angora shearing questions

[ohiogoatgirl]

hi! i have a pair of old shears from the farm. they are in great condition and sharp as anything. but i'm a newbie to angora's and i'm nervous about shearing them. i want to do it myself. i was wondering if anyone had any tips for shearing. if y'all could share your tips or advice it would be much appreciated. and what do you use to shear? depending on how my hand shearing goes and prices i might look at new clippers.
thanks!

 

[ohiogoatgirl]

i just got them today. they have really nasty butts... i'm not sure if this is just how they are or what. should i clip their butt a little? its like hair and excrement... total ew!

and under their chins are so icky, wet and has a bunch of hay right there. can i keep trimming it right there during the year to keep it from getting nasty. i was thinking if its okay to trim that then i could use the short clippings to make dollhair and stuff. i have a few ideas...

anyone???

 

[theawesomefowl]

I'd clean/shear it off, but I have no clue.

 

[goodhors]

Is it warm enough to wash the goats before shearing? We wash the horses, who have hair, the dog, before shearing to make cutting easier. Running a hose with warm water from the house, using soap, should help get the manure out of the hair with a little soaking time. Warm water seems to make all washing easier. You can start at the rearend, leave it soak with soap or shampoo on, while washing the rest of the goat. I probably would just wash and cut off the beard, instead of combing it out. Then rinse well, maybe use hair conditoner rubbed in, cheapest brand, to comb out tangles, burrs, any manure left in. Conditoner helps keep hair slippery, so getting things out should be easier, leaving hair soft.

After rinsing all soap and conditioner out of hair, you can use a shop vac on the blower side, blow off the excess water to help goat dry faster. Then towel them to remove more water. Tie them up out of the wind to let dry. You can then try shearing when dry with your hand clippers. Guess I would start with the rear, get the stained stuff off first, around the anus and vaginal area removed VERY carefully. Then when goat does poop or pee, there is no hair to catch it and get filthy.

Not sure of your weather, may be too early to actually remove all the rest of the hair now. Sure is here, with just some warm days so far. If you have a stand to put goat up on, tie head still, things will go MUCH easier for you. Goat is contained, you can use both hands to hold hair for cutting. You can control the shears better. Doing part of the goat is fine, stop when the rear is trimmed down short. Working the shears is going to make your hand really tired. You can do more trimming later on, finish the animal later.

Shearing using hand shears is kind of learn-as-you-go, so practice makes you better. Better to go slow, not get any cuts on the animal, than damage it. You can ALWAYS cut hair shorter, later. For now, you are aiming at getting the rearends cleaned up to prevent sores and possible infrection from matted manure.

Best of luck with your endeavor. Do check around before buying clippers and blades. Ask a friend if you can try theirs. I understand that Angora hair is not like other "wooly" animals, so some equipment doesn't work on their hair for cutting and shearing them off. We have gone from what is sold to shear sheep wool, to using my big horse clipper blades on the market lambs. Does and EXCELLENT job of total wool removal as they want for market lambs. Not leaving any nicks or cuts, with very little length left on. My sheep shearing head and various EXPENSIVE sheep blades never get used now. They didn't cut well, made a lot of cuts in the skin of sheep, even in skilled hands. We are much happier going with horse clippers now.

 

[ohiogoatgirl]

well its ohio and our spring is like our october. no clue until it happens. its 10 PM and almost 60*F last night at this time it was about 35*F... all our snow is melted and flowers and grass is coming up. but our snow is usually just now half melted...

and i read that you are not supposed to wash an angora goat or else you get felt on a goat...

i'm waiting for a reply email from the lady i bought them from. i'm so glad i have her email!

 

[gypsyridgefarm]

Never wash an angora, you will felt them.