YELLOW SPRINGS, Ohio – Leicester, Jacob, Merino, Romney and Targhee.

No, they’re not the offensive linemen for the Indianapolis Colts. Rather, they’re the preferred sheep for craftsmen who convert hair from these breeds into soft and colorful skeins.

The hair from those breeds of sheep, as well hair from bison, dogs, goats, llamas and other animals, were on display at the 25th annual Wool Gathering held last month at Young’s Dairy in Yellow Springs.

The two-day event attracted several thousand attendees from Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, New York, Tennessee, Wisconsin and Michigan.

Margaret Terhune, of Flint, Mich., tends to 22 alpacas on her 38-acre farm near Lansing. This annual show, she said, has been a blessing.

“The fiber I get from my animals keeps me quite busy,” Terhune said. “I love to knit and sew but when I purchased five alpacas five years ago, I never even thought about the fiber they produce, I was only interested in them as companions to other animals on our small farm. Also, I was only interested in them as breeding stock. In a way I stumbled onto a gold mine, as I can now spin the hair and create many items using their hair.”

Sherry Blevins, of Liberty, Ind., raises Angoras specifically for the fiber. Her farm is known best for its poultry, though the Angoras are taking up more of the space on her farm these days.

“I started raising Angoras as a hobby at the encouragement of my daughter, who raises them on her farm in northern Kentucky,” Blevins said. “Raising the animals can be a bit of a chore at times, but the reward is their fiber. There’s so much you can do and create with the hair and perhaps the biggest reward is going to gatherings such as this one. There are so many unique things you can do with mohair and with gatherings such as this one you can share ideas with one another, as well as meet new friends.”

Callie Thomas attracted many visitors to her booth as her bison hair was not only an oddity of sorts at the show but signs of a growing trend.

“With roughly a short staple length of 1 ½ inches, bison fleece is often blended into wool for easier handling,” Thomas said, “but it’s ideal for any garment. These hardy creatures offer a fiber with extensive durability.”

Thomas doesn’t raise bison; she gets the fiber from a farm in New Richmond, Ohio.

Attendees swapped business cards, swapped ideas and shared techniques at the craft of turning the animal fibers into useful articles of clothing as well as colorful skeins.

Plentiful at this year’s show were sheep, llamas, alpacas, cashmere goats, Angora rabbits and other wool-bearing animals. There was no shortage of shearing demonstrations, wool spinning and weaving. All told, more than 100 vendors from seven states were in attendance.

Betty Stapleton’s family tends to Dorset sheep on their farm near Defiance, Ohio. Before visiting the Wool Gathering in 2019 (there was no show in 2020 due to COVID-19), Stapleton thought nothing useful could be made of her animals’ hair.

“The Wool Gathering show of 2019 was a real eye-opener,” Stapleton said. “The typical breeder only wants to breed the animal, and surprisingly most don’t care about the fiber. Most just let it sit there. I think more and more people are focusing on the fiber end of things and realizing there’s fun and money to be made with the hair. Personally, I’m not crafty like other people, but I raise these animals and know of dozens of crafty people who will purchase the hair and creatively turn it into something useful.

“Ask any fiber enthusiast and they’ll tell you that spinners and weavers can purchase cheaper synthetic fiber at most craft stores, but people like the idea that the article of clothing they’re wearing is from a natural fiber.”

On display at this year’s show was a multitude of raw and dyed fiber, as well as thousands of clothes, blankets and scarves made from the fiber taken from most farm animals, including rabbits, and dogs and cats.

There were demonstrations showing the step-by-step processing of wool. Vendors were more than happy to show visitors the art of spinning, weaving, knitting and crocheting in addition to the dying process.

“Natural fibers are making a comeback, as more people understand their environmentally friendly qualities, especially with reports of polyester microfibers from synthetic fleece finding their way into our drinking water,” Stapleton said. “Natural fibers are also a sustainable resource that can be raised organically and one that will decompose when their intended use ends.”