PLACES FOR SHEARING 323 



around the rear parts, and if the stained wool is not trimmed off 

 when the feces first start to collect, a great mass will accumulate 

 and greatly damage the wool. If the weather should be warm, 

 the dung will also attract flies and the sheep will be attacked by 

 maggots. 



There are some objections to shearing early, one of which is 

 that the weight of fleece is considerably lighter than it would be 

 later on because there has not been enough warm weather to cause 

 the yolk to rise in large quantity. Hammond, of the Ohio Station, 

 has experimented on this point and his conclusion printed in 

 Ohio Station Bulletin 294 is as follows : " Washed sheep shorn 

 April 12 produced' more grease wool than did washed sheep shorn 

 June 1, while unwashed sheep shorn April 12 produced less grease 

 wool than did unwashed sheep shorn June 1." This indicates 

 that between these two dates there was an increase in weight of 

 fleece due to the accumulation of yolk or other foreign matter 

 in the wool. 



In feeding a lot of western lambs, the writer " sheared half of 

 them March 1 and the other half May 25. The late shorn fleeces 

 contained a much greater amount of yolk and they averaged 2.6 

 pounds more in weight than the early-shorn fleeces. In this case 

 the difference in weight was due to the difference both in the 

 amount of yolk and in the actual amount of wool. From Ham- 

 mond's conclusion, however, it is clear that there would be no 

 advantage in securing the greater weight of fleece from late 

 shearing if wool were purchased strictly on the scoured basis. With 

 small lots but very little discrimination is made in this respect 

 unless the wool is excessively heavy in amount of yolk. But, even 

 •if wool were purchased on the scoured basis, it would not always 

 pay to shear early, for there are places where the spring season 

 is so variable that shelter will not adequately protect the health of 

 shorn sheep. Sudden changes from warm to cold, windy weather 

 may cause colds in the worst form, and when this happens, fatalities 

 are almost sure to occur. 



Places for Shearing. — Where large bands of sheep are kept, as 

 in the western part of the United States, sheds are built solely for 

 the purpose of shearing, but where small flocks are kept the shear- 

 ing quarters are usually of a temporary nature. In arranging a 



' 111. Sta. Bull. 167. 



