Shearing Day

Today was Shearing Day!  It is a day I anticipate every spring, with some dread, but mostly with great joy.  That dread is of all the preparation and extremely tiring work, the joy is for  the unveiling of the beautiful fiber our alpacas have been growing all year.  I love to see what the year has brought.  We sheared over 80# of fiber from our 15 alpacas.  Some of the fiber is okay, but most of it is outstanding.  This year, two of my premium fleeces were pre-sold.   I am happy that we have sold the fleeces, but a bit envious of the buyers, as these fleeces are crying to me  to touch and spin. 

We had a new shearer this year.  I liked the careful attention to detail and the slower pace.  I especially liked the animal being on a table instead of on the floor. Much of the skirting I do in the cottage was done right there on shearing table.   My back lasted the entire day, since I was not on the floor.   Rich prefers a faster pace and thought the work on his end was tougher.  I think we all would have been more pleased had the weather been nicer.  the morning started out fine but it was not long before the rain was beating down.  The storm continues tonight.  I believe when all is said and done we should have gotten over 5 inches of rain.  Ugh, Mud!  Little Buster got the chills after shearing.  we put a coat on him and he seems, once again, to be happy.

A very long day,
Alpaca Lady