# Icelandic sheep



## *Andi (Nov 8, 2009)

Hubby found me two Icelandic ewes.  I have been wanting to add a few to my herd of Jacobs but they are hard to find (around here) and the price was always very high. 

One is grey/white and the other a tan/white, I hope for Icelandic babies but we will have to see, they were with a ram for a very short time. My Jacob rams didn't act up when we turned them out ... so ... I hope.

A little info about them ...

Icelandic sheep - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


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## NaeKid (Oct 17, 2008)

They look like they would be good for the coming ice-age!! Good find! :congrat:


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## *Andi (Nov 8, 2009)

NaeKid said:


> They look like they would be good for the coming ice-age!! Good find! :congrat:


Thanks and you are right, they will do well with the coming ice-age.


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## *Andi (Nov 8, 2009)

Cockleburs !!! :gaah::gaah:

I could not wait to get stared on the Icelandic sheep wool! So hubby sheared one yesterday.:woohoo: soon turned into :gaah: The wool is Full of cockleburs!!! (OUCH) 

This is going to be fun wool to work.  I gave it an extra wash with the hope that the hot water would help break them up but no. Oh well ... slow and easy it goes.


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## UncleJoe (Jan 11, 2009)

You have the knowledge and capability to turn raw wool into a finished product?  
I'm very impressed!! :congrat:


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## NaeKid (Oct 17, 2008)

UncleJoe,

When I was still but a young child I used to help my grandma and grandpa clean and card the wool (we used both hand carders and drum carders). Then we would turn the wool into comforters for each bed.

Every winter at least one new comforter was made - I currently have 4 wool comforters here at home that were made by hand by my grandma and grandpa (with as much help as I could give them). Since my grandma passed away, we haven't made a single comforter - grandpa just hasn't wanted to make any since.


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## *Andi (Nov 8, 2009)

I had to use books, a dvd (sheep to slipper) and youtube ... no one else in my family has sheep or works wool. But it was something I wanted to learn ... :dunno: (My dad thinks I'm cool and my mom ... well ... off my rocker. lol

NaeKid - the comforters you made with your grandparents are priceless and you are very lucky. This year I will make one "for me!" I have made one for each of the my kids and my parents so now it's my turn.


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## NaeKid (Oct 17, 2008)

You are right - they are priceless to me. Others may not realize how much work (and love) went into each and every one of them....


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## UncleJoe (Jan 11, 2009)

I have no idea what a "carder" is.


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## Jason (Jul 25, 2009)

If I'm not mistaken, carding wool is when you basically comb the heck out of it. The hand carders kind of look like a square wire brush (sort of) with a handle and I have no idea about the drum carders. I think the purpose is to align the threads of wool in preparation of making yarn.

Am I even close, anyone who actually knows something about this whole thing?


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## NaeKid (Oct 17, 2008)

Jason said:


> If I'm not mistaken, carding wool is when you basically comb the heck out of it. The hand carders kind of look like a square wire brush (sort of) with a handle and I have no idea about the drum carders. I think the purpose is to align the threads of wool in preparation of making yarn.
> 
> Am I even close, anyone who actually knows something about this whole thing?


You are basically right there ...

For more information about the tools used to card wool, you can visit the Wikipedia page on it and see some graphical examples of the tools. I prefer to use the drum carding machine (its easy to use and the batting is simple to sew into comforters) but if a drum carder isn't available, hand-carding is still a fairly easy process.


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## *Andi (Nov 8, 2009)

UncleJoe said:


> You have the knowledge and capability to turn raw wool into a finished product?
> I'm very impressed!! :congrat:


And thanks ... I just got tired of the price of wool going up and up and up. (like most things) Then I found out it is 'kinda cool' to do it yourself.


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## UncleJoe (Jan 11, 2009)

OK. I'll take a sweater and a pair of pants.


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## *Andi (Nov 8, 2009)

UncleJoe said:


> OK. I'll take a sweater and a pair of pants.




I'll just put that on my "To Do List" ...


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## *Andi (Nov 8, 2009)

Well they are here ... I'm sure you all wanted to know. My Icelandic/Jocob babies are here.  

Thang 1 and 2 were born on the 12th, two ram (boy) lambs ... Thang 1 is solid black and 2 is black with a white spot on his head, with a black number 2 in a circle of white on his head. (very cool). Pandy was borm on the 13th she looks like a panda bear. (well, a wooly panda bear. ) LOL

So ... my very loooooooooooooong lamb season is now over. I'm very happy with all my babies. :congrat: We will band Thang 1 & 2 in the morning ... but I want to keep them for a shear season ... just to check out the wool ... right now they look more Jacob ... but I want to to see how the cross works out.


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## mountainmade (Sep 18, 2011)

"Very few attempts have been made to "improve" the Icelandic sheep through the centuries with outside crossings. The few attempts that were made, resulted in disasters brought on by diseases brought in by the "new blood". As a result producers drastically culled all animals which were results of crossbreeding. As a consequence all effect of other breeds was eliminated. It is now illegal to import any sheep into Iceland. As a result of these factors improvements to the breed have been done by selective breeding within the breed itself. Genetically the Icelandic sheep is the same today as it was 1100 years ago. It is possibly the oldest and purest domesticated breed of sheep in the world today. "

Breeds of Livestock - Sheep Breeds


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## *Andi (Nov 8, 2009)

mountainmade ... :welcome:


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