Writer: Steve Byrns, 325-653-4576, s-byrns@tamu.edu
Contact: Dr. Reid Redden, 325-653-4576, reid.redden@ag.tamu.edu
SAN ANGELO – Texas A&M AgriLife will conduct two separate educational programs aimed at both the novice and professional in the sheep industry.
Wool and Mohair 101 will be a one-day workshop on the basics from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Jan. 13 at the Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center in San Angelo. It will coincide with the annual three-day AgriLife Extension Sheep Shearing School Jan. 13-15.
The center is north of San Angelo on U.S. Highway 87.
Dr. Reid Redden, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service state sheep and goat specialist at San Angelo, said the 101 event participants will be provided information on wool and mohair and its uses in the natural fiber industry. He said the program’s content will be an excellent educational venue for anyone interested in the natural fiber industry to include agricultural students, hand spinners and those new to the industry.
“The workshop will also include hands-on educational information,” Redden said. “Our third annual three-day AgriLife Extension Sheep Shearing School will begin at the same time as the wool and mohair workshop. Participants in the wool and mohair workshop can interact with experienced and beginning shearers. Our goal is to have participants leave the workshop with a basic understanding of the animal fiber industry from start to finish.”
Dr. Ronald Pope, Texas A&M AgriLife Research director of the Bill Sims Wool and Mohair Research Lab located on the center grounds, will be the workshop coordinator and lead instructor. Pope’s topics will include a historical account of wool from the consumer’s perspective up to the current time. He’ll also discuss the biology and structure of wool fiber, its attributes and characteristics, uses of wool and breeds of sheep and their respective wool types.
Redden said the events are two separate educational programs, so participants can attend one or the other, but not both.
The wool and mohair workshop registration is $50. The fee includes lunch.
The Jan. 13-15 shearing school, which Redden said is meant to train professional shearers in the international shearing pattern, also known as “Australian-style,” has an individual tuition of $150 for Texas residents and $250 for non-residents.
Those interested in either educational program should contact Redden or Pope by Dec. 1, apply online at http://agrilife.org/sheepandgoat/woolmohairor call them at 325-653-4576
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via source AgriLife TODAY | AgriLife to offer wool and mohair workshops in January at San Angelo
For more information regarding news from the Department of Animal Science, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Texas A&M University, please contact Maggie Tucker at maggie.tucker@tamu.edu or (979) 845-1542.