(CNN) — An Australian champion sheep shearer has set a new record after clipping a sheep that had become so overgrown its life was endangered.
The gigantic sheep, named Chris, could barely walk when it was found outside Australia’s capital, Canberra.
After being contacted by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) in Australia, Shearer Ian Elkins volunteered to shear the mammoth creature, which had to be sedated throughout the operation.
He took 45 minutes to remove the 18 inches fleece, which the RSPCA said weighed over 88 pounds.
It easily beats the 60 pounds fleece previously shorn from a New Zealand sheep, known as Shrek, who was found in a cave in 2004 after avoiding farmers for six years.
Elkins told the Canberra Times that the wool had “smashed Shrek’s record of 27 kilograms no worries.”
“I don’t think it’s been shorn before and I think he’s five or six years old,” Elkins, a four-time Australian shearing champion, said. “I wouldn’t say it’s high quality but you wouldn’t expect it to be after so long in the bush.”
The RSPCA said sheep like Chris, need to be shorn regularly or they can have trouble going to the bathroom and can develop serious medical issues like flystrike or infection.
An average Australian fleece in comparison weighs just five kilograms and takes approximately three minutes to shear, according to Australian Wool Innovation (AWI).