire
Have to be serious if I'm ever going to get to the 300 a day tally and at my age not got long to hit it
Feel like he should be on a L'Oréal advert
- Location
- South Pennines ol14
I admire you guys , I couldn’t do it ( not that I tried)Have to be serious if I'm ever going to get to the 300 a day tally and at my age not got long to hit it
Feel like he should be on a L'Oréal advert
I never got to 300, did 280 once and a lot of 250 days. I wouldn’t be to bothered now if I never shore another sheep but used to be mad keen on it. Just do 1000 a year now to do my own and earn a few quid.Have to be serious if I'm ever going to get to the 300 a day tally and at my age not got long to hit it
Feel like he should be on a L'Oréal advert
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I thought I was ok at shearing until I did 260 ewe hoggs in 8 hours and the bloke on the stand next to me did 580. He was brilliant and never lost his temper or made it look a stuggle. Put me off a bit thinking that someone could more than double my tally.
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- Location
- N.Lincs
Love watching someone that makes the job look a doddle, the secret is that, in fact, the job is a doddle to them! The better you get, the easier it gets, or in other words, if your consistently struggling…..you’re doing it wrong.
Remember working away one day a few years ago, on good going Cheviot ewes in good order, but I was having a nightmare, really struggling to keep them under control, and half way through, I can only describe it as an epiphany, I distinctly thought to myself, this should be easy, YOU'RE MAKING IT HARD! Slowed down a bit and figured out where i was going wrong and put it right and the rest of the day was muuuch better. It’s easy to get caught up in the “go go go” mentality and puting more effort than thought into it and making life hard for yourself, so keep the head. I worked next to a kiwi for a couple of seasons that was like the above, just unbelievably relaxed and smooth, learnt a lot (although I could never hold the handpiece between my fingertips like him!
)Some other tips that helped me off the top of my head:
• when dragging a sheep into position, hold a foot in your right hand and the wool of the neck in your left, dragging her on the right side of her rump - hold onto two legs, or drag/sit her on her tailhead and you’ll have an energy sapping kicker
• When clearing from the brisket down the right hand side of the belly, go onto your tiptoe on your right foot to lift her front leg a wee bit, I was bad for catching skin there with the outer teeth, this helped a lot.
• try to come up the right side of her throat and then the left, come up the middle and you’ll be nicking skin all day
• don’t let her head drop further than needed when doing the long blows up her back, as you just need to pick it back up again
• the last long blow over the spine should turn into the first blow down the second shoulder without leaving the skin
• after clearing the second shoulder the handpiece should be heading straight down over the belly for just 2, max 3, short blows before heading right out the last leg (can’t stand seeing the right hand side of sheep clipped in short blows from the sline
• don’t start walking back prematurely for the last blows, keep the sheep upright to reduce chances of her kicking out, hamstring flexibility is king here!
There’ll be a thousand tips and tricks, but these are ones that helped me a lot.
Oh, and keep your gear sharp!
You really are a nutter I bet you even enjoy shearing charalais tups or charalais in general really
