The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Sheep => Topic started by: SingingShearer on April 27, 2010, 10:21:48 am
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Hello all,
As you have probably worked out I am a shearer :sheep:, just letting you all know that I am available to shear flocks of any size from one sheep upwards ( large flocks also more than welcome), also angora goats and if all goes well camelids :llama: ;D.
I will travel almost anywhere (within reason) so long as my travel costs are covered.
List of counties I currently cover are: Yorkshire, Lancashire, County Durham, Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, Cheshire, Staffordshire, Shropshire, Warwickshire, Leicestershire, Gloucestershire, Herefordshire and Oxfordshire and have had enquiries from Scotland.
Please feel free to contact me for any further information and to find out when I am in your area.
I have experience shearing a wide range of sheep breeds: Balwen, Beltex, Black Welsh Mountain, Castlemilk Moorit, Charollais, Dorset, Herdwick, Hebridean, Jacobs, Kerry Hill, Leicester Longwool, Lincoln Longwool, Lleyn, Lonk, Manx Loughtan, Masham, Mule, Norfolk Horn, Ouessant, Oxford Down, Rouge de l'Ouest, Shetland, Soay, Southdown, Suffolk, Swaledale, Texel,Wensleydale, White Faced Woodland and a variety of crossbreeds.
I'm also available for demonstration shearing at events, open farms etc.
And I think, up to now everyone has offered me a cup of tea not that I'm dropping hints! ;)
Thanks,
Philip - The Singing Shearer
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Hi Philip
Are you going to be in the gloucestershire area any time in the next few weeks?
Thanks
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Shame Essex is not on the list!
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Hi
Hen,
Yes 9th may if this is any good to you, not sure of time as it's a prety full day.
How many sheep have you got?
Dixie,
Where about's in Essex are you and how many sheep?
Thanks,
Philip
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Hi, I am near chelmsford and have 10 sheep, my friend has 8. :sheep:
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Hi Dixie,
The cost of travel will be aprox. £50 split between the two of you, but if I get more jobs in your area I would split the travel costs equally.
Will I be shearing all the sheep in one place or will I have to move between you?
Thanks,
Philip
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philip sheared my sheep at the weekend and i would thoroughly recommend him. my sheep were treated kindly and it was lovely to talk to his family and pick their brains about using the wool
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We can bring them to one place otherwise we are 2 miles apart. Apart from the £50 travel, whats the cost of shearing please? and when do you think you'd be able to come to this neck of the woods??
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Hi Dixie,
If the sheep are all in one place and I can get them all done in the hour it will be £30 for the shearing, after that hour £1.25 per sheep.
Could you let me know what breed they are? And when you would prefer me to do them, ie weekdays or weekend, my aim would be to get there early in the morning and get set up for when the dew has gone off their backs.
Also do you have a building to put them in overnight if rain is forecast? If not we are a bit more at the mercy of the weather. Feel free to PM me if you don't want to discuss all this on the forum.
Hi NLL,
:wave:
Didn't know you were on here! Thankyou for your kind recommendation, shearing your sheep was a nice start to the season as you were so well set up it made my job so much easier
Thanks,
Philip :sheep:
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thanks for that, I will speak to my friend as its her that usually arranges shearing, although we got let down last year and had to get a friend to do them, not sure he's up to it this year though he's health is not so good, will get back to you, thanks.
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Ok will wait to hear from you, its VERY rare that I let anyone down.
Thanks,
Philip
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Hi Philip
Just to let you know I won't be around on the 9th May as I shall be at River Cottage :o ;D but Martin (hubby) and the boys are really looking forward to your visit. Martin is practising 'rounding up' the sheep as they are a bit skitty.
I'm sorry I shall miss you, - I'm sure you'll do a great job - I shall look forward coming home to 'naked' sheep as my 5 year old calls them!
Sharon
Ross-on-Wye
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Hi Sharon,
Pity you can't be there to see "The strip show" ;D Of course I mean the sheep.
Hope you approve of my handiwork when you see the results, looking forward to it.
Thanks,
Philip
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Hi All,
Have recently had two enquiries for shearing twice yearly (early and then again in the autumn) also recommended for angora goats, just thought I'd add that I am available for this as well.
Also forgot this from my first post: for further information see www.singingshearer.co.uk (http://www.singingshearer.co.uk)
Thanks,
Philip
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Hi again, right there may be a few of us here needing a shearer, my 10 and friends 8 can all be done at one place, then 2 miles down the road another 8, there mybe another 27 nearby! we have our first small holder meeting on the 11th so will get to meet some new people I dont yet know, I will find out if they need you too! My ewes are mainly mules with 1 jacob and a suffolk, my frineds are suffolks, not sure about the others, ours can be done inside, how many do you expact to do in an hour? I will probably give you a ring tommorrow to chat further if thats ok. many thanks! Oh and cups of tea a plenty!
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Hi Dixie,
Thanks, on average sheep 15 to 20 an hour so yours shuld be no problem.
Feel free to ring anytime, although you might not get me (I should be in the house after 6pm)
Thanks for passing my name round, the more jobs in one area the cheaper the travel cost to each customer,
Thanks again,
Philip :sheep:
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Hi, When would you be in lancashire. ?
Laura
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Hi Laura,
When is good for you?
How many do you have?
Where abouts in Lancashire are you?
Sorry for all the questions ;D.
Thanks,
Philip
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Hello
I live on the border between scotland and england close to gretna green. I have 15 texels for shearing this year. Would you be interested in that work or would it be to far ? I will email you separately regarding costs/dates etc if you are interested.
Thank you.
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Hi Birkb,
I'm certainly interested. I think the best thing to do would be to see if I we can find anyone else in your area who might need a shearer, if you know of anyone please pass my name on.
I can come up as a one off but as I have told other people it costs less if I can spread the travel expenses over a few jobs.
Feel free to email me, the address is on my website. I had an enquiry from someone near you last year who also had Texels, it wasn't you was it?
Thanks,
Philip :sheep:
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Hi phillip
Sorry just realised I cant do the 13th June, can do the 12th or the weekend before , but will call again next week once I have spoken to the others, thanks
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Hi dixie,
No problem, would the Sunday the 27th of June be any good to you?
Will wait and see what you all think.
Thanks,
Philip :sheep:
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Blimey, didn't think that this thread would get to 1000 views that quickly! :sheep: :sheep: :sheep:
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Sooner rather than later would be better, last year we did them on the 13th and it was well overdue! the 13th maybe ok if mine can be done a bit later in the day, but lets see how mnay others we get here! speak soon!
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Hi Dixie,
Are there any dates in May that would be alright for you? I have the 11th, 12th, 14th, 21st, 23rd and maybe the 29th free at the moment but am taking bookings all the time so don't know how long they will be free for.
Hope this is ok for you, it gives you a few dates to discuss with the others.
Thanks,
Philip :sheep:
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finding a shearer round here has been nigh on inpossible for me so when one is willing, i grab him/her quick, especially for just a few sheep. looking forward to chewing your ear off and getting as much advice and tips as i can :)
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Hi Spikey,
Chew all you like, will have my family in so you can chew their ears as well.
Could you pm me your address and let me know any landmarks to look out for please.
As I have said to another customer, pick my brains all you like, there's not much to pick ;D.
Thanks,
Philip :sheep:
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ah sorry, just seen your message and sent you details :) think you may have an audience here too
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Hi Spikey,
No problem, used to shearing in front of an audience as I have sheared at a few open farms with the public coming round.
See you Sunday.
Thanks,
Philip :sheep:
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I have the 11th, 12th, 14th, 21st, 23rd and maybe the 29th free at the moment but am taking bookings all the time so don't know how long they will be free for.
Update, 11th is not available now.
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Ive just read your website for future ref and wondered what dagging and belly crutching is and why belly wool has to be removed prior to slaughter?
As you can probably guess Im getting sheep/lambs for the first time this year. ::)
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Hi Jackie,
Dagging is taking off all the mucky ( green..slimy..) bits around the back end.
Belly crutching is taking off all the belly wool ( should be done before they get mucky) and around the back end to prevent them needing to be dagged.
Belly wool is sometimes taken off prior to slaughter as some abbatoirs dislike very dirty sheep.
I'm sure someone will disagree with my explanations though ;)
Hope this clears thing up a bit.
Thanks,
Philip :sheep:
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Hello SS Round here it is called docking Dockin the ewes also prevents a maggot attack,The dockings are put in a separate bag from the wool Hence a Lincolnshire saying "Yer cu'nt tell good wool from arse docks" :D :farmer:
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Hi Wizard,
Yes I agree it can prevent flystrike around the back end but of course one place flystrike gets missed is on the shoulders.
Dagging/Docking is a good thing as it makes the sheep easier to shear, doesn't blunt the shearing combs as quick and the sheep is stressed less as shearing is then quicker.
I'll remember that phrase as I shear in Lincolnshire a lot. :D
Thanks,
Philip :sheep:
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Hi, sorry thought i had replied. Iam in Halsall, nr Ormskirk, Lancs and have about 20 zwartbles to do. Normally have a lad that comes from nz but we havent heard from him this yr. Think he had a hard time last yr so might not of bothered.
Laura
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Hi Laura,
Not sure when I will be free, when is good for you?
If you know of anyone else in your area who needs a shearer please feel free to pass my details on as if I can do more than one job in one day then it splits the travel cost between jobs.
Thanks,
Philip :sheep:
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thanks Philip and family ! sheep are looking fine and dandy with new haircuts. i think i was more nervous than them lol :)
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Thanks Philip and co!
I now have happy naked sheep, and a lot of fleeces!! :sheep: :sheep:
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Thanks Phillip for doing a great job on the badgers - sorry I wasn't there to see you!
When I got home last night, my boys were in the bath. I said 'What's happened to the sheep?' and my 5 year old Toby replied 'They've been peeled'! ;D
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my youngest is most concerned about it growing back ha ha.
i think i have rehomed the tup. he is due for pastures new to keep a young ewe company, so hopefully no vet visit
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Hi,
Spikey,
Glad to hear you have rehomed him, he didn't care about the shearing but don't think he would be happy when he saw the vet ;D.
Jembo,
You'll have to get spinning then won't you ;D, also being the simple shearer that I am I think that I possibly left my oil can with your sheep, if I did could you please hang on to it until next year,or we can pop in when we are down that way.
Sharondp,
Thats ok, there wasn't much to see, just a lot of people chasing an unshorn sheep round a field, because it was the last one it found the nearest hole in the fence and went, theres allways one ;D.
Was a good day and was nice to meet everyone.
Thanks,
Philip :sheep:
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philip can i just say, many thanks to your family for their tips and advice. wonderful people and with your accents i felt slightly homesick for Yorkshire :)
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Before & after, and Philip in action...
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Hi,
Spikey,
Glad they could be of some use, I knew that I brought them for a reason ;D.
Sharon,
Great photos, thanks for putting them on (everyone will know what I look like now).
Thanks,
Philip :sheep:
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I have more on my Facebook page, but had trouble resizing them for here!
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Hi All,
Yesterday I rooed my first sheep :), it was a little Shetland that was determined that I wasn't going to shear it ( I think it had found some glue as the shears wouldn't go through the fleece)and since I had started I had to finish so it got plucked :D, the fleece had lifted and came off very easy.
I have also combed Yaks, Camaroon sheep, Dogs, Kerry cattle and almost Mangalitza pig, I have spun it all, oh and can't forget shearing Angora goats, I have also spun human hair.
Philip :sheep: :goat: :pig: :dog: :cow: ;D
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Hi Phillip, so far theres 4 of us to share the travel. All small flocks within 2 miles of eachother! Do you do Alpaca? someone has 6 that will need doing but not until July I think. I would like to book you for the first week in June any day that suits, midweek probably better now! I will ring you this evening as I guess your busy today, thanks.
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Did you read the post where Mummy had been out and upon her return the 5yr old told her a man had been and peeled the sheep ;D :farmer:
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That was my eldest Wizard ::)
My three year old wants me to knit a jumper from the fleeces for them as he thinks they might be cold!!
Kids eh?! ;D
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Ace Sharon absolutely bloody ace ;D ;D :farmer:
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Dixie,
I haven't done alpacas yet but should have by July as I have some to do near me. First week in June is looking a bit full but I will wait until I speak to you. I'm very busy at the moment and am out most days so you will probably only catch me in the evenings.
Wizard - I did the peeling! :D
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S S With an imagination like mine "Do you use a peeler like my Granddad had Sort of 2 triangles with a big flat springy joint They were forged from the single piece of steel flat and you nipped the 2 bits of triangle together and the springy bits forced them apart? ;D :farmer:
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Hi Wizard,
Yes I can use them but tend to use the electric shears as they are quicker so better for the sheep.
Philip :sheep:
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Hi All,
anyone wanting a shearer, we will be coming up on the A1 to scotch corner across to Penrith then up the M6 to Gretna on the 4th of July, anyone in this area with small/pet flocks if this is any use to you please contact either on here or contact me through my website www.singingshearer.co.uk (http://www.singingshearer.co.uk).
Hope this is of some use to someone.
Thanks,
Philip
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Don't know if this will interest anybody, I have added a new page to my site with details of where I'm doing shearing demonstrations and also when I'm covering specific areas in case anyone needs me on the way past. Not much on there at the moment but it will be added to as jobs come in.
http://www.singingshearer.co.uk/calendar.html (http://www.singingshearer.co.uk/calendar.html)
Philip :sheep:
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Hello Philip I have been meaning to ask if you do the demo at Brocklesby Country Fair .I see its not on your diary so I will assume no is the answer. :farmer:
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Hi Wizard,
No, not me. Is it the Kiwi bloke with the stage on the back of his lorry and the "dancing sheep"? If so it's probably my mate Richard Savory or one of his teams from The Sheep Show.
We work with him at a few shows.
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Hello Philip Now you have told me thats his name.and he has his Dancing sheep there as well
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Hi Wizard,
Thought it would be him, if you see him say hello from his spinning team (The murmuring wheel from the bakewell show).
Philip :sheep:
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Hi, You're coming to me on the 11th June, why dont you put that on too, may get a few more around here??
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Dixie,
Can you remind me how many I'm doing near you? I worked it out at around 53, is that right?
Had thought about putting it on but don't want to make it too full a day as I'm off again first thing next morning into Lincolnshire.
Thanks,
Philip :sheep:
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Hi, theres 18 to do here, then an 8 and a 4 2 miles away. Have tried to get others but no luck I'm afraid is that still ok??
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Yes, that's fine.
If I hear of any more I can fit them in and if not it's a nice easy day, and they are rare at the moment!
Thanks for letting me know.
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Well my girls all have lovely haircuts thanks to Phillip! He did a fantastic job, they have been done beautifully thank you, and rolled, tied perfectly! I can highly recomend him to anyone and will definatley be in touch next time, thanks again and it was great to meet you all, hope the journey back was ok. :sheep:
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Thanks Dixie!
Just got home, glad you are happy with the job. It was lovely to meet you.
Philip :sheep:
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Hi there singing shearer! I was wondering when you might be planning to come to Oxfordshire this year and if you could come shear my 12 sheep?
Phillipa
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Have just replied to your email. Sorry for delay.
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Hi,
I have 6 shetlands that need sheering. They have started to shed, so would probably need doing soonish. I am in Gloucestershire about 15 mins from the M50. Could you give me a rough cost for them.
Kind Regards
Emily
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Hi there Philip, I'm not sure my email reached you as I've had a few problems. You sheared my flock of 7 sheep last May, near Towcester and I wondered if you were nearby at some point soonish to shear them again? Many thanks.
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How's about Pembrokeshire/Carmarthenshire? I've got about 30+ ( Greyface Dartmoor, Zwartbles, Gotlands, Ryelands and some crossbreds ;D ) and some Greyface Dartmoor lambs to do ;) .
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Blackbird, I have pm'ed you.
Blinkers and minibn, I'm afraid I don't think I'm going to be able to help, sorry.
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Hello
I don't suppose you have any dates booked in North Yorkshire yet do you. I only have 2 to shear so would not expect you to come just for me, but if you are in the area anyway...?
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Hello
I don't suppose you have any dates booked in North Yorkshire yet do you. I only have 2 to shear so would not expect you to come just for me, but if you are in the area anyway...?
Same here but just inside East Yorkshire. Only 2 to shear. Have PM'd you SS. :fc: