Temptation in the form of a cow?

[greyfields]

Yeah, I'm failing ot understand those comments, too. Jersey cows and their big doe-eyes are the most calm little creatures. And Dexters mean? I guess I've just never experienced that side of them.

 

[tpflabs]

hey guys? did you know that probably the best use of WHOLE off the cow milk is mixing it in the show chicken feed? OMG, the feather sheen and quantity of feather you will get is Unbelievable..
but it has to be the whole milk, with the cream, mixed into the layer.. or better yet, in with the oatmeal in the morning..

I am so jealous, I SOO want a cow of my own.. I was raised with herfords, and will own some again before I die.

 

[BeardedChick]

hey guys? did you know that probably the best use of WHOLE off the cow milk is mixing it in the show chicken feed?

What about mixing it into MY feed?

I love raw whole milk.

(Ok, the chickens get a little in their oatmeal, too)​

 

[Mac in Wisco]

There is a good forum here with some very knowledgeable people:

http://familycow.proboards32.com/

 

[Mahonri]

Get the cow. It will be good for your boys, but you will all be tied down. If you don't milk twice a day, the cow will dry up quicker.

You'll have more milk and cream than you and your family can use... but you'll need to feed the calf and you could always give extra milk to family friends or sell to neighbors or you could even use it to feed your chickens (with mash). (We did that when I was little)

Your kids might not like having to milk morning and evening but it will give them character.

Look at me... I'm a character!

 

[Mac in Wisco]

Many have worked out schemes to milk share with a calf. If you can't be around at times to milk you can just leave the calf on her. The days that you want to milk you can put the two in separate stalls the evening before and milk in the morning. It takes some training and the two will fuss at times, but it can be done.

 

[Farmer Kitty]

We would love to have you come visit and join www.backyardcows.com! There is a great wealth of information there and we can answer questions you may have.

Jerseys are beautiful and generally calm animals. Like any breed there is exceptions and you can get a mean one but, usually they are sweet.

There are some who don't need all the milk and they will let the calf on mom and then milk her too.

I would say the biggest thing is, are you ready to have the cow now? Do you have the place, feed, equipment, and time she will take? You can do a marathon learning if your not up on things but, that would be the rough way to go. You'd be better off to learn and then get the cow but, it can be done the other way around. If possible I would go and see and work around her and see how she is and how she will react to you.

 

[jaye]

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I see that as a major plus. I want them to learn more about animals and responsibility.

 

[conroy]

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OMG I want them too... I wan t a whole farm of minis... mini cattle.. mini horses..mini donkeys..but I want angora goats...

 

[jaye]

Quote:
I'll be getting her from an old family friend who knows I'm a cow-newbie. She's a very gentle cow and rather small and he thinks she'd be a perfect family cow. He'll be a phone call away when I have questions. I read a couple of books on family cows several years ago when the bug bit and am re-reading them now.

True, I'm going to be learning on the fly. I do have some advantages:

I drive a school bus so I do chores at 5AM and am back home from 9:30AM-1PM when I get more chores done (house and barn) then back to work for the afternoon run and home again at 6PM for evening chores. It's actually a pretty farmer-friendly schedule and I am well-paid and get health/dental insurance for our family, which is a major expense in Maine! I could milk at 5:30AM and 6PM. I definitely do NOT have "time on my hands" but I am willing to shift my priorities. I need to give up reading the news on the Internet. That should net me an extra hour a day by eliminating the "stream of consciousness" Google searches I get caught up in.

I have an empty horse stall that we can quickly convert for the cow and I think she'll be quite comfortable there. I have reliable hay sources and horse hay in the barn. I have friends nearby who keep cows - another source of help/info if needed. I'm sure I'll need to make a trip to the feed store for misc. things she'll need and a warm calf blanket. I also have horses and chickens so while she will definitely add to my chore list, it won't be a major lifestyle change. I have a stock trailer and can pick her up this week, after we get this blizzard out of the way.

I've always wanted to try the milking thing - just didn't expect to be doing it this winter! I am going to resist the temptation to try to do it all myself and instead get my boys involved and make this a family affair. They have free time on their hands, especially my two youngest who are 12 and 9. I tend to think of them as my little kids, but the 12 year old is 6' tall and the 9 year old is 5'5" and they can certainly shoulder some chores to help their old mom out! Besides, you should see the amount of milk they go through!

Usually 6-7 gallons weekly and heaven only knows how much butter. I love to cook and can't wait to try my hand at making butter, yogurt, cheese, etc.