I've been saving a small skein of "chiengora" for years. Chiengora is dog hair that has been hand spun into yarn. Depending on the breed it can be beautifully soft and have a halo that is much like angora (rabbit). And no, once it is properly washed and spun chiengora does not smell like wet dog when it rains!
Many years ago my daughter adopted a senior "rescue" dog, a white shepherd named Charlie. He had lived in various SPCA shelters for so long that his original location and story was no longer known, nor was his age. He was a very loving dog but was advanced in age and came with a host of medical problems that eventually took his life.
While Charlie was still living I took some of the soft, creamy white undercoat that he had shed, carded it with sheep's wool that had been dyed pink, and then spun it into a 116 yard, 2ply skein.
I finally found a project for at least a small portion of the special "Charlie" yarn. I included it in a 6m mixed fibre warp and as I wove I added in the occasional small weft stripe of Charlie's cheingora as well.
I used the first portion of the warp to make a lovely cowl.
There was enough warp remaining to weave a Saori style hat, which also turned out beautifully.
I'm still not at the end of the warp. I may just have enough left to weave a second hat though perhaps only a child size. We'll see.
