Some liken the process to human haircuts—quick, painless, and even necessary. Others worry that the proceedings can be frightening and even painful for the sheep. With these opposing factors in mind, we are often asked about our sheep residents at Farm Sanctuary: to shear or not to shear?

The short answer: To shear. Due to selective breeding, domesticated sheep get a lot fluffier come springtime than their wild brethren. While “hair sheep” will shed and rub away their winter coats, “wool sheep” (and wool/hair crosses) can overheat without help. So, every spring—and sometimes a second time in late summer—we relieve the sheep of their excess wool so that they’re dressed appropriately for the season.

Sheep also suffer regular mutilations as part of the wool farming process—especially the merino breed, whose wrinkly skin supports extra wool growth. Since they also grow excess wool on their rears, urine and feces can soak through the wool and attract flies. After the flies lay their eggs, the hatched maggots feed on the sheep—often eating them alive. This condition is called “flystrike,” and can lead to mass deaths in the flock.

To prevent flystrike, farmers conduct a painful procedure called “mulesing” —removing slabs of skin from a sheep’s rear end, typically without anesthetic. The healing process creates scar tissue without wrinkles or wool, which helps keep the sheep’s rumps clean. This process is painful, traumatic, and unnecessary.

The second most popular question: what do we do with the wool? Well, we don’t use it for our own winter sweaters, or sell any excess in exchange for donations. At Farm Sanctuary, we believe that animals and their byproducts are not ours to use. Even if sourced under “humane” standards, wool is still a commodity—and using sheep to obtain it makes them seem only as worthy as the product they produce. Instead, we take the wool to the top of a pasture hill and spread it around so that small animals can use it for bedding, nests, etc… It is amazing how quickly it is picked up! In 2010, we donated the wool to help with the clean up of the BP oil spill.

At our Sanctuaries, shearing is solely for the sheep—and we take as much time and care as possible throughout the process. At our New York shelter, for example, our shearer spends three days among our flocks, which consist of roughly 100 sheep total. In the wool industry, most shearers are paid by the sheep—not by the hour—and, at an average of two minutes per sheep, one shearer can work through double this amount in one day. Sheep can get deep and painful cuts from a rushed shearing job. It can also be very scary for them to be pinned and roughly handled with loud, sharp tools.

In the end, sheep exploited for their wool are only deemed as useful as their output. Once their wool production falters or declines, they often face slaughter for meat—another reason why raising sheep for their wool is not as benign as it may seem. Many take transoceanic journeys—spending weeks cramped together in holding pens onboard—before they are killed in foreign markets. Thousands drowned in 2019 when one such ship capsized; thousands more survived this traumatic experience only to be placed on another ship bound for slaughter.

But when shearing is performed for the sheep themselves—rather than for profit—it can help them stay healthy. Regular trimming around their bums (also known as “crutching”) can help those with chronic scalding issues stave off disease. Shearing can also help remove external parasites, and allow us to spot any other health concerns.

Part of our regular health checks include feeling each sheep to search for any abnormalities. For example, shearing helps us see if a sheep is getting thin and requires additional food intake—something that’s easier to gauge by sight than by touch alone.

The way that we shear also depends on each sheep and their specific needs. For those who are older or have certain health conditions, we will shear them upright or laying down—rather than holding them in place—to prevent excess strain. Sometimes the weather also proves to be a challenge; we might wait a little longer to shear frail or older sheep, or provide excess coats if the temperatures drop.

But just how do the sheep feel about their “haircuts?” At first, it can take a little time for them to recognize each other! Sometimes they’ll literally butt heads at the “new” sheep in the flock, only to then recognize a loved one’s scent. In general, they feel great without their winter coats once the warmer weather rolls in—plus, it’s much easier to scratch those hard to reach spots without excess straw and hay poking through. We’re glad to do what we can to help offset the discomfort caused by generations of breeding—and we think it makes them look pretty cute, as well!