So beautiful and a story I resonate with as I follow the same routine each morning with my beautiful Guernseys. I am still new to milking (my second season) so it makes me so happy to read the parallels with my way of doing things and yours and to know I am on the right track.
I worry that I am not doing right by my cows, that I don't …
So beautiful and a story I resonate with as I follow the same routine each morning with my beautiful Guernseys. I am still new to milking (my second season) so it makes me so happy to read the parallels with my way of doing things and yours and to know I am on the right track.
I worry that I am not doing right by my cows, that I don't get enough milk or cream because I am doing things wrong but I try to tell myself that the homesteaders getting gallons and gallons of milk a day are grain feeding surely? I hope you can find some time to answer some questions to calm my mind that I am not doing things wrong...
I am getting 4-5L of milk from one milking a day and I let the calf on after I have finished both sides. I am wondering if I should try something different to get more milk.
How much milk do you get each milking? Do you milk once a day? And lastly, do you only milk the one side (two teats) while the calf has the other side the whole time or do you only do that at the start to get let down happen?
Thank you so much for your wisdom, I am so appreciative of the time you take to share these insights to help others understand a different way of life. Xoxoxo
It all depends. Where is the cow in her lactation cycle? What is her condition like? Does she look full or emaciated? How is she doing? If you milk out first and then put on the calf, you may have a cow that has figured that out and holds back her cream. They can actually do that although I don't know how. If she is further down her lactation cycle and the calf is growing, she may not have much to share.
What we do and when is dependent on where the cow is in her cycle and what's happening with the calf and the pastures. After the first few days, when her milk comes in, we milk twice a day. At that time, when the calf is easily pushed aside, we milk at the same time the calf is drinking. This stops the cow from holding back and it saves our hands as the volume is incredible. We're milking about three or four gallons (16 litres) at that time. We milk twice a day then. This time coincides with very fast growing grasses and legumes in our fields and the cows are moved daily. If there was a drought or other reasons for poor growth in the pastures, she would not produce as much milk at all. It's important to keep an eye on her condition. We milk off of all the teats.
As the lactation cycle progresses, the calf gets bigger, the pastures slow down, we move to once a day milking. When the calf reaches a certain size, too big to share with, we just milk first and then let the calf on. If the cow is one that holds back, we will take some milk while the calf is milking to get in on that cream.
It does wonderfully thank you so much! There is so much nuance and individuality, so much to learn by experience and feel, but I am ever grateful for your wisdom to guide me 😊
Our lovely girl this year has had a rough time, firstly it is later in the season than I would have liked as she and the other girls broke loose at the wrong time and enjoyed some bull time 🤷♀️🙄, so not the best grasses. Then she had twins and one didn't make it, then she got stuck in mud in a dam as we've had no rain. She only had the calf about a mth ago so early in her lactation but I'm assuming i am not getting much because of the stress. So I have not put too much strain or expectation on her and just giving her extra Lucerne and minerals and love.
So beautiful and a story I resonate with as I follow the same routine each morning with my beautiful Guernseys. I am still new to milking (my second season) so it makes me so happy to read the parallels with my way of doing things and yours and to know I am on the right track.
I worry that I am not doing right by my cows, that I don't get enough milk or cream because I am doing things wrong but I try to tell myself that the homesteaders getting gallons and gallons of milk a day are grain feeding surely? I hope you can find some time to answer some questions to calm my mind that I am not doing things wrong...
I am getting 4-5L of milk from one milking a day and I let the calf on after I have finished both sides. I am wondering if I should try something different to get more milk.
How much milk do you get each milking? Do you milk once a day? And lastly, do you only milk the one side (two teats) while the calf has the other side the whole time or do you only do that at the start to get let down happen?
Thank you so much for your wisdom, I am so appreciative of the time you take to share these insights to help others understand a different way of life. Xoxoxo
Hi Zoe,
It all depends. Where is the cow in her lactation cycle? What is her condition like? Does she look full or emaciated? How is she doing? If you milk out first and then put on the calf, you may have a cow that has figured that out and holds back her cream. They can actually do that although I don't know how. If she is further down her lactation cycle and the calf is growing, she may not have much to share.
What we do and when is dependent on where the cow is in her cycle and what's happening with the calf and the pastures. After the first few days, when her milk comes in, we milk twice a day. At that time, when the calf is easily pushed aside, we milk at the same time the calf is drinking. This stops the cow from holding back and it saves our hands as the volume is incredible. We're milking about three or four gallons (16 litres) at that time. We milk twice a day then. This time coincides with very fast growing grasses and legumes in our fields and the cows are moved daily. If there was a drought or other reasons for poor growth in the pastures, she would not produce as much milk at all. It's important to keep an eye on her condition. We milk off of all the teats.
As the lactation cycle progresses, the calf gets bigger, the pastures slow down, we move to once a day milking. When the calf reaches a certain size, too big to share with, we just milk first and then let the calf on. If the cow is one that holds back, we will take some milk while the calf is milking to get in on that cream.
Hope that helps. :)
It does wonderfully thank you so much! There is so much nuance and individuality, so much to learn by experience and feel, but I am ever grateful for your wisdom to guide me 😊
Our lovely girl this year has had a rough time, firstly it is later in the season than I would have liked as she and the other girls broke loose at the wrong time and enjoyed some bull time 🤷♀️🙄, so not the best grasses. Then she had twins and one didn't make it, then she got stuck in mud in a dam as we've had no rain. She only had the calf about a mth ago so early in her lactation but I'm assuming i am not getting much because of the stress. So I have not put too much strain or expectation on her and just giving her extra Lucerne and minerals and love.
Next season will be better 😊