# Shearing Techniques with Fiona Nettleton



## HilltopDaisy (Feb 26, 2003)

I ordered and just received the DVD from Rural Route Videos. www.ruralroutevideos.com It's a 100 minute video by the winner of the 1988 Golden Shears Junior Champion in New Zealand. Can't remember what I paid (I bought a few DVD's) but whatever the price it was well worth it to me. I plan on buying shears and some day earning some extra $$ shearing for friends and neighbors. All I can say is WOW. She's an excellent teacher. I feel as though I could go outside and shear my sheep right now, by myself, after only seeing the video once!


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## Somerhill (Dec 13, 2005)

Fiona is the daughter of Brian Nettleton. Brian was a vet in Scotland, Nova Scotia, and the Papua New Guinea. 
Brian was the actual person that James Herriot based a student in his All Creatures Great and Small books upon. He is the student vet who carried a badger on his shoulder as a pet.  
Sadly, Brian was killed in an accident in New Guinea several years ago.

My friend, Anne Priest, was a dear friend of the Nettletons, and she credits their family for getting her start in shepherding. You can read her story of raising sheep on an island in Nova Scotia and in the mountains of New York in her new book, Trafficing in Sheep. Very entertaining!

Lisa at Somerhill
www.somerhillfarm.com


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## heritagefarmer (Apr 30, 2006)

HilltopDaisy said:


> I ordered and just received the DVD from Rural Route Videos. www.ruralroutevideos.com It's a 100 minute video by the winner of the 1988 Golden Shears Junior Champion in New Zealand. Can't remember what I paid (I bought a few DVD's) but whatever the price it was well worth it to me. I plan on buying shears and some day earning some extra $$ shearing for friends and neighbors. All I can say is WOW. She's an excellent teacher. I feel as though I could go outside and shear my sheep right now, by myself, after only seeing the video once!


My DH read the book on shearing, but unfortunately, the sheep didn't!
We have one who likes to stand like she's in the poodle parlor. Won't sit on her butt for anything!
You need to show the sheep the video a few times too....


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## ajaxlucy (Jul 18, 2004)

Both I and my sheep need to watch this video. I just finished hand shearing a couple of Shetland ewes - my first time trying shearing. Two sheep in two days is not very good, is it?


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## HilltopDaisy (Feb 26, 2003)

Hey, two sheep in two days means you didn't have to pay someone to come and shear for you!


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## Ross (May 9, 2002)

I have that video, it's informative and well worth the asking price. The production quality is not very profesional, and it really drags at the start (everyone's a critic) but Ms. Nettleton knows her shearing and you can't help but improve your technique watching it. I've started the horrible task today, and stripped off ten with relative ease. Ok I stripped off 2 with ease and 8 remembering why I did things just so last time! I limited the joy to 10, so I wouldn't pull anything or hate the task for tomorrow. 10 more tomorrow before brekkie, 15 the day after that and 20 a day until I'm done after that.


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## ErinC (Jul 7, 2005)

Lucy, I'd say that's great for your first time around - Shetlands are supposed to be the hardest sheep to shear. I have not learned to shear yet, but the shearer had a tantrum this spring in the middle of shearing because he doesn't like shetlands. Needless to say, it's time to find a new shearer, but shetlands do have a lot of folds in their skin, which makes it harder to work with.


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## HilltopDaisy (Feb 26, 2003)

ErinC said:


> Lucy, I'd say that's great for your first time around - Shetlands are supposed to be the hardest sheep to shear. I have not learned to shear yet, but the shearer had a tantrum this spring in the middle of shearing because he doesn't like shetlands. Needless to say, it's time to find a new shearer, but shetlands do have a lot of folds in their skin, which makes it harder to work with.



That's interesting. I didn't know that.


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## MorrisonCorner (Jul 27, 2004)

I take my Icelandic fleeces off while the animals are held in a stand... with a pair of Fisker's shears. I go through two pairs a year taking the fleeces off (2x a year) 20 odd sheep.

We tried the "rotate on butt" thing twice. Twice was plenty. On the stand, by hand, works for us.


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## ajaxlucy (Jul 18, 2004)

ErinC said:


> Lucy, I'd say that's great for your first time around - Shetlands are supposed to be the hardest sheep to shear. I have not learned to shear yet, but the shearer had a tantrum this spring in the middle of shearing because he doesn't like shetlands. Needless to say, it's time to find a new shearer, but shetlands do have a lot of folds in their skin, which makes it harder to work with.


Well, I don't feel so bad now. I did notice a lot of skin folds, but since I've never handled sheep other than Shetlands I couldn't compare. On one ewe it made the shearing pretty difficult, but the other one was easier as she was already starting to shed off her wool. The old wool was separating from the skin, held on by a thinner, lighter layer, so I just had to lift up and snip.


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