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Super woolly animals in pictures | Life and style

Super woolly animals – in pictures

Fluffy farmyard beasts from a new book, Knit your Own Farm

How to knit your own turkey

Fri 19 Dec 2014 02.00 EST Last modified on Wed 23 Sep 2020 10.18 EDT

  • Sheep

    Humankind, and particularly the knitting world, has every reason to be grateful to sheep as they provide us with wool. And where would we be without wool? Sheep have an undeserved reputation for being none too bright, but recent studies have proved them to be cleverer than rats. They have been described by one research scientist as being ‘as intelligent as a slow monkey’. Sheep in Yorkshire have been spotted rolling across a cattle grid, proving their ingenuity

  • Saddleback pig

    The saddleback is a crossbreed of Neapolitan and Essex pigs, a combination that gives it the characteristics of hardiness and excellent mothering skills. Charles Kingsley described it as ‘a pig of self-helpful and serene spirit’. Intensive pig farming has meant that the saddleback has become quite rare – there are fewer than 500 breeding sows registered in the UK. Dick King-Smith wrote a lovely book called Saddlebottom starring a saddleback pig family

  • Rat

    Rats are the stuff of nightmares to many people. Ours is a cuddly knitted farm rat and therefore not at all scary – more Beatrix Potter’s Samuel Whiskers than George Orwell’s 1984. Rats have a bad reputation and some fairly disgusting habits, but we kept rats for several years – Max, Mica, Micky, Audrey and Lulu – and they were delightful, particularly Audrey who was very clever and affectionate and would chirp lovingly in your ear

  • Lamb

    Adorable, wobbly-legged and vulnerable, lambs are symbolic of new life, springtime and Easter. They are equally happy frolicking in the fields or nestling snuggly beside each other

  • Horse

    There is an immense affinity between man and horse. For hundreds of years the horse was a working animal; now supplanted by vehicles. There’s a wealth of different ways to engage with horses: racing, hacking, dressage, cross-country, hunting, show jumping and carriage racing. My sister Lucy is a keen horsewoman; her connection with her horse is so strong, they seem to be one entity. Famous horses (both real and make-believe) include Champion the Wonder Horse, Black Beauty, My Little Pony, Red Rum, Arkle and poor Shergar, kidnapped and never found

  • Highland cow

    Originating from the Highlands of Scotland, this truly spectacular and hardy animal has a long coat to keep the heat in and the cold out. As expert foragers, Highland cows will eat plants that many other cattle won’t. Hamish, ‘an icon of the Scottish Highlands’, was saved from the slaughterhouse during the BSE scare in the 1990s; campaigners argued that he was popular with children, who saw him as a pet. In 2010, Hamish hit the headlines again, when, on meeting his new companion Heather, he danced a ‘Highland fling’. They now happily share a field

  • The cow

    A most useful animal, the cow is raised for both meat and milk, as well as for leather. In the Hindu religion the cow is considered a sacred beast, a symbol of wealth and strength, and deserving of the same respect as your mother. In India, cows wander the streets of all cities and seem to have priority over the cars and rickshaws; it is a criminal offence to harm a cow. Cows sleep for a mere four hours a day

  • The hen

    The hen, a female chicken, is a very useful and much-loved bird, producing eggs and used for meat. Very fashionable these days, exotic breeds of hens are kept for both their eggs and as pets. Hens live in flocks with certain birds dominating, so a ‘pecking order’ has to be established. Famous cartoon hens include Camilla, Gonzo the Great’s girlfriend in The Muppet Show. Hens are equally popular characters in children’s books, such as The Little Red Hen and the fable Henny Penny.
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