Shearing Sheep

Since the Spanish introduced sheep to the southwest in the 16th century, the wooly mammals have been as much a part of Navajo life as frybread. The sheep provide mutton as the main meat staple, wool used in Navajo rugs, and various other uses in ceremonies and entertainment. A Navajo family with a healthy flock of sheep is a rich family. Many youth will go into the mountains during the summer to spend time with their grandmas and other family members at their sheep camps. They herd the sheep, shear the sheep, and butcher the sheep. It's all part of the way of life.

A Navajo grandma invited me to her sheep camp to shear sheep. Since I had no experience I enlisted a couple former students. After I picked them up the morning of the shearing, I learned that they hadn't sheared before either. It was hard work with the hand shears that looked like oversized scissors from the 1930's. We managed to shear and knick two sheep in three hours, then the grandma informed us that there were 22 more to go. She fed us some frybread and we went home exhausted. She didn't call us back to finish the job, but it was fun while it lasted.

This family lets everyone know what kind of sheep reside at their residence.

Getting a stubborn ram down to shear is quite the job!


Shane and Dhiedrick try their best with the grandma leading the way.