Members of Butler County 4-H clubs learned “felting” Tuesday, July 2, which is the process of making wool into trinkets and other crafts. Rylee Colteryahn is shown compressing wool into a ball at the Big Butler Fair. Eddie Trizzino/Butler Eagle

The livestock at the Big Butler Fair aren’t there only for competitions; sometimes their owners find other ways to enjoy their animals.

On Tuesday, July 2, members of Butler County 4-H groups learned “felting” from Michele DiPippa, a member of the fair’s sheep committee. Felting is the process of crafting sheep wool into trinkets and other objects — a woolly pig, for example.

A group of people involved in 4-H, “ages 5 to 62,” created little wool animals Tuesday morning, led by DiPippa.

According to DiPippa, felters use a poker to ball up wool sheared from sheep, which they can mold into different shapes once it is compact enough. Some of the wool is dyed, to mimic the appearance of a craft a person is trying to make.

DiPippa said it would probably take a few hours for each crafter present in the sheep barn Tuesday morning to finish their little woolly pig.

Madalyn Davis, a 4-H member, compresses sheep wool into a ball during a felting session Tuesday morning, July 2, at the Big Butler Fair. Eddie Trizzino/Butler Eagle

Tagan Guiser, 5, of Butler, uses a poker to tangle wool into itself to create a craft Tuesday morning, July 2, at the Big Butler Fair. Eddie Trizzino/Butler Eagle