Raising Sheep and How to Make Your Own Comforter Using Sheep’s Wool

By Maggie Barker
Published on March 1, 1985
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Young Maggie Barker takes pride in caring for her sheep, and she also gets a big reward when she uses their wool to create homemade comforters.
Young Maggie Barker takes pride in caring for her sheep, and she also gets a big reward when she uses their wool to create homemade comforters.
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Young Maggie Barker takes pride in caring for her sheep, and she also gets a big reward when she uses their wool to create homemade comforters.
Young Maggie Barker takes pride in caring for her sheep, and she also gets a big reward when she uses their wool to create homemade comforters.

Raising sheep has been the great joy of my life. Who wouldn’t enjoy cuddly, cute lambs in the spring and lovable ewes all year round? It all started for me at age 3 when we first moved to the farmstead and Papa got me one ewe (a ewe is a female sheep). Her name was Fluff; my job was to feed her. Now I am 11 and have nine Suffolk ewes and one huge ram (male sheep) to care for.

It’s simply wonderful to work and play with sheep and adorable lambs, but I started to get real satisfaction from tending a flock two years ago, when we began to make comforters from the fleeces and sell them to other folks. The comforters are fun to make, we earn $30 to $60 profit on each one, and we’ve really put our flock “to work”!

Raising Sheep: Basic Sheep Care

I raise a breed of sheep known as Suffolk. I tried some Finns and Merinos for a while, but they weren’t any better than the Suffolks, so I sold them. (The Merinos were supposed to have good wool, but it turned out to be awful for making comforters! It’s best for spinning.)

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