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Canine hair (referred to as chiengora)may be spun into yarn, very like sheep’s wool, alpaca, or every other animal fiber. The method is similar. Mud and oils may be washed out of the spun hair, so there isn’t any “doggie odor.” Amazingly, the spun yarn is hotter than wool, straightforward to look after, and has an angora-like fluffy texture. Till current instances, most canine house owners did not notice the fantastic thing about the colours and texture of their canine’s hair could possibly be used within the method of sheep’s wool.
It is actually as straightforward as brushing your canine. There are some pointers to getting the most effective and softest yarn doable.
When brushing your canine, make sure you acquire from the components the place the hair is the longest and softest. That is undercoat. Hair should be 2 inches or longer for finest outcomes. Hair ought to be clear and dry, with no grass or particles in it. Brush the hair from the longest, softest components of the canine, saving solely this hair. It’s the undercoat you need, not the coarse high coat. Clippings won’t work nicely for spinning with canine which have double coats. There may be an excessive amount of guard hair, and the yarn high quality won’t be as good because the pure undercoat.
Take away canine hair from the comb and put it aside in a paper bag. Save hair that’s fully dry, and as clear as doable. (Don’t try to wash it as soon as it’s dismissed the canine!) Bathe your canine first, and brush when the hair is dry.
Paper permits the fiber to “breathe” and never be trapped with oils in a plastic bag. One of the simplest ways to retailer the hair from brushings, is in a paper sack, or material bag, akin to a pillowcase. Regardless of what your mom or grandmother used to do, NEVER USE MOTH BALLS! Moth balls include a poisonous chemical that’s harmful to breathe, and it’s unattainable to take away the mothball odor from the hair.
How a lot do you save? It will depend on what might be made with the completed yarn. Most small tasks use about 6 ounces of hair.
Remodeling canine hair into yarn takes a lot time and care. First, the yarn is evaluated for spinning. Relying on size, and the way the yarn might be used, I decide if the hair wants mixing with a tender merino wool. Mixing minimizes shedding out, and produces a extra sturdy yarn. Though most individuals need 100% of their canine’s hair for use in a product, this is not all the time doable. The canine’s colour can nonetheless be seen and the fluffy texture remains to be current within the completed yarn.
From this level, the method is similar as spinning sheep’s wool. I exploit a drum carder for the mixing course of. This carder has metallic tooth on it, that comb the wool, so the fibers are lined up and prepared for spinning. The fiber is lifted off the drum carder, loosely rolled up, and put aside by the spinning wheel.
The yarn is spun into single strands on a spinning wheel, after which plied for power. The yarn is then cleaned by hand, utilizing a light conditioning detergent or canine shampoo, and air dried. It’s then wound into balls or skeins and is then able to be knitted or crocheted into a shawl, hat, decoration, and plenty of different issues.
As a result of it’s handcrafted, and private, a chiengora present makes a sentimental remembrance. It’s higher to start accumulating hair whereas your pet is wholesome and youthful. Folks have typically instructed me that it’s comforting to have a tender, “pettable” scarf, hat, teddy bear, or different merchandise constituted of their canine’s hair, and it brings again completely satisfied reminiscences.
 
