Post by Laura C on Jan 13, 2012 15:48:55 GMT -5
I have been doing a bit of hand milking this week. I am in a transition phase of getting a new calf grafted onto my first calf heifer and have to keep her milked out while everything and everyone gets organized.
I am usually a machine milker but this girl is not a huge producer, just about 2.5 gallons a day and its cold and muddy and dragging all the milking machine around takes a good amount of time and effort. I can hand milk her in about 15 minutes. But, its not easy!
I get a cramp in my back because I am tall and she is a short little Jersey and her tiny little back teats are ever so tiny. In just a few days my hands are looking pretty sinewy!
It is great not to have to wash all that milk machine stuff and there is something nice about the milk hitting the pail. Especially when the cow is standing nicely and getting all mooney eyed and peaceful! (not so much when she is doing a cha cha dance with the occasional can can kick thrown in)
It does seem really unsanitary compared to the closed system of the milk machine. I'm sure it fine and good but it is a bucket of milk sitting on the floor under a cow! Yikes! LOL, just not what I am used to with the hyper clean milk machine.
Its cool to be developing this skill and training my little cow. She was a surprise purchase and I just let her raise her calf and did not milk her. She is a bit of a redneck because she spent a year with some Angus feeders and got no handling before I bought her. So, this is all good training for both of us. This is the first one I have trained from scratch all by myself although I have been milking for a couple years and have some experience with first timers.
I have a whole new respect for you hand milkers! Its a tough gig and it seems like the cow will never be empty. This morning was the first time I got her completely milked out by hand. It was a feeling of great accomplishment! Like I climbed the Himalayas or something.
I am usually a machine milker but this girl is not a huge producer, just about 2.5 gallons a day and its cold and muddy and dragging all the milking machine around takes a good amount of time and effort. I can hand milk her in about 15 minutes. But, its not easy!
I get a cramp in my back because I am tall and she is a short little Jersey and her tiny little back teats are ever so tiny. In just a few days my hands are looking pretty sinewy!
It is great not to have to wash all that milk machine stuff and there is something nice about the milk hitting the pail. Especially when the cow is standing nicely and getting all mooney eyed and peaceful! (not so much when she is doing a cha cha dance with the occasional can can kick thrown in)
It does seem really unsanitary compared to the closed system of the milk machine. I'm sure it fine and good but it is a bucket of milk sitting on the floor under a cow! Yikes! LOL, just not what I am used to with the hyper clean milk machine.
Its cool to be developing this skill and training my little cow. She was a surprise purchase and I just let her raise her calf and did not milk her. She is a bit of a redneck because she spent a year with some Angus feeders and got no handling before I bought her. So, this is all good training for both of us. This is the first one I have trained from scratch all by myself although I have been milking for a couple years and have some experience with first timers.
I have a whole new respect for you hand milkers! Its a tough gig and it seems like the cow will never be empty. This morning was the first time I got her completely milked out by hand. It was a feeling of great accomplishment! Like I climbed the Himalayas or something.