Mary

At 11 years old, Mary was no longer profitable for her wool or her ability to lamb, and therefore fated to be sold off to the highest bidder and slaughtered for "Mutton". The local farmer did not want to slaughter Mary, so instead surrendered her to us.

Mary was the oldest of the flock, and had a wise air about her. She was not shy in demanding attention and often gave a bit of a nudge with her head if she was after some pats!

Mary arrived in 2016 without a tail, which meant as a lamb, she would have endured the barbaric act of having her tail docked (the cutting, burning or otherwise severing her tail) without anesthesia. In addition to this, Mary was subjected to mulesing (the slicing off of the skin around her buttocks) also without pain relief. Every year before her surrender, Mary had given birth to lambs, all taken away from her, meaning every year, she was also strapped down and had semen injected into her uterus, yet again, without pain relief. This is all legal and common practice in the wool industry in Australia. Not to mention the stress and injuries that come from regular shearing.

Merinos have been bred to produce more wool than is natural with extra folds of skin, making them more prone to cuts from shearing. Shearers are paid via the number of sheep or weight of wool shorn, and not by the hour, the faster they are, the more money they make, at the expense of the wellbeing of the sheep.

There is nothing harmless or fashionable about wool!

In Memory