keeping a calf on a cow

[Looking4ewes]

For those who have done once a day milking, how do you manage the calf with the cow? What handling concerns, particularly when needing to separate the calf from the cow, have you worked out? It seems that the calf and cow could quickly become unruly if not planned for in advance.

Many thanks in advance,

Wendy

[springvalley]

You need to have pens in areas that they can not get out of, one for the cow and one for the calf. The cow could simply be let back outside if it is late spring, early summer. And calf needs a pen he can not get out of, going over or through it, and can`t get hurt on it either. Then you could simply leave the calf with the cow during the day and lock up the calf at night, and then you can milk the cow in the morning. If you start doing this right away, it is less tramatic than if you leave the calf with her for a week or two and start this. Good luck and happy milking. Thanks Marc.

[francismilker]

I usually have the cow trained to come to the barn twice a day for a small amount of grain. When she comes in to the stanchion at night the calf comes with her. I slip a rope haltar on the calf and lead it into a stall in the barn where the calf spends the night. After the cow eats she is let out into the pasture for the night to graze and rest. The next morning, I bring her in to the stanchion, let the calf get a belly full, then "drag" it away until I'm finished milking for the house and she's finished eating. When she exits the barn I let the calf go out with her for the day......

As far as the stall/pen for the calf; I use 16' stock panels wired to barn posts and it works well.