322 THE WOOI, CROP 



Corriedale Three-eighths-blood combing. 



Cotswold ^ 



Lincoln V. Low quarter-blood combing or braid. 



Leicester I 



Crossbred: Long wool on 



Merino or Rambouillet. Half-blood, three-eighths-blood, and quarter- 

 Crossbred: Shropshire or blood combing. 



Hampshire on Merino 



or Rambouillet Half-blood and three-eighths-blood combing or 



clothing. 



Shearing. To a limited extent, the condition of the wool de- 

 pends upon the time when the shearing is done. It is not always 

 possible to shear at the time when the wool is in condition to 

 most nearly suit market requirements. Oftentimes in the western 

 part of the United States, the shearing must be done either be- 

 fore the sheep are started from the winter range or while they 

 are being moved from the winter feeding grounds to the spring 

 or summer range. If this were not done the sheep would get 

 so far away from railway lines that the cost of hauling the wool 

 would be greatly increased. Besides this, various other factors are 

 involved in determining the time when the shearing shall be done. 



It is different, however, in regions where farm flocks are kept, 

 and if good shelter is available, it is possible to shear more nearly 

 at the time when the wool is in best condition for being removed. 

 The usual time for shearing in the middle western and eastern 

 parts of the United States is from the middle of April to the 

 middle of May, after the cold weather is over and there have been 

 a few d'ays a little too warm for the comfort of unshorn sheep. 

 On the whole, this is a good time to shear, as the oil has risen 

 in the wool in sufficient quantity to make it " full of life " and 

 the shearing easy. If shearing is deferred too long the wool be- 

 comes dead and lifeless. As a rule the wool from breeding ewes 

 would be in somewhat better condition if they were shorn before 

 they lamb because the feverish condition frequently resulting from 

 lambing often causes them to lose some of their wool. Moreover 

 the wool that is grown while they are expending so much energy 

 in the production of milk is likely to be tender. 



With early shearing there will be fewer dung tags if it is done 

 before the sheep are turned out to pasture. The extreme succu- 

 lence of the fresh young grass causes the feces to soften and collect 



