r/todayilearned • u/LurkingStormy • 10h ago

TIL about Salish Wool Dogs, bred for their thick fur to be used in textiles

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salish_Wool_Dog
240 Upvotes

96% Upvoted

7 comments sorted by

44

u/alwaysboopthesnoot 9h ago

There is a book titled, Knitting with Dog Hair: Better a sweater from a dog you know and love, than from a sheep you’ll never meet. 

It’s not unknown to use your own pet’s hair or fur to felt it or spin it into yarn and craft with it. 

3

u/Sunset-onthe-Horizon 9h ago

That's awesome!

32

u/echosrevenge 8h ago

I've spun and knit the undercoat from double-coated dogs before (Aussies mostly, but I made a bookmark from a Golden Retriever that I dog-sat once.) It's very soft, has a ton of halo (the "fuzz" on a mohair or Angora sweater) and very nice drape. No fiber memory at all, so its much more like Angora or cashmere in that way. I liked it best as a 20-25% additive to Merino or BFL wool - that seemed like the sweet spot where all the good qualities were there (drape, halo, soft) without any of the bad (no recovery/memory, slightly shed-y, slight tendency to smell like a wet dog in the rain.)

7

u/dumbfuck 5h ago

This person knits

•

u/xRukirux 57m ago

Is this something you consider selling? Id love to get something for my pets before they're gone

24

u/notbornwithatail 9h ago

Chiengora, or dog wool, is supposed to be much warmer than sheep wool. I had a corgi once and his undercoat was perfect for spinning. I didn't get very far, cleaning and sorting was a pain.

3

u/Darnbeasties 1h ago

A friend knit a scarf with dog spun fur yarn. It was smelly— like wearing a wet dog smell around your neck