Spinning Frequently Asked Questions

Q Can I spin the fur / hair from my pet cat / dog?

 

A Usually, pet hair is short, which makes it more difficult to spin, though in the past I have successfully blended very short dog fur with some longer sheep wool as a 'carrier'. Longer fibres spin well by themselves.

There is a difference between downy 'underfur' and outer hairs, in the same way that sheep and other animals have hair besides their wool. These hairs are usually undesirable and are removed.

If you're spinning coarse or shorter hair, expect it to be scratchier.

Blog post in which a friend and I spin some Alaskan Malamut fur.

Blog post in which I spin some Samoyed fur and knit a sample.

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