Shearing An Alpaca From Start To Finish

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Күн бұрын

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0:00 Shearing The Blanket
1:18 Shearing The Back Legs and Tail
2:40 Shearing The Neck and Face
5:13 Shearing The Last Leg And Cleaning Up
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This video shows how to shear an alpaca from start to finish! This is my method for shearing alpacas, and what I find to be the safest and most efficient pattern for a two person crew. We shear from Florida to Maine every spring, and shear thousands of animals: alpacas, llamas, sheep, and goats.
This method of alpaca shearing uses restraints on the animals legs to keep them from kicking and moving which can be dangerous for the animal and the shearers. I use the MINIMUM amount of force required to get the job done safely and efficiently. Each animal is on the mat for around 6 minutes once a year for shearing, which harvests their beautiful fiber and keeps them cool for the summer heat.
The blanket is the best fiber that the animal produces, and what is used to be spun into alpaca yarn. It is the longest and softest fiber and is the first fiber to come off each animal to avoid contamination of second cuts (small bits of fiber). The neck is usually considered "seconds" which is too short to be spun into standard yarn but can be used for rug yarn or felting projects. The thirds are any fiber that touches the ground or gets cut in half (legs, belly, head and face) - some people will just toss this fiber out, or use it for felting projects.
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www.appalachianshearing.com
Thank you ‪@TyGouldJacinto‬ for letting me use the footage you captured of me!
How To Shear An Alpaca
Shearing An Alpaca
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#shearing #alpaca #llama #sheep #subscribe #like #satisfying #farming #farm #farmer #fiber #satisfyingvideo #satisfyingvideos

Пікірлер: 24

@TyGouldJacinto 11 ай бұрын

Awesome! Love it. Bella was loving it!

@java4653 11 ай бұрын

Thrills! Excitement! Barbering!

@appalachianshearing 11 ай бұрын

😊

@Yankpats 11 ай бұрын

What amount of time does that hair represent as far as growth?

@appalachianshearing 11 ай бұрын

That’s one year of growth!

@jontask9997 11 ай бұрын

My friend has 3 alpacas...and the one screams the place down when being sheared 😂

@appalachianshearing 11 ай бұрын

Hahah yeah, some of them are way more vocal than others 🤣

@dakohli 11 ай бұрын

I wonder if they like having the short hair after the shearing. I assume it is done as the weather gets warmer.

@appalachianshearing 11 ай бұрын

You are correct! They absolutely love it.

@dakohli 11 ай бұрын

@@appalachianshearing That makes it easy then!

@kemmiller8336 11 ай бұрын

Do all those smaller bits of fur get used, or is it just the large chunks that are usable, and they're just giving her a nice finished job?

@appalachianshearing 11 ай бұрын

The first part to come off (the blanket) is the best fiber and that’s what goes to yarn. The other stuff off the neck is good for rug yarn or felting, and all the really tiny bits usually get tossed.

@kemmiller8336 11 ай бұрын

@@appalachianshearing Thank you!

@appalachianshearing 11 ай бұрын

@@kemmiller8336 you’re welcome!

@tbane143 11 ай бұрын

Do you have to drug it or is it just chilling?

@appalachianshearing 11 ай бұрын

I never use sedation, we just work with the animals calmly. It goes a long way! We gently lay them down on their side and restrain them to keep them from kicking or moving into the shears.

@Acemanveryspecial 11 ай бұрын

@@appalachianshearing I'd imagine you train them young with this technique. This former fluffy fella seemed very relaxed considering his instinct would be to run like heck to get away.

@appalachianshearing 11 ай бұрын

@@Acemanveryspecial in many cases the babies, called “crias”, are sheared within the first couple weeks of their life. This accomplishes two things: exposes them to this process from a young age, and also removes the microscopic barbs on the end of their fiber that they’re born with. This allows their “virgin fleece” to be as clean as possible. If they are not shorn as a baby, the barbs pick up all sorts of organic matter and can ruin the fiber.

@2dfx 11 ай бұрын

I wonder if a wild Alpaca yells to the sheared Alpacas something like "ALL NATURAL, UNSHEARED, DON'T BELIEVE GOVERNMENT LIES, IT'S JUST A COAT".

@XGDragon 11 ай бұрын

Can these shears hurt the animals if handled improperly?

@appalachianshearing 11 ай бұрын

Definitely - even when handled properly. The space between teeth is about a centimeter, and the cutter moves across at 2500 rpm. Inexperienced shearers can easily hurt the animal, but professionals will also get cuts from time to time. The most common cut is when the alpaca has a sebaceous cyst (essentially a raised zit) the gets cut by the shears. Any cut we get is cleaned out and treated before the animal is released.