UKH

Actually, I think they have been fleeced!

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2020/aug/28/worlds-most-expensive-sheep... 

In reply to bouldery bits:

And I thought you'd been climbing at Symonds Yat !

In reply to bouldery bits:

Thats a lot of Tup pence.

In reply to bouldery bits:

I saw a farmer on TV who's breed of sheep gave a pale wool which got him a lower price than darker wool, so he'd cover them in dirty water to darken the wool to get a better price at auction.

In reply to Timmd:

I would have thought pale wool would be more valuable, as easier to dye.

In reply to captain paranoia:

I was surprised as well, but there he was with his dirty brush making the wool look darker.

In reply to Timmd:

If it was breeding stock then lightening/darkening the wool, even colouring (orange was common for many breeds), is common to highlight features of the breed that are sought after. 

Nothing to do with the wool itself. The colour will disappear long before they are clipped or sold for non breeding purposes.

 

In reply to Climbing Pieman: So it wasn't about the colour of the wool, but how the colour accentuated the shape of his sheep when selling them at auction?

In reply to Timmd:

Correct. If it was the L District (?) program on this past week, iirc, Border Leicester sheep, (I wasn’t paying attention but tv was on in background) prominent white head with long ears held high would have been highlighted by darkening the wool, as characteristics much sought after in the breed, and contrast against it’s long solid body. The whiteness of it’s wool is natural, and sought after, but any colouring will revert to that quickly so not important for selling. If it was all white the head and ears. and a sturdy solid neck, wouldn’t have stood out as obviously.

There are a lot of different reasons why sheep wool are dyed. If animals are sold as a batch, colouring is often used to make them look all the same and distract the eye from a poor one.

Of course, like all tricks of the trade, it’s not just wool that is dyed. Chalk/dyes are used to whiten areas faces and legs that should be pure white in breeds for example.

In reply to Climbing Pieman:

It was quite a long time ago, circa 12 or 15, it just stuck in my head. That sounds rather sneaky, to use chalk to whiten things where whiteness is desirable.

In reply to Timmd:

Sneaky? It’s well known in the trade. The expectation is that it will look it’s best. One of the best bargains for farmers at auction is to buy a very good animal that has not been pampered for the sale. Looks are important in the high speed auction ring and generally add a lot of value.

In reply to Climbing Pieman:

Many years ago I used to breed mules (swaledale x blue faced Leicester). What a palava. They had to be sheared around the neck and face, then dipped in water stained with peat but faces scrubbed clean. Some then went for a single strand of red wool knotted into their fleece.

If you have a few hundred to do it's a lot of work. 

Seem to remember the red wool was eventually banned, made the fleece worthless. 

In reply to Climbing Pieman:

If it's possible to get a bargain through buying an animal which hasn't been spruced up, is not possible for the opposite to apply as well, when an animal has been?

I don't know anything about buying animals at auction, but it seems to logically follow that it would...

In reply to bouldery bits:

well... old habits dye hard

In reply to Timmd:

Yes, of course like all auctions and their quirks, even down to simply supply and demand at the time of a certain class of stock and it’s popularity.