Neighbor News
Soule: It's Time to Shear the Highlanders
In the summer I'd rather not wear a heavy coat. My Scottish Highlanders feel the same. In the spring some of them need help shedding their t
Red, a 10-year-old Scottish Highlander steer, had a thick coat of hair that had protected him from the cold all winter. But now, with temperatures soon reaching 90 degrees, it was time to shave it all off.
Some Highlanders, like Ferdinand the bull and Kavi, the cow, shed their winter coats without help, while June Bug and Nora need a vigorous brushing to remove theirs. Still, Topper and his yoke-mate, Finn, and about ten other Highlanders need more help than that.
I had to locate the electric clippers and blades that I had put "somewhere safe" last year. Cattle need industrial-size clippers that require expensive removable blades. Sometimes the blades get lost or, after many sharpenings, are discarded. On clipping day, I was in luck. I found two of my three clippers with sharp blades ready to use.
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"Anything we can do to help with the cattle?" asked Airbnb guest and musican Elizabeth Anderson.
"Want to clip a steer?" I replied.
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Clipping is one of my favorite things, but after the last time I gave Red a haircut, I spent two days recovering from an allergic reaction to bovine hair. It's sad to be a cattle farmer with a cow allergy, but I manage.
Carole Soule is the co-owner of Miles Smith Farm in Loudon, N.H. She raises and sells beef, pork, lamb, eggs, and other local products. She can be reached at carolesoule60@gmail.com.
