Post by nekmama on Jun 16, 2010 6:26:20 GMT -5
I am sitting beside Violet who is munching away on hay (we have very poor pasture and she seems ravenous at chore time), and Jason asks whether we need to portion out the hay. Can she eat too much hay?
Then, I've wiped her udder and teats with warm soapy water, but I used dish soap. What kind of soap "should" I use? Do I need to rinse the soap off? It is not that soapy, more like a nice rinse.
I'm milking her, but now I've read I should be massaging the udder. Is this just a nice rub down or something specific?
We strain the milk, and there are tiny golden dots that when rubbed feel like oil. Is this a symptom of mastitis or something else?
Do we freeze the milk for awhile to chill it or can we just stick it in the refrigerator?
What should I put the milk in if I hope to skim off cream? How long do I let it sit in order to do that?
Will my hands get stronger and able to do the milking any more quickly?
We have bought raw milk for years, and I have watched one of the farmers do her milking. I do not remember seeing her rub down the udder, but maybe it just looked to me like she was still milking. She took the milk in and strained it into another milk bucket and stuck it in the refrigerator. That was it for handling. I did not watch her skimming procedure, but I would guess it's easier to skim cream from the top of a bucket than from a half gallon jar
I really thought I was clear on all of this until I was sitting beside a real cow really milking. On the bright side, I got her milked out today on three quarters and mostly on the fourth quarter; someone told me to leave some for Clover (should be obvious, but I'm really feeling a bit dumb at the moment.) It seemed like Clover must have nursed right before chore time, because one quarter was pretty much "empty" when I started, and it was the quarter I have seen Clover most frequently nursing. I brought over a gallon into the house, and most of that seemed to come from one of the front quarters.
Thanks again for the help!
Rachael
Then, I've wiped her udder and teats with warm soapy water, but I used dish soap. What kind of soap "should" I use? Do I need to rinse the soap off? It is not that soapy, more like a nice rinse.
I'm milking her, but now I've read I should be massaging the udder. Is this just a nice rub down or something specific?
We strain the milk, and there are tiny golden dots that when rubbed feel like oil. Is this a symptom of mastitis or something else?
Do we freeze the milk for awhile to chill it or can we just stick it in the refrigerator?
What should I put the milk in if I hope to skim off cream? How long do I let it sit in order to do that?
Will my hands get stronger and able to do the milking any more quickly?
We have bought raw milk for years, and I have watched one of the farmers do her milking. I do not remember seeing her rub down the udder, but maybe it just looked to me like she was still milking. She took the milk in and strained it into another milk bucket and stuck it in the refrigerator. That was it for handling. I did not watch her skimming procedure, but I would guess it's easier to skim cream from the top of a bucket than from a half gallon jar
I really thought I was clear on all of this until I was sitting beside a real cow really milking. On the bright side, I got her milked out today on three quarters and mostly on the fourth quarter; someone told me to leave some for Clover (should be obvious, but I'm really feeling a bit dumb at the moment.) It seemed like Clover must have nursed right before chore time, because one quarter was pretty much "empty" when I started, and it was the quarter I have seen Clover most frequently nursing. I brought over a gallon into the house, and most of that seemed to come from one of the front quarters.
Thanks again for the help!
Rachael