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Arts & Entertainment

Adorable Sheep Will Be Stripped Bare At Queens & Prospect Park Zoos' Shearing Festival


By

Rebecca Fishbein

Published Apr 28, 2015

Modified Apr 28, 2015


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A Suffolk sheep at the Wildlife Conservation Society’s Queens Zoo. Photo Credit: Julie Larsen Maher © WCS.

 


By

Rebecca Fishbein

Published Apr 28, 2015

Modified Apr 28, 2015


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Now that winter's been vanquished at last, humans and sweet little animals alike can hang up their heavy coats 'til November rolls around. Unfortunately (for them, lucky for us!), lambs and sheep need some help removing their winter fluff—next month, the folks at the Queens and Prospect Park Zoos will de-fleece them, and they're inviting the rest of us to share in the SHEAR joy as part of a two-weekend festival. Yay, I made a pun!

This Saturday and Sunday, the Queens Zoo's Jacob's four-horn, Suffolk, and mini Southdown sheep will get treated to their annual haircuts for the zoo's Sheep Shearing Festival, with expert shearers on hand to show visitors how it's done. Attendees will also be able to craft bracelets, learn about wool, and watch professional wool spinners turn discarded sheep hair into beautiful, itchy sweaters.

And if you miss all the fun at the Queens Zoo, Prospect Park Zoo's Jacob’s four-horn and Cotswold sheep will get their coats snipped off on May 16th and 17th as part of the zoo's Fleece Festival, with felt making, wool washing, basket weaving and other fun wool-related activities available for visitors.

If, for some reason, this doesn't seem appealing to you, sheep and lambs look like this. If you have not immediately fallen in love with those animals, you are a monster and I hope to never encounter you in the wild.

LOOK HOW FLUFFY!

COME PLAY WITH ME, YOU BEAUTIFUL CREATURES!

All four Sheep Shearing and Fleece Festival days run from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., and you can purchase zoo tickets online. Note that no matter how hard you fall for these four-legged masterpieces, you cannot kidnap any of the animals and take them home with you, lest The Man remove your new lamb friend from its urban dwelling and plop it on a farm somewhere. Apparently, lambs do not care for brunch.

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my heeeaaaart

prospect park zoo

queens zoo

sheep

sheep shearing

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Rebecca Fishbein

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