Post by Sharon on Jul 15, 2010 14:09:22 GMT -5
Well.....we got her! Maggie and bull calf arrived yesterday around 7pm. She is beautiful and her calf is so adorable and soft I can't get over it!! We are all pretty excited......but.......I have some concerns. Her calf was born Monday night, some 60 hours ago now. and her first milking was last night. We hand milked her and got only about 1/2 gal. of very creamy, sweet milk. This morning, she was waiting for me in the barn. I began milking, then, just when I thought I was getting a pretty good pattern going, she decided she was done and tried to get out of the stanchion. When that didn't work, the flow went to a trickle. I had about 1/2 gal. in the bucket when she put her hoof in the bucket! Gave that to the dogs, cleaned out my bucket and went back to try again. I squeezed and squeezed but could get nothing but dribbles, so I let her go to her calf. She also pooped and peed in the process! So here are my questions....
1. How do I determine if she is holding out on me or if I am just inefficient?
2. She only milks on her front two quarters. I really don't want mastitis to take away another quarter. Her udder always seems very full, but definitely softer after milking. How can I empty her if she is holding out?
3. I have a Surge portable milker and am planning to put that on her tonight to see how much it can get out of her. Is this a good idea if I want to primarily hand milk her?
4. It seems we may have to take the calf off of her. Will they need to be separated for the full 3 months that he would be bottle fed?
These are my questions for now. All in all, I'm ecstatic that she has finally arrived but am feeling a bit defeated right now. Any help is appreciated!
1. How do I determine if she is holding out on me or if I am just inefficient?
2. She only milks on her front two quarters. I really don't want mastitis to take away another quarter. Her udder always seems very full, but definitely softer after milking. How can I empty her if she is holding out?
3. I have a Surge portable milker and am planning to put that on her tonight to see how much it can get out of her. Is this a good idea if I want to primarily hand milk her?
4. It seems we may have to take the calf off of her. Will they need to be separated for the full 3 months that he would be bottle fed?
These are my questions for now. All in all, I'm ecstatic that she has finally arrived but am feeling a bit defeated right now. Any help is appreciated!