After taking the world by storm earlier this month, Canberra's very woolly sheep Chris has officially been handed the title of world's heaviest fleece.

Chris was shorn for the first time in years after being found wandering on a nature reserve outside of Canberra.

The sheep was picked up by the RSPCA which put out an urgent call for a shearer, as sheep can become seriously sick if left unshorn.

Champion shearer Ian Elkins was called in to tackle the task, and after a delicate shearing effort, Chris was relieved of the massive fleece.

The story attracted international attention when the fleece weighed in at more than 40 kilograms - trouncing previous records.

Chris has now been confirmed by Guinness World Records as the woolliest sheep ever recorded.

The official weight of the fleece was 41.1 kilograms.

"We certainly didn't have the world record as a priority when we sheared Chris," RSPCA ACT chief executive Tammy Ven Dange said.

"But we appreciate the recognition. We can only hope that record is never broken again because it would be unlikely that the animal would live to tell the story."

The previous official record holder was a sheep from New Zealand called Big Ben.

Big Ben's fleece weighed 28.9 kilograms - 12 kilograms less than the new record.

After taking some time at the RSPCA adjusting to his new haircut, Chris was adopted by a hobby farm in New South Wales earlier this month.