Post by Deleted on Dec 19, 2007 11:26:15 GMT -5
I have been observing for awhile now and when my husband got tired of hearing me talk about our new jersey cow and told me that I needed to find a cow friend I thought of you all. I tried it with the man across the street who knows everything about farming and living in the country and who ran a dairy about 25 years ago but I think he just thinks I'm silly. We are a large family with 9 children who moved out to the country 5 years ago and have finally started getting farm animals. We tend to do things slowly and after MUCH consideration. We drink lots of milk and after puching figures decided that a milking cow was the best investment for our money. PLUS the benefits to our health. It took some time to decide between a dairy cow and dairy goats. After we decided the problem was in locating one. I am a researcher so I did my part and after many questions of those around found out about an amish auction that had a few jersey cows they were selling. The man across the street went with us and helped us pick her out. We are total city people and I just know that everyone at the auction got a good laugh at us trying to get her into the horse trailer. I wish I had known then that you need a ramp to get a cow into a trailer. From that moment on my husband knew that he wouldn't really be able to be hands off of this whole endeavor. ( In the beginning he said he would fund this whole operation if he didn't have to have any part of it. Me and all the children assured him we could handle it. ) So we brought her home and put her in her new pasture of about 2 acres that my son fenced in by himself and got the other neighbor to brush hog for him. He kinda reminds me of Tom Sawyer. She was so calm for us. We proceded to milk her for the first time that evening and got about 3/4 gallon. We really couldn't have gotten a better cow. She was also very patient with us while we were learning. Neither my son nor I have ever milked seriously before. So goes the last couple of months. My husband and boys also put up a 20 x 12 metal sided barn just in time before the bad weather came. Daisy has been try for about 6 weeks now and we are awaiting our first calf. We were told she is due around Christmas . According the Amish man we bought her from wasn't sure if she was bred to jersey or angus. Of course if the calf is a heifer we hope it was a jersey and if a bull calf we hope an angus. Although at this point I'm not sure we could eat a calf that we raise. My five daughters ( ages 10, 7, 6, 4, and 3 ) might be a hurdle to overcome . We'll see. I have had nine children naturally and think I am more nervous about Daisy's birth than I have ever been before. I have been looking and reading so much and I love learning all there is. I also bought Joan's book. I printed out the pictures of the pin joints before and after calving so we can keep comparing her to the picture. There doesn't seem to be any change as of yet. Her bag does seem to be filling up. I think she is just lovely except for the funny horns that she has. They must have not done a good job disbudding her. I have had so much fun writing this and I hope you guys have enjoyed reading it. I want to add some pictures of her and the barn but can't figure out how I will if I can.
Cherry
Cherry