It’s official: Farm Sanctuary’s wooly friends are naked. Each year in the spring, we bring trusted shearers to Watkins Glen and Acton to help with this vital part of sheep healthcare. Sheep were bred to produce excess wool, so shearing prevents them from overheating, removes itchy plant matter nestled in their skin, and relieves them of extra weight on their bodies. Since their bodies are not ours to use, we give their wool back to nature.

As sheep are prey animals, this process can be a little scary: The clippers make noise, and we need to hold them still. However, the difference between shearing at Farm Sanctuary and shearing in a commercial setting is that we work as slowly and carefully as possible to avoid unnecessary stress. After all, this process is for the sheep’s benefit — not for ours.

Once it’s done, they feel light and free. Some sheep leap across the pasture, while others roll around in the grass or scratch their bodies along fences and gates. The more outgoing sheep also seek our help for those hard-to-reach spots—and we’re more than happy to oblige!

Here are some photos of their new ‘dos!