Dog hair, called chiengora, can be spun into yarn much like sheep’s wool, alpaca or any other animal fibre. The process is the same. Dust and oils wash out of the spun hair, so there is no lingering doggy smell.
Which dogs
Not all dog hair works. What you need is the soft undercoat, not the coarse outer guard hairs.
Double-coated breeds are the ones that produce usable fibre: huskies, samoyeds, chows, collies, german shepherds, newfoundlands, great pyrenees. Anything that sheds heavily in clumps.
Short-coated breeds and those with only guard hairs do not produce enough of the right thing.
Collecting it
Brushed hair, not clipped. This is the important distinction.
Brushing during a moult collects the loose undercoat, which is what you want. Clipping gives you cut guard hairs, which are coarse, short and difficult to spin.
Collect over a season – a moult from a large double-coated dog can produce a surprising amount. Store it clean and dry in a paper bag rather than plastic, which traps moisture.
A jumper’s worth is a great deal of brushing, so expect to save for a while.
Preparing it
Wash it gently in warm water with a mild detergent to remove dust and oils, without agitating – the fibre will felt just as wool does. Rinse, and dry completely.
Then card it, to align the fibres before spinning. This also lets you remove any guard hairs that got through.
Spinning it
Chiengora has almost no crimp, which is what makes it different from wool.
That means it does not grip itself the way wool does, and the resulting yarn has little elasticity. It also means it needs more twist to hold together.
Many spinners blend it with wool – often half and half – which adds elasticity and makes it considerably easier to spin and more practical to knit.
What it is like to wear
Very warm. Chiengora is reportedly warmer than wool by a considerable margin, and it has a soft halo.
It also absorbs moisture readily and does not wick it away, so it is best for outer layers rather than anything worn next to skin in activity.
And it will smell of wet dog if it gets soaked, which surprises people who were told the smell washes out. Dry it does not; wet it does.
Why people do it
Usually sentiment rather than economy – a scarf or a pair of mittens from a much-loved dog, kept long after. That is a good enough reason, and it is what most chiengora gets made into.
