The Rural Voice, 1999-04, Page 16Spring ritual
Steven and Judy Shelley combine sheep shearing
business with their own successful flock
Story and photos by Keith Roulston
Jf you go into Steve and Judy
Shelley's barn and sec some
unshorn sheep, it isn't like the
case of the carpenter who never gets
around to fixing things at his own
house.
"We never have all of our sheep
sheared at the same time because of
the number of shearing demon-
strations we do," says Judy. The
number of sheep required ranges
from 40 for a major show like the
Canadian National Exhibition or the
Royal Winter Fair to a couple of
sheep for school demonstrations.
Those sheep are among the 7,000
the couple shear each year on farms
from Newmarket in the east to
12 THE RURAL VOICE
Cambridge and Petrolia in the south
and up to W iarton.
The couple specializes in smaller
flocks of Tess than 100 and will even
shear a single sheep on a small land-
holding if that's what the owner
wants. Usually they try to arrange a
trip to do several small flocks at a
time. On a trip to the Thedford area,
for instanc,. there are three small
flocks Tined up, totalling 80 head.
The smaller flocks work well
because shearing is a family affair,
Judy explains. Five-year-old Nicole
goes along with them and if they do
too many sheep in a day she gets too
tired and bored, Judy says.
"She's already been in more barns
Steve (left) and Judy Shelley each
have their own style of shearing.
They shear 7000 sheep a year.
than most adults," laughs Judy.
The Shelleys offer a complete
service for shepherds of small fl&ks
from shearing to deworming to
trimming feet to vaccinations.
"Anything to do with sheep we'll
do," Judy says.
They also operate a wool depot
for Canadian Co-operative Wool
Growers and will provide wool bags
for flock owners and take the wool
for them, or will leave it with the
owner if they have their own market.
If the owner is going to market the
wool, the Shelleys can travel Tight,
taking the car and packing only their
equipment and changes of clothes. If
they're going to several flocks they
disinfect between stops.
The job is old hat for Judy who
has been shearing for 24 years but
newer to Steve who's been doing it
for just seven. They met at the Royal
Winter Fair where Judy was showing
sheep and competing in a sheep-