PIHEPE
Pitt Island Wild Sheep
Naturally Nurtured
“Nature has been around far longer than modern chemical farming practices and has a way of ensuring its own survival. It would be truly remarkable if we thought we had more wisdom than nature.”
PITT ISLAND WILD SHEEP (Pihepe)
Origins
Pitt Island Wild Sheep, named Pihepe, originate from Saxony Merinos. They were sent to Pitt Island in the Chatham Islands off the East coast of New Zealand in 1841 by Baron von Alsdorf. In 1843, Frederick Hunt was the first person to farm them on Pitt Island.
Pihepe & Roger Beattie
Roger Beattie, enviropreneur and founder of Wyld, lived on the Chatham Islands for 17 years and became enamored by this wild and free breed. When he returned to New Zealand, he bought 8 ewes and 2 rams with him and continued to purchase more Pitt Island Wild Sheep when he could.
Roger and his wife Nicki Beattie ran 2500 Pihepe on Banks Peninsula. Unfortunately, Nicki passed away in 2021. Roger continues to breed and develop these wild sheep through Natural Selection.
“Man selects only for his own good: Nature only for that of the being which she tends.”
Farming on Banks Peninsula, New Zealand
Our Pihepe runs free across the hill country at Lucas Bay and Ataahua on Banks Peninsula. They are resilient, agile, and graceful, with a natural ability to survive.
This free, wild life is attributed to their easy care, hardiness, agility, and resilience.
Ethics
Pihepe are pasture raised and grazed, receive no chemical treatment, inoculation, or antibiotics in their lifetime and their tails are left as nature intended, wagging behind them. They are shorn once a year in the summer thus allowing them to keep warm through the winter months.
Natural Selection
Natural selection is what nature naturally selects
Roger believes that no one can identify the best selection of sheep to breed but he thinks he can deselect the worst.
Wyld Yarn
50% Pihepe
25% Merino
25% Possum
Shop Wyld
Natural Selection
50% Pihepe
25% Merino
25% Possum
Natural beauty, natural drape, natural comfort.
A lightweight New Zealand-made wool poncho in our signature Pihepe, Merino and possum blend. Natural warmth with plenty of room to move.
The Wyld Poncho is one of those pieces you reach for again and again. Throw it over a shirt on a cool morning, wear it over a dress for an evening out, or take it with you when the temperature starts to drop.
It's warm without feeling heavy, soft without being fussy, and simple enough to wear in more ways than one.
Three ways to wear it
The clever design gives you three different looks. Wear the seam along one shoulder for an asymmetrical drape, across the centre of your back for a shorter front, or at the front for a simple neckline.
One poncho. Three ways to wear it.
Check out our styling videoswith Becks Mason from Christchurch styling business Style4U.
The fibre
Our Wyld blend is:
50% Pihepe · 25% Merino · 25% Possum
Pihepe is the natural brown wool of Pitt Island Wild Sheep. It gives Wyld its distinctive colour and forms the heart of our yarn. Merino adds softness, and possum brings warmth. This blend has Softloft™ which creates an airy, lightweight, lofty, cosyness. It holds its own shape easily, allowing your garments to drape naturally.
Details
Colour: Natural Wyld brown
Size: One size, approximately 700mm x 600mm
Made in: New Zealand
A simple, useful layer for travelling, working, weekends away, or simply keeping warm at home.
Natural wool. Clever design. Made in New Zealand.