[Gil]

Hi,
 Just wondering if there's anyone in my area (Addingham, near Ilkley, LS29) who might possibly be willing to battery-shear my 4 Jacob wethers next May? They grow huge fleeces, & get too hot if left later. I have no electricity at my smallholding, & prefer not to transport them, unless it's to a no-foot disease-risk place. They are 32" or more hefty fellas. I do their feet like horses, haltered by the horns to a 10' gate. I have been using hand-shears for small areas but the sharp points worry me. I don't need the fleeces, which are clean & dry as they're kept off mud & indoors prior to shearing.
Gill

[Coximus]

Im based down valley between otley and wetherby and could;

Personally I would do them in march / april before the raise as they can be tight and hard to shear on battery powered kit later on, plus my experience with Jacobs is the raise comes late in may/june when risk is highest, .
theirs no real risk as they not breeding animals and are not "in work" so loosing fleece early wont harm them. (My easycares usually shed in march / april on the hills above ilkley).

I shear my hebrideans in early April for this reason, The wool that grows between shearing and the natural fleece raise in May/june just falls off, so the effect is the same and the protection from flies etc.

I normally charge a minimum of £50 to come out but as I often take fell grazing that way I could do less if it ties in with me passing.