Before it gets too hot, the Ueno Zoo Children's Zoo held its annual shearing. A total of five animals were shorn: two sheep, Alpaca, Llama, and a midget horse.

We use clippers for sheep, but in the case of Alpaca, the hair is so thin and soft that after a while it gets tangled and clogged between the blades and inside the clippers, so we have to disassemble part of the clippers each time and maintain them.

If the clippers are used as they are, they can become hot, startling the animal and causing injury to both animal and human.

So this time, we came up with a plan.

We used three clippers and took turns using both people and clippers at regular intervals to maintain the clippers while shearing the animals.

Although it was difficult to use the clippers and we ended up with a little tiger clipping, we were able to shorten the work time significantly compared to last year, and the operation was a great success.

Above all, we were relieved that we were able to finish without injuring the animals at all. Next time, we will do our best to shear the tigers not only faster but also more beautifully.

Top photo: Alpaca shearing animals
Lower photo: Clipper blades with hairs stuck in them

Ueno Zoo Masataka Kawanabe, Children's Zoo Section

(May 30, 2014)