April 01, 2024

Fox Chase Farm invites families to Sheep Shearing Day

The long-running springtime event, which falls on April 27, also includes blacksmith demos, candle dipping and hayrides.

By Kristin Hunt
PhillyVoice Staff

@ExplorePEC/Facebook

Shaggy sheep, like the one pictured above, will get sheared at Fox Chase Farm on April 27. The School District of Philadelphia campus is only open to the public for this and other special events.

A human's haircut? Boring, expensive, uninspired. But a sheep's haircut? Now that's an event for an audience.

On Saturday, April 27, Fox Chase Farm will once again open its gates for Sheep Shearing Day. The barnyard bonanza brings locals to the 112-acre working and educational farm to see staffers give the sheep a spring coat and spin their wool into yarn. It's an extra special opportunity, since Sheep Shearing Day is one of the few times a year that the site, which is managed by the School District of Philadelphia, is open to the public.

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After the shearing ends, visitors can participate in one of many planned activities. Pick up a new skill at the woodworking, blacksmith and candle-dipping demos or take a hayride around the Northeast Philly property. Local nature enthusiasts including Philadelphia Backyard Chickens and Joe the Beekeeper will also be in attendance to teach the group. Attendees are likely to encounter even more livestock as they wander the farm, which is also home to cows, pigs, bunnies and goats.

Food will be available from the Innovative Catering Concepts food truck, and visitors can also purchase apple butter, tea and honey to take home. Sheep Shearing Day is a cash-only event that will take place entirely outdoors, no matter the weather, from noon-4 p.m. Entry is $5 per person.