Harvesting
Pygora
PBA
Fleece
Showing
Guide
Attend
out of state
shows. Ship
your goat in
a box.
No
Pygora shows
in your
state? Not
a problem,
just ship
your goat in
a box to the
show.
Actually,
for PBA-sanctioned
fiber shows,
you can keep
the goat at
home and
just send
the fleece.
It is a fun
way to
show-off
pygora’s
main
product. It
also removes
any possible
risk to the
animal’s
health
associated
with
traveling.
PBA requires
all fleece
shown in a
sanctioned
fleece show
must have
been
harvested
within 1
year of the
show.
How
to prepare
for a fiber
show?
The hardest
and most
time-consuming
part is
preparing
for harvest.
If you have
more than
one goat,
you may want
to save the
best fleece
for last and
practice on
the less
perfect
ones. Below
are a few
steps that
can be used
to prepare a
fleece that
is going to
be shown.
Some steps
can be
skipped
depending on
the goat and
the fleece.
-
Get
rid of
dirt and
debris.
It is
important
to do
this
first or
you
could
wash
dirt
deeper.
One
method
is to
use a
blower.
A
commercial
animal
blower
or a
hair
dryer on
a cool
setting
can be
used. A
leaf
blower
works
well
too.
Make
sure you
don’t
set the
blower
on high,
this
makes
the air
travel
very
fast and
can
cause
felting.
Restricting
the
opening
of a
blower
also
makes
the air
travel
fast and
can felt
the
fleece.
Use the
air to
blow
dirt out
not in.
Don’t
blow
straight
down on
the
animal;
let the
air
travel
at a
90º
angle.
If you
notice
felting
occurring,
either
slow the
air
speed or
hold the
blower
farther
away. If
you don’t
have a
blower
you can
use a
brush to
very
lightly
brush
the
fleece,
teasing
the dirt
out. Don’t
comb it
like
your
hair;
use
short
quick
strokes
with a
dog
slicker
or a
hairbrush
with
balls on
the tips
of the
bristles.
It is
very
important
that you
don’t
brush
the
locks
out. You
are
using
the
brush to
more or
less
shake
the dirt
out. If
you do
brush
the
locks
out,
spritz
with
water
and let
the
fleece
dry for
a day or
two. Bed
the goat
on straw
which
also
helps to
clean
the
fiber.
-
Wash
the
fleece.
This can
only be
done
before
the
fleece
is
harvested.
PBA does
not
allow
the
fleece
to be
washed
after it
is
removed
from the
goat.
PBA
further
requires
that the
fleece
be shown
in its’
natural
state,
which
means
you
should
not use
anything
but
water.
Use warm
water if
possible
to rinse
the
goat.
Make
sure you
have
enough
time to
get the
goat
totally
dry
before
shearing.
Do not
wash
your
goat if
the
weather
doesn’t
permit.
-
Finally,
harvest
the
fleece!
This can
be done
by
shearing,
combing,
or
plucking.
It’s
up to
you and
the
fleece
type you
want to
show.
However,
the way
you
harvest
can
affect
your
score.
For
example,
with a
combed
fleece,
a judge
cannot
see lock
formation.
It may
help the
judge if
you clip
some of
the
fleece
to
preserve
some
locks.
-
Take
your
time
harvesting
so you
can
preserve
as
much
of the
look
of the
fleece
as
possible.
-
If
you
shear,
watch
out
for
second
cuts.
This
can
really
hurt
your
score.
-
Label
the
box or
bag
with
date
of the
harvest.
If you
comb
or
pluck,
record
the
start
and
stop
dates
as the
fleece
will
not
all
release
at one
time.
Make
sure
there
is a
way
for
you to
know
which
goat
the
fleece
came
from.
-
Only
minimal
skirting
is
allowed.
(Skirting
is the
removal
of
undesirable
or
stained
parts
of the
fleece.)
-
The
box
must
have
the
shearing
date
and
fleece
weight.
-
You
must
include
a copy
of the
goat’s
registration
papers.
Buck
fleece shows
Because
of the habit
of bucks to
add their
perfume to
their
fleece, a
buck’s
fleece is
shown very
differently.
A one-ounce
sample of
fleece taken
from the
barrel along
with a
colored side
view picture
of the buck
in full
fleece
accompanied
by their
registration
papers is
all that is
needed.
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