Wool
Wool is one of the animal fibres obtained from sheep and some other animals. Animal fibres are the fibres that are naturally obtained from animals. Some animals that live in cold places generally have a thick coat of hair on their body. These coating helps the animals to trap air in it and keep them warm as air is a poor conductor of heat. Air trapped by the hair on the body of animals does not let the warmth to escape from the body. Hence, these thick covering of hair on the animal body protects them from cold. Some of the animals are goat, camel, sheep etc.
Wool bearing animals
Wools are generally obtained from sheep, yak, Angora goat, camel etc. These animals have a thick outer covering of hair or fleece on their body which helps in maintaining their body temperature. In India, wools are generally obtained from sheep. In most of the regions of Jammu and Kashmir, angora wools are found. Yak wool is commonly found in Tibet and Ladakh. The Pashmina shawl is one of the famous shawls made from the wools obtained from pashmina goats.
Sheep bear two types of hair: Fine soft under hair and coarse hair. Coarse hair is the outer covering of sheep which are long and rough. Fine soft under hair is the hair which is found closer to the skin of sheep. The fine soft under hair is known as fleece. This fleece is the main source of fibers of wool.
Selective breeding: Some animals are specially chosen that reproduce and give birth to an offspring. This process is done to produce animal having some special traits. Selective breeding is done in sheep to have a sheep that bear only fine soft hair.
Wool is used to make various wool fabrics like woollen clothes, carpets, woollen sweaters, saddle cloths etc.
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