I have been saving up the shaved hair from a dog I groom for that past year or so as her owner is not only my BF but she adores her dog.  I thought it would've been a great idea for a present to get her a jumper or something knit from the wool but alas, no.  I have recieved a lovely e-mail from a lady who spins the hair and she has told me that as the hair is shaved, it would be too prickly to wear.  Does anyone know differently or have a technique to soften the hair/wool.  Her dog is always been clipped and doesn't shed so I could never get the fluffy undercoat if I tried!!  I would be ever so grateful if anyone knows differently? 

I know someone who spins from dog hair. It does have to be naturally shed - the clipped ends do make the wool prickly apparently.

It depends on the coat, but it's possible you could felt it into a softer, woollier medium

you can get patterns to make simple stuffed dog toys of most breeds.. how about use the clipped fur to stuff a soft toy of her breed that you have made yourself? maybe with a little pendant collar on it with a photo of the real dog inside?

or if you would still like something knitted but clipped is too prickly to wear how about a knitted toy of her dog made from her fur? prickly won't matter then as she won't be wearing it.. saw this book the other day and it did make me smile
http://www.knityourowndog.com/uk/all-products/

> It depends on the coat, but it's possible you could felt it into a softer, woollier medium

Always wondered about felting. I've seen it done,and understand the process - easy enough to do with dog hair I reckon - but what would you make with the results? All the felted stuff I've seen is a bit, well, let's say Bohemian, primitive, right through to weave-your-own-muesli eco-hippy. Would you really wear a hat made from felted dog hair? Or a garment? I understand taste and fashion is very personal so I am hoping I don't offend - but in reality, the uses are somewhat limited by the medium.

Couldn't agree more :-) although you might be surprised to see some of the items made through this process--I was very pleasantly surprised how few items looked rough and ready when I was at the Woolfest at Penrith this year. I think the idea of felting the hair to make a little stuffed toy version of the dog is a nice idea, assuming the owner likes that kind of thing...