Will this work?

[NICC08]

I have 3 cows located that I'm really interested in. Two of them are roan Milking Shorthorns and the other is a MS X Holstein X Swiss. They are all from the same farm, very gentle, giving 50-60 lbs/day etc. The 2 MS are recently fresh (under 3 weeks) and I can get there calves with them for a fee. The Xbreed is 45 days bred, and the guy will throw a bull calf in for her for a fee also.

Can I use these gals for nurse cows? Ultimately I'd like to use them to raise a couple bull calves for meat and dairy heifers to sell. I thought I could milk them then bottle feed the calves, but why do that if the calves are plenty capable? How many calves/year could these 3 handle?

Thank you

[Up North]

You could graft 3 calves on each cow. Some cows adapt to that more readily than others though. Later in lactation(beyond 300 days past calving) you would have to cut down to 2 and then 1 calf per cow.
If you can get cows to accept calves, no sense in doing the cow's job for her.

[evermoor]

10 or more at that production. That may change when you move them. You could raise up to twenty at that production, with at least three sets all in theory.

[NICC08]

Thanks...

Couple more questions...

So granted they take to 3 calves each, can I keep all 12 animal in 1 pasture together? When should I wean them off the cow? 5 months, so I could have 2 "crops"?

[sammyd]

Do you have any experience with cattle?