Question: For no obvious reason - except for the fun of it - the downsizing procedure included a complete shave-down. In the Norwegian colony they have horses, sheep and dogs. Were the animals also shaved before being downsized?
Question: #1 I have always wondered about this movie. The sea captain Konrad obviously had his boat either shrunk or completely rebuilt small, so why are most people in leisure land stuck with using the shared community vehicles? I wouldn't want to have to share a vehicle with all of my neighbors. #2 Why are the people from the original colony in Norway going underground long before they have to. The movie made it sound like people still had many years before the end of humanity, why not just wait till last minute?
Answer: Regarding Question #2: The Norway experiment wasn't about saving humanity at the last moment. It was taking proactive steps early on to save the planet before it reached the tipping point and minimizing humans' negative impact by reducing pollution and waste, conserving resources, etc.
Answer: They apparently shave them because the process only works on living tissue. So yes, they would have had to shave the animals.