Family milk cow

kensfarm · May 6, 2004

"I understand the dairies now milk 3 times a day instead of two"

The dairy farmer next door milks 3 times a day.. he's a one man operation. The reasons I know of are.. more milk.. less pressure on the cow's udder.

He came by last weekend while I was putting in fence post.. had his skid steer stuck in the woods on the fartherst part of his farm. Even w/out the skid steers wheels turning.. my TC35D could just drag it along it's belly on the mud.. I had all 4 wheels going.. it was pretty muddy.

Bird · May 6, 2004

Frank, bulls were the only animals that my Dad would allow me to be scared of when I was a kid. We never owned one; just took our cow to visit a neighbor when it was that time. Just that one time, Dad had a Jersey cow bred to a Jersey bull and got lucky; had a heifer to produce another milk cow, but all the other times, it was either a Hereford or Angus bull, and the calf, whether bull or heifer, was meat for the family. /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

MossRoad · May 6, 2004

OK. I'm a city kid... so start explaining, please. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

Cow=female
Female can produce milk.
Probably has to get pregnant and have calf to produce milk.
Calf drinks some of the milk.
We drink some of the milk.
If the calf stops nursing, and we don't milk her, the cow will stop producing milk, right?
What happens if you stop milking a cow for a few days? Does she stop producing milk or does she explode?
How long can you keep the calf with the mom so that she keeps producing milk?
When I get really tired of milking a dairy cow twice a day, will she taste good? /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

Thanks for the education, in advance... /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

rockyridgefarm · May 6, 2004

So what's yer question?!!

EastTexFrank · May 6, 2004

Bird, you must have inherited your good sense from your Dad. Bulls can be so unpredictable. After 25 years messing around with my in-laws beef cattle I've only run across one mean cow, and there was a reason for that, but the've had their share of really mean bulls. One went from being a family pet to the nastiest piece of hamburger meat you ever ran across in less than a week. When I stepped out of the truck and he came ambling over, I thought he just wanted his head scratched the same as usual but no, he wanted me out of HIS pasture. He almost caught me unawares. I was glad when we got rid of him and I've never made a pet out of a bull since. It's better to think of them all as being potentially dangerous and treat them with respect. Having said that, our present Red Angus bull is pretty docile, friendly and lovable ... just not a pet.

Bird · May 6, 2004

( Bulls can be so unpredictable )

Yep, Frank, there's no end to the stories I've either seen or heard about unpredictable bulls. I mentioned my Dad's best friend working Guernsey dairies all his life. Well, he wasn't afraid of bulls; claimed as long as you're looking them in the eye you can control them. He was working for a dairy here in Dallas when he went to south Texas to pick up a huge new Guernsey bull they were buying. The bull had been running loose on the range for two years, but they got him in a pen, had a rope with a snap hooked to the ring in his nose (something else that used to be common, but I haven't seen in a long time), and Gene led him out of that pen on the way to a loading ramp. Now Gene still later claimed that if he'd just kept his eye on the bull he would have been alright, but he turned to see how close he was getting to the loading ramp and that's when the bull got him. He would undoubtedly have been killed if there hadn't been a guy nearby on the dozer digging a new pond who saw what was happening, drove the dozer up, and lowered the blade down over Gene so the bull couldn't get to him anymore. After a long stay in the hospital, and months of "recovery" at home, Gene was still permanently disabled. He was eventually able to walk again, but that was about all.

Poppa · May 6, 2004

Moss, I don't know all the answers since my two months on a dairy didn't make me an expert but my wife has breast fed two children so I'll answer based on that (how's that for being daring? /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif)

Your first things are right on. But, the calf doesn't have to drink any of the milk, depends a lot on how much you like veal. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

We drink as much of the milk as we want. If no nursing and no milking then yes, she stops producing milk. If you stop for a few days, cold turkey then she might not explode but she might wish she would. Can lead to all sorts of bad things like Mastitis. PAINFUL!! /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

Weaning is the operative word we are looking for. Cow plus calf, the cow will wean the calf herself either by encouraging the calf to eat other stuff or by forcibly removing teet from calf. This means that keeping the calf with the mom doesn't gaurantee that the cow will be fresh (have milk) it is more important how regular you milk her.

That being said, even milking her twice a day, a cow will not stay fresh forever, seems to me that two years is about it then you need to reimpregnate her and begin the cycle anew. /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif

Boy, talk about grabbing info from wherever I could remember it from. This post will self destruct if my wife calls up this page /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Mike

Bird · May 6, 2004

David, I'm too old, memory fading, and it's been a long time since we had milk cows, and now-a-days dairies have chemicals and medications and all kinds of unnatural ways to get the most milk, but I'll try to give you some generalizations to the best of my memory.

Cow = female, heifer = female before first calf
Bull = male, steer = male after castration

Breed heifer first time at approximately 15 months of age; gestation of 9 months, so first calf born when cow is 2 years old. With beef cattle, the calf is left with the cow to drink all the milk. With dairy cattle, we take some or all of the milk after letting the calf have it the first day or two. I don't really know just how dairies handle the calves now, but we'd milk the cow, but not complete the job, then turn the calf in to finish up (had to keep them separated the rest of the time). And now I don't remember at what age, we'd wean the calf entirely, but before we turned the calf loose in the pasture with the cow, we'd put a "blab" on the calf. That's a gadget attached to the calf's nose with some sharp spikes so if the calf tried to nurse, they'd stick the cow, she'd kick the calf, and would not let it nurse. About 3 months after having the calf, the cow would be bred again. She'd produce milk for about 10 months after having a calf, with gradually declining volume, and would go dry for a couple of months before the next calf was born, and you start the cycle all over.

( If the calf stops nursing, and we don't milk her, the cow will stop producing milk, right? )

Right.

( What happens if you stop milking a cow for a few days? )

You'd have one very uncomfortable and unhappy cow; sometimes even a little milk dripping from the teats. To suddenly stop milking when she's producing milk may also cause some kinds of infections or other medical problems that may ruin her for future milk production.

( Does she stop producing milk or does she explode? )

You can actually cause her to go dry early by continuing to milk her, but just don't get all the milk each time; that way she'll be gradually producing less all the time and dry up too soon.

( When I get really tired of milking a dairy cow twice a day, will she taste good? )

Yes, if she's old enough, the meat might be a bit tough /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif but it would still make good hamburgers. /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

And for those of you with more experience and/or more recent experience feel free to correct anything I just said. /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

MossRoad · May 6, 2004

Thanks, folks.

I already knew that part about women. Wife had two children and I remember that well. Figured it might be similar in cows since they are both mammals.

So you have to keep breeding the cow to keep getting the milk. Hmm. Sounds like a continuous supply of beef for all that hard work milking. Might not be too bad except for the vacation time. The reason I ask is because when we move, we will have plenty of room to raise beef, pork and poultry. I just never thought about milk too much before this thread. I need to read up on this some more. Again, thanks from a city kid. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif