Have you ever heard the story about Baarack, the overgrown sheep who wandered the countryside for nearly five years?
If not, then you’re in for a treat!
Baarack was found by a kind rescuer who quickly recognized him as a merino ram. Concerned by his massive fleece and the little grass he’d been surviving on, the rescuer feared Baarack’s life was in danger.
To save him, he took him to Edgar’s Mission farm sanctuary where Baarack got his much-needed and long-overdue shear.
Kyle Behrend, who welcomed Baarack into the farm family, was happy he got a chance to help the poor guy get all that weight off his shoulders – literally!
Upon examining Baarack, Behrend quickly realized he was once an owned ram who had somehow managed to run away from his home.
Merino sheep are not known for shedding their fleece naturally and since their wool continuously grows, they need to be shorn at least once per year.
Judging by the amount of wool Baarack had accumulated – over 77 pounds to be precise – Behrend estimated that he had been roaming freely for over five years. Can you imagine that?
Despite carrying so much wool, Baarack was extremely thin and in poor health. As Behrend told The Guardian:
“He had at one time been ear-tagged, however, these appear to have been torn out by the thick, matted fleece around his face. He was in a bit of a bad way. He was underweight and, due to all of the wool around his face, he could barely see.”
Behrend and his team quickly got to work, carefully shaving Baarack’s thick, tangled wool with scissors, taking great care not to injure him.
It took some time, but after a while, Baarack was finally freed from his five-year-old woolen coat.
The results of his long-awaited shear were extraordinary – one of the best transformations I’ve seen in a while!
Check out the entire shearing process in the video below:
After the job was done, Behrend and his team did some calculations and discovered that Baarack’s fleece could make 61.3 wool sweaters or 490 pairs of men’s business socks.
Amazing, right? At least Baarack’s belated haircut was going to bring some good, haha.
I’m sure this silly ram was more than relieved to have such a massive weight lifted off his shoulders. Let’s just hope he doesn’t run off again anytime soon!