[PipKelpy]

I gather that rooing is something you do when the ewe starts to shed but not completely and it's to make her tidy?

Anyhow, I know there are certain breeds that do this, so in theory, no need of shearing.

In the past, when I have had Shetlands, some, by the time the shearer came, all he did was tart them up as they'd already lost the bulk of their fleeces. Of course, me being thick, DIDN'T realise this was a good trait and if I had been psychic, a line I should have kept to keep down shearing costs.

So, my question, is apart from Wiltshire Horn (natural shedders) do any of you with Shetlands, Hebrideans etc, that have these "raggity" sheep, USE this trait to your advantage and breed those lines or are they just flukes of nature?

[Anke]

As Shetland fleeces are something most of us breed for, I personally would not breed for roo-ing.

[Richmond]

I guess if you are not interested in keeping the fleece then breed for shedding qualities, or buy a breed that sheds naturally anyway. I just found an old post of Fleecewife's about taking the whole fleece off a Soay in one go - impressive! Our Soays shed bit by bit, but because they are pretty tame they will come and ask for a bit of fuss and get roo-ed in the process. Our ram has started shedding already ....
We also have Wiltshire Horns, but they tend to rub most of their fleece away on the fences and trees. It's a bit different to the Soay fleece - shorter and not so easy to grab a handful.

[PipKelpy]

My Wiltshire ewes I bought last year shed, as did one of the ewe lambs, the other 2 didn't and you can tell now as they have curls whereas Holly is smooth, yet Holly is twin to Hebe who didn't shed.

I know Soay are bonkers but do still think "do I, do I not?" Mum says "what would you do with them?"

[Fleecewife]

Rooing ie a sheep losing its fleece naturally without being shorn, isn't a freak of nature, it's a survival trait for wild sheep. A wild animal wearing several years worth of dense wool would be a dead animal due to overheating and the disadvantage of carting around a big weight of wool. Having said that, wool is a bred-in feature, wild sheep having only a small underhair wool layer as do many other species. Because humans have domesticated sheep for thousands of years and do so partly for their fleece, sheep have been bred to keep their fleeces, so they can be shorn all in one go. If you want to use a fleece as a commercial high quality product you don't want to have to pick it up handful by handful from the ground and the bushes.
Any sheep which is a shedder, such as Soay and Shetland, can be shorn to get the whole fleece.  The trick is in the timing of shedding.  If it starts shedding in late January then that is too early to shear it instead, so you lose the fleece (this is what my current Soays do so I've never had a complete fleece from them) If they start rooing/shedding in May then shearing straight away can save the fleece, or you can roo - in it's other meaning of gently pulling off the fleece in locks (not 'handfuls'). Actively rooing a fleece gives a particular preparation of fleece, where you can sort it as you go and it's all ready to spin straight away.  It's time consuming though to do it properly, and if you just drag off handsfull then you have no advantage from rooing over shearing.
Sheep which drop their fleeces but are not Soays, Wiltshires or Shetlands are probably doing so because of stressors during the winter or spring.
Hebrideans are not a naturally rooing breed, although very occasionally some will retain the trait.
Soay are only bonkers if you don't take the time to destress them - it's another survival instinct to run like the clappers and disperse in the face of a single predator.  You have to convince them you are not a predator, just a rather weird member of the flock, often bearing treats