This is what I bought

[JDeerekid]

Yep, I got on the tractor from the left side, into vehicles on the left side, and on a horse on the left side, and while there's certainly nothing wrong with it, I just never saw anyone who sat on the left side of a cow to do the milking. That's something new to me.

When I milked cows the cows were in the barn in pairs. The 2 cows were inbetween to post and bars that seperated the cows into pairs in the barn. I would aproach from the rear and milk the cow on the left from the right and the cow on the right from the left. I would rather be between 2 cows than a cow and the post and bars. Plus there was more room.

 

[texasjohn]

Thinking about it...could have simply been pen and gate positioning layout...and my own preference for doing things with right/left hand.

Entering the pen from the direction of the barn, somehow the cows were always standing such that I would put the feed bucket down with my left hand holding the milk bucket in my right and away from the cow, let the cow put her head in the bucket, loop the rope over the ears, grab the 3 leg stool with my left, step to the rear, position the stool, switch bucket to left hand (away from tail and possible kick), grab tail with right hand as I set down and place tail under my knee as I bent it back to sit down. Then, start milking with head in cow's flank.

 

[Bird]

I've seen calf ropers mount horses from the right side, too, just not the "usual" way or what I was personally familiar with. I learned something new again.