This is probably a dumb question ...but....

[horsepoor21]

Our jersey's gives us soooooooo much cream ,we're hardly getting enough milk !!!! We get three gallons a day . Three gallon sized jars filled to the top , and only about 3 inches on the bottom is milk !!!!

Is there any to control this possibly with feed or something ? She's just on prairie grass pasture right now . We still have plenty of grass so no need to feed hay yet . But we do have grass/alfalfa bales waiting .

I love the cream ,but my freezer can only hold so much butter ...... LOL Never thought we'd have THIS problem ! hehe

[topside1]

I don't operate a Jersey dairy but I do know that the breeds butterfat is 6% per gallon. From what you described your cow is giving 80% butterfat....Sorry but it is just not possible....I'd like to see a photo of this. Are you filtering your milk? Or going straight from the cow to the container? Topside

[horsepoor21]

I have a picture actually that I just took last night ! Filtering the milk . It was not like this but until a few weeks ago . She still gives an amazing amount , it was still at least a third of the jar . My pictures are always too large to post here , would someone be so kind as to let me e-mail it to them to post ?

[ozark_jewels]

You can e-mail them to me at ozark_jewels@yahoo.com and I will post them for you.

[willow_girl]

Hmm. When is she due to calve again? I'm thinking maybe she's starting to produce colostrum, and that's what you're seeing?

[springvalley]

I have no idea why she would be giving so much cream, our cows will have about a quart per gallon of cream. As Topside said most jerseys will test at 6% ours are a little more, there also is more to milk than just cream, there is solids and sugars and everything in between. So I have no idea what is going on, just enjoy the rich milk. > Thanks Marc

[matt_man]

and the butterfat % is figured by the actual fat solids not the amount of cream.

We have a girl that gives 1/2 or a bit more than 1/2 cream late into her lactation when the overall amount of milk starts to dwindle. We just make lots of butter during those times.

[CJBegins]

Kinda like the goose that lays the golden egg!

[horsepoor21]

Springvalley> Well we normally get 2 quarts of cream out of three gallons ,so that's less then your's . I don't know what she's up to right now ! LOL

She calved the end of April . So she's not due to calve again for quite awhile so not colostrum.

ozark > Thankyou so much ,I'll try to get it sent to you today !

[cathleenc]

something sounds off.

Our jersey/guensey has a high butterfat percentage - 7.4% - we normally get 25-30% cream/bottle.

[horsepoor21]

Sorry I'm so slow ,I'm just about to send a few pics to Ozark Jewel .

I over estimated a little with the milk ,it's more like 4 inches on the bottom is milk . But still ,it was like 2/3rds of all three jars ! (and the jar in the pick was actually full ,we had started to take some cream out before we thought to take a pic)

Anyhow ,I will send another pic of what we normally get . Which she's actually started to go back to. Unfortunetly ,she's all of the sudden started drying up in her front quarters ? I have no idea why . Trying some different feed now in hopes we get it back ....

[cathleenc]

do you have a california mastitis test you can run? do you strip test before milking?

[ozark_jewels]

I could have made photos smaller, but this is the best size to see the cream line.

[ozark_jewels]

Ok, looking at these photos is just like looking at my own fridge shelves.

The first picture with three gallons has a cream line similiar or less than my normal Jersey milk.

The second has a gallon of what simply looks to be the richest part of the milk(probably milked last out of the udder, or strained first). Is this the way all her milk is at this time? I have a couple cows whos milk gets like this in late lactation and in early lactation.

That is what it would be at my house.

[ozark_jewels]

Does the milk taste good, no off or salty taste??

Was she AI'd or was she running with a bull??

Is there *any* chance she got bred sooner than you think??

But calving at the end of April still would only make her 7 months along *if* she bred RIGHT back........hmmmmmm.

Any change in her feed/hay/pasture lately??

[springvalley]

The three jars look like they should, the last one looks very rich. If you don`t strain the milk right away, it may seperate and have more cream in one jar than another. Sometimes I take milk from my bulk tank without turning on the mixer paddle(aggitator) for feeding chickens or pigs and I have customers say they have alot of cream after I do this. Some love it some don`t, so I don`t do this anymore. I have no steadfast answer for you. > Thanks Marc

[horsepoor21]

Thankyou so much for posting my photos! ( the date is wrong on the first ,that was in October)

No , we didn't let her back in with the bull until July . No way he could have got to her before hand .

And the gallon with the ton of cream ,that was just one of three .They were all like that !

But like I said , it's starting to go back to the way it was and she's also suddenly drying up in the front quarters , only getting a gallon and a half now

Thankyou for your thoughts . I was just really curious more than anything , the animals are always keeping us on our toes ! LOL

[matt_man]

I would do a CMT and make sure she doesn't have mastitis in those front quarters. That can cause a drop in production and cause the milk to be funny. I'm not sure about it making it look like that but...I would want to know if something was going on.

[topside1]

The milk in photo #2 would probably clog up a standard gravity filter or at least flow very slowly. Now you may realize why I posted what I did in post #2. I hate guessing but mastitis would have been my guess...Topside

[springvalley]

I`m sorry but the mastitis would have to be very bad to make the milk that solid, I think it is still that she is late in the season and the feed she is eating is changeing, that will cause the milk to change alot. Our cows later in the season will change milk production, and I also have cows that juat dry themselves up when they think it`s time. I also have cows that will give less on front quarters from time to time. Ok I have questions now, How do you filter your milk? Do you filter it warm or cold? Have you gave your cow a good udder exam, feel her quarters and see if you feel anything abnormal. And as Emily has asked ,does it taste good ? or off from normal ? There are so many things that will change you milk production and flavor. If your milk is just creamy it will not clog a filter if run through a filter when warm , but sure will when cold. > Thanks Marc