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I haven’t left the industry but do live rurally and have considered getting some sheep for personal cheesemaking. Do you also shear them on any regular interval? Is that even necessary for any reason? If you do, do you sell the wool? I’ve seen it going in farmers markets for quite high prices, although I’m not familiar with the processing requirements.

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I usually shear just before lambing, which is right now for us. Whether or not you need to shear will depend on the breed of sheep - some can lose their coats on their own, some will not.

For us it's necessary as our sheep get a 2"+ thick coat, which during our summers (last summer we hit 42C/108F, normally we peak at around 35C/95F), and having a thick coat can be deadly.

I put the fleece in the burn pile. I don't have the time nor inclination to clean and card the wool to prep it for sale. I imagine some people would take it to do it themselves, but at this point, I need one less thing to do, not one more. :)

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