::HOW TO:: Shearing Sheep 🐑 ✂️ with Bumblebee Acres Farm 

Good luck! It's the easiest for all of us who are too small to move the sheep around the classic way. We are going to try real wool shears next time- just be aware if you've never purchased those before, this was our first time and they don't come sharpened or conditioned, so if you do make Sure you research the company selling them to make sure they do that sort of stuff!

Thank you for watching!

Hi Marcus! Thanks for watching and leaving a comment! 1. It's always at least a two person job for us. We kind of usher them and push them up the ramp in the back of the stand. We find our sheep move pretty well when we push their rumps in the direction we want them to go 🤣 2. That totally depends on the breed, fiber density, fiber type, and size! But usually I'd say we average 30min-1 hour for most of our flock depending on those things. The Shetland fleece is not as dense or greasy as the Cormo, for example, so they are a lot quicker. They also don't have wool on their faces and legs and the rear area is not as messy, either. Cormos and other merino breeds are a lot more work, and have looser skin! I hope that helps 💕

@@bumblebeeacresfarm Very much so. Thank you so much.

​@@bumblebeeacresfarm I winced when I read how long it takes you! Do you really mean up to an hour per sheep? I'm by no means an expert, but I rarely take longer than two or three minutes per sheep with machine shears, or perhaps five to seven with blade shears. Why do you do it this way instead of how professionals do it (called the Australian pattern or the Bowen method)? As well as being so much quicker, it's much less stress for the sheep, it makes a neater job - and it's actually far easier too. (You'd even get more wool!) To start with you could make it much easier for yourselves using blade shears instead of scissors. Why so masochistic? There are lots of online sources for how to do it, or you could go on a course.

Are you using fabric scissors or tailor scissors? They have to have the chops to cut through something so dense! Also don't try to cut more than 1/4-1/2 in deep at a time and cut parallel to the part you make in the wool, so you're using the whole length of the scissor not just the tip!

@@bumblebeeacresfarm I don’t remember but I think it day say good to use with fabric. “Sharp past 1,000 cuts” or something like that. It just wouldn’t go through at all though. I was so bummed lol. I ended up trying to trim her like a hedge since the other wasn’t working. Needless to say I have a shearer booked. Hopefully in September I can try again and see if I can get the hang of it!

Hi Avery! Currently, none of the yarn in our shop is from our sheep. The last few years we have been reserving our wool to be made into combed top so we can hand paint it for hand spinners! Occasionally we have a batch of yarn from our flock milled from time to time, but currently our flock is too small to have a consistent offering! However, we try to source our yarn from ethical sources! If you have any questions about any of our yarn bases, please shoot me an email! -Sam

HAHAHAAHAHA. I'm sorry, that cracked me up so much!

Bumblebee Acres nutmeg is a good girl

Bumblebee Acres nice video do you want to watch mine

Bumblebee Acres nut is a clever girl

Shearers are not easy to come by in the US. Especially wool shearers. They are used to shearing for meat breeds and do not know how to take the fleece off without ruining it. On top of that, our sheep have looser skin and merino-fine wool. That requires special shears and experience or our sheep and up looking like a slasher film victim. And as far as learning ourselves, our hands are too small to hold the barrel of the shear we bought. We are all around 5', too, so wrangling a 150-200 lb sheep would take us even longer to attempt than just strapping a sheep calmly in the stand and taking the fleece off with two people and hand shears

@@bumblebeeacresfarm aw ok fair enough. When do you do your shearing? I have experience in shearing about 10,000 fine wool sheep. If I'm in the country at the right time I'd love to help :)

We have a set but all of our hands are too small to hold them! 😂 of course found out AFTER we bought them. And you have to go to a school or intern to learn how to do it without risking cutting them and to hold and move them correctly.

@@bumblebeeacresfarm really; hmmm; so all the commercial shears are made for aussie husky type pro shearing guys that never need to go to the gym, makes sense...so we need lady size pink shears that have little lambs embellished on them. works for me! ha ha! from what i see they have a solid lower clip plate that does not move, the upper moving clip blade moves laterally across the lower solid clip plate and the upper one is placed BACK of the lower one so u never snip the sheeps skin, but u could poke it i suppose but not snip it . u shd find some to fit your hands surely they make them in different sizes?