HISTORIC SITES | FEBRUARY 2024

Churro Sheep Shearing Day, Sunday, April 7th, 2024, 8 AM to finish.

Timeline of Events:

• Shearing – 8am until we finish
• Sheep Craft for ages 11 and under – make a paper Churro sheep
• Sheep Craft for ages 12 and up – Michelle will be teaching a needle felting wool craft, limited to 20 people, advance sign up is required
• Wool spinning – Monika Neuland Thomas will be hosting a couple of wool spinning workshops, limited to 10 people per workshop, advance sign up requested
• Churro Sheep Talk – Presentation of history of the Churro in New Mexico

Kerry Mower will be shearing our flock of 20 Navajo Churro Sheep, a rare heirloom breed. Kerry uses the "old style" double bow hand clippers. Espanola Fiber Arts will be onsite cleaning the fleeces and answering questions. The Churro are recognized as one of a handful of true North American breeds. They were introduced by the Spanish just after the Entrada as being a breed uniquely suited to the harsh New Mexico environment. The Dine adopted the breed and selectively bred them to produce a long staple wool that comes in a myriad of colors. The wool is unique in that it has a low lanolin level, so requires less washing to produce a spinnable wool. The Churro were nearly eradicated twice by the US Government, first when the Dine were interned at Bosque Redondo, and then again in the 1930s under the Livestock Reduction Act. A few Churro survived, hidden away in canyons of New Mexico and Arizona. In the 1970s, the breed was revived from that small stock. Los Luceros is honored to help preserve this uniquely New Mexico animal.