General News
29 August, 2025
Sheep and wool
BARRY's CORNER: There was an experienced shearing instructor giving us the benefit of his long history of wielding a handpiece to take the wool off the sheep.
He would set you up with a sheep on the board and watch your progress.
He watched as you got into the wrong position with the wriggling animal and with wool spread far and wide over the shed, and he would lean down close by and say, "Makes you laugh, don't it?".
It was the perfect line to pitch at a learner who was struggling to control the balance of the sheep and a cutting comb seemingly wanting to thrash wildly around to knock over a bystander.
An out-of-control handpiece is so dangerous that it can cause major damage to a human, the shed, the sheep or even the dog.
It has to be under control by the shearer to carefully guide it efficiently to remove all the wool.
It takes a while to learn the trade, improve your competency, and start joining a team and earning some dollars.
I did not continue the experience as a career, but others went on to spend a lifetime working the sheds.
Now, many decades later, there has been a real change in our minds, and it seems we no longer value the fibre called wool.
The fashion trends have swung away from wool to other products such as cotton and plastic.
There is a snug feeling to be wrapped in a woolly blanket on a winter's night, or to feel warm and toasty in a shirt, socks, jacket, and beanie all made from wool.
Even though the sheep and wool industry has softened, there are far fewer sheep in the national flock, and that takes many hungry mouths away from munching the pastures and sometimes the bushlands.
The military makes good use of wool in uniforms and ammunition.
I know that woollen products can be difficult to find, and it can take a bit of effort to succeed.
It appears to be confined to niche retailers.
Some of the story of wool has been recorded, and there are many more to come.
There are photos, yarns told and untold and many characters who are great storytellers and nobody will be guilty of exaggeration.
Of course, there is still room for the industry to survive in the future.