Historical information
Bioclip was developed in the late 1990s as a way of removing the wool from sheep without the need for shearing. Sheep, although mostly lambs up to 50kg, were dressed in the nets and injected with a protein which caused the wool to break at the skin. The net was used to hold the loose wool in place and left on for several days to allow the wool to continue to grow on the sheep (and offer protection against the elements once the net and wool were removed). The net was cut and destroyed during the removal process.
Bioclip stopped being produced c2013. Factors for this included the cost of a shearing team was cheaper than the equipment needed for Bioclip, and it wasn't as popular with wool growers as anticipated.
Those who used Bioclip would swear by it with many saying they would never go back to using a shearer, as Bioclip produced a clean and even result, with no damage or stress done to the sheep.
Bioclip could only be used on young and small sheep, with a maximum size of 50kg.
Physical description
Cream coloured netting, stitched in a flattened cylinder shape with a hole at each end (for sheep head and tail) and four holes on underside (for sheep legs). Green stitching on one end.
