A sheep who has gone unshorn for years could be sporting a record-setting wool coat. 

Shaun the merino sheep was found wandering the Tasmanian countryside over the weekend, sporting this unusually heavy wool coat.

He's likely never been shorn, which farmer Peter Hazell says made it that much easier for him and his wife to catch the creature.

"He couldn't see very well because of the wool over his face so I just snuck up behind him and grabbed a hold of him then Netty and I went and got the ute and put him in the back of the ute."

Shaun now has an appointment with the shears, and Hazell hopes that will result in a record-breaking wool harvest.

The current record is 27 kilos -- or nearly 60 pounds of wool -- from one animal.

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