Trying out my new camera....

[ozark_jewels]

Got my camera in the mail on Friday(an Ebay purchase), gave it a try today in all types of light. I'm very pleased.

Doing the daily dry cow check.









This cow was carrying a mummy calf when we bought the herd. After being treated, she expelled it and apparently bred straight back. Due anytime now. Hoping for a heifer from her.





Our new young bull. At the moment he is all leg and bone. He is starting to flesh out after a worming and being put on good hay. He is living with dry cows for now as I do not want summer calves next year.

[ozark_jewels]

#52 had this heifer.





And #4 had this gal.

[genebo]

Questions, questions!

In picture #1, what are those red rings around her legs? Jewelry?

In picture #2 and the bull, is that color combination common?

How did you tell that the one cow was carrying a mummy?

What are these called dry cows? Are they pregnant, in their last two months?

[farmmaid]

NICE cows. If you give me #9 I will come down and lead her home!..........I live in NY!

[Callieslamb]

No fair!!! I want them all. Those calves are just too cute!! Please, no more pictures!

[Murray in ME]

Very nice looking animals. The calves are beautiful.

[topside1]

Emily you sure know how to raise fine looking animals. Your not bad with a camera either....Topside

[ozark_jewels]

Originally Posted by genebo

Questions, questions!

In picture #1, what are those red rings around her legs? Jewelry?

In picture #2 and the bull, is that color combination common?

How did you tell that the one cow was carrying a mummy?

What are these called dry cows? Are they pregnant, in their last two months?

Love questions.

Picture #1. The leg bands(I use green, pink, red, anything that is highly visable), are to indicate that she is a dry cow. I milk in the evenings, my sister milks mornings. I manage the herd, so I mark the cows to be dried off(with leg bands) at night, she separates the marked cows in the morning and we run them to dry cow pasture after milking. We never dry off at night as we do not want to introduce to new herd and new fence in the dark.


Picture #2, I assume you are speaking of #32, the brown, black cow with spots? That colour combination is not unusual when dealing with crossbreds. She is a Jersey/Holstien cross. I think she is beautiful. We had a couple heifer calves last year that looked like that. Most cows who mature with that colouring, were born looking much lighter and shaded darker as they grew. #9 is also very common colouring for a Jersey/Holstien cross.
The bull is pretty common colour pattern for a Jersey bull. Although I don't think I've ever had one who had quite that much pure black on him before. Jersey bulls are almost always dark by the time they mature.
Even Hercules who was born straight fawn coloured, is now very dark.

7 months after putting the bull with the herd, we have the vet out to preg-check and tell us how far along each cow is. With a 9 month gestation, that gives us time to dry off any that were bred right away and still give them the 2 months of dry time. I keep records of when everyone needs dried off and do so accordingly over the next several months.
Our vet could tell it was a mummy calf due to the lack of fluid surrounding the calf and other indications.

Yes, they are dry because they are all due to calve soon. I started drying cows off in early July, so these cows are due September, October, November. The ones due after that are still being milked and will be until they are within two months of calving.

[genebo]

Thanks a lot.

It's always a good feeling to learn something new.

Genebo
Paradise Farm

[KayJay]

Who spray painted the bull? lol It looks like someone took a stencil and painted a straight line on his side there. As always, you have the most gorgeous animals!

[ozark_jewels]

LOL!! I was impressed with the colour line on him too(don't have his papers yet, so don't know his name).....so straight.

Pictures of the heifers mothers.

Mother of the darker calf:



Mother of the spotted calf:

[ozark_jewels]

Anyone care to guess how soon this one will go?? I had her on my list as most likely to calve first. But she is still hanging in there.

[KayJay]

I guess...... today... errr... thursday... the... 10th. lol She's a beauty as are the others. Is she a Jersey/Holstein?

[ozark_jewels]

Nope, she is still fat. She is Jersey/Holstien. She has one blind eye from a serious injury when she was young(not sure what, we didn't own her then).
Had two more go today. One heifer(a keeper) and one bull.

[Mrs. Homesteader]

Very nice looking animals.

[ozark_jewels]

Well KayJay, she calved first thing this morning. A beautiful Jersey looking bull.

[Menglish]

OK my turn for a question. Why do you use the crossbreeds? I'm sure there is a good reason. Things that come to mind are the hybrid/crossbreed vigor, smaller animals than straight holsteins?

I just helped my sister purchase a Jersey to milk. She came with a dandy looking heifer calf so it was a good deal for us...we hope! LOL

Mike

[ozark_jewels]

Originally Posted by Menglish

OK my turn for a question. Why do you use the crossbreeds? I'm sure there is a good reason. Things that come to mind are the hybrid/crossbreed vigor, smaller animals than straight holsteins?

I just helped my sister purchase a Jersey to milk. She came with a dandy looking heifer calf so it was a good deal for us...we hope! LOL

Mike

Hi Mike,
Sorry I didn't answer your question earlier, I've been mostly offline and way busy. I *think* we are at 14 calves now.......9 of those being bull calves.
This herd was strictly Holstien for years and years, but by the time we bought the farm and herd, he had been using a clean-up Jersey bull for several years. We have continued using a Jersey bull strictly since we bought them. So while the herd is still *mostly* Holstien, we do have many Jersey crossbreds and some so high percentage Jersey that you can almost not tell the difference from a straight Jersey.
The Jerseys take the heat better. We are a rotational-grazing dairy so that the cows have to walk long distances every day, up and down hills. The Holstiens wear out much faster, lugging those over-sized bodies up and down rocky hills. Our pastures may be mostly flat in the photographs, but every single one has a hill you have to climb or a slope you have to slide down to get there.
The Jersey crosses have way less feet and leg issues than the pure Holstiens. They bounce back better after a heat spell. They have less calving issues. They have less breeding issues. They mature faster.
They are just a much better choice for our type of grazing dairy. They do much better in a natural setting than the Holstiens.

[KayJay]

Yay!! I was so close! lol Too bad it was a bull, but at least he was beautiful so he won't feel left out with all the other beauties around.

Originally Posted by ozark_jewels

Well KayJay, she calved first thing this morning. A beautiful Jersey looking bull.