Agrodome

Agrodome

On the morning of Thursday, March 3, 2005, our group visited the Agrodome near Rotorua. To be honest, I was not thinking that a sheep shearing demonstration would be all that interesting. I was wrong.

The auditorium was not truly a dome by any design standards that I knew, but it was amazingly capable to hold a lot of spectators.

Inside visitors enjoy close-up visits with around twenty varieties of sheep. All of them seem to enjoy the attention and willingly pose for photographs.

Once the show begins, an expert shearer talks about the many types of sheep and how their wool differs. Some are best suited for carpets and others for clothing or blankets.

Sheep farming is a substantial industry in New Zealand and to stay competitive, good shearers may shave the wool of up to 500 sheep per day.

Within minutes, the wool on this sheep was completely shaved off. We learned that there are techniques to hold the sheep to minimize harming the animal with the incredibly sharp shears. There are also pressure points on the sheep to cause them to extend their limbs as needed.

Following the show inside the Agrodome, the audience is invited outside to enjoy a demonstration of sheep herding.