Sheep Shearing Day Coming Up At The Zoo

From the Roger Williams Park Zoo: Roger Williams Park Zoo will host its annual sheep-shearing day on Saturday, June 9 from 10:00 am to 1:00 pm. The Zoo’s five sheep, all living in the Alex and Ani Farmyard, will be sheared in five 30-minute sessions. Additionally, the Farmyard’s Contact Yard will be open, and guests are encouraged to walk among and interact with the sheep and goats in the enclosure. Other animals living in the Farmyard include alpaca, barn owls, chickens, giant Flemish rabbits, guinea hogs, Kunekune pigs, and everyone’s favorite Willy the miniature donkey.

As in prior years, Pete Sepe of Sepe Farm, LLC in Connecticut will sheer each animal. Sepe will explain shearing, the process of shaving the wool off a sheep, and the skills required to shear a sheep efficiently and quickly without causing injury to the sheep or the shearer. Customarily sheep are sheared yearly so they do not become stressed or uncomfortable especially in the hot and humid weather. If not sheared, a sheep’s wool will become matted, stained, and difficult to remove.

Pete Sepe has been involved in farming for over 40 years. Along with his wife Carol, daughters Hilary and Erin, and son-in-law Jonathan he operates Sepe Farm. He is a professional sheep shearer, an agricultural consultant, and a former agriculture and science teacher.

Roger Williams Park Zoo is open daily April through September from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm, and October through March 10:00 am to 4:00 pm. Last admission is 30 minutes before closing. Admission is $17.95 for adults, $12.95 for children (ages 2 – 12) and $15.95 for seniors (ages 62+); toddlers age one and younger as well as Zoo members get in free.

Roger Williams Park Zoo, one of the oldest in the nation, is Rhode Island’s number one outdoor family and tourist attraction and is a leader in conservation efforts undertaken by a zoo of its size. The Zoo has received numerous awards for environmental education, and conservation work done locally and around the world, caring for species that without human intervention would face certain extinction. Roger Williams Park Zoo is supported and managed by the Rhode Island Zoological Society and is owned by the City of Providence.

Photos courtesy of the Roger Williams Park Zoo