Clipping 2016

It's that time of year again! Time to bury ourselves in wool.

Jess and Teddy are in their element at clipping time.

Wait a minute - was that wool in your mouth, Jess? Did you just grip a sheep?

Father and son team Paddy...

...and Barry were back to clip the sheep.

The sheep were not looking forward to this - but they'll thank us later.

The fleeces came off very smoothly - a sign that they were ready to come off and summer must be on its way.

Teddy made sure no sheep backed out of the trailer.

Close to the edge.

It's this ewe's turn next.

Being clipped does involve a lot of manhandling.

Yes, that was yours.

Jess and Teddy kept the sheep in place.

The first part of the sheep to be clipped is the tummy, followed by the bottom and then the neck.

This ewe is very interested in the process.

The dogs love this job. It is what they were born to do, after all.

Most of the ewes had huge, thick fleeces. Torture on a warm day.

I stepped to the other side of the gate for a moment...

...to watch Suckie getting clipped for the tenth time (sheep aren't clipped in their first year).

A different sheep! She must have felt a whole lot lighter without that big fleece.

Waiting patiently for their turn.

Snap.

Who's watching who?

What a sheep looks like under all that wool.

The sheep everyone had been waiting for - the last.

Three days and 377 sheep later, the dogs were tired but satisfied with a job well done.

This was Jess' second time helping out and she did very well.

Paddy and Barry, Dad and I, Jess and Teddy... clipping really is a family affair.

The clippers have been unplugged and the trailer towed away for another year.

Congratulations to all on a job well done.