Whoo hoo I got a Jersey...age?

tkmdfarm417 · #1 08/02/11, 11:44 PM

I got a Jersey cow yesterday off craigslist....they said she was 4-5 (I think she is older) I wanted you all's opinion but I don't know how to put pics on here so if you'll tell me how I will try...lol...anyway they told me they had 2 cows and one has just vanished so this one was all alone in the field and they were tired of messin with her so they sold her to me for $250 and told me if they found the other one they would call! My girls think she looks like a hippo...lol..my 10 month old holstein heifer is scare of her and won't even look at her..lol....Oh and she has a limp in her back leg and has for awhile they said but it doesn't seem to bother her unless she is getting up (from what I've seen anyway) she has been hand milked and is very gentle...and her name is Nana...so if you will tell me how to load pics...then you can tell me what you think her age is. Thanks & God Bless
http://s1198.photobucket.com/albums/aa445/tkmd524/

allenslabs · #2 08/03/11, 12:05 AM

Awesome! I load pics by using an online album like at webshots.com or something and then you use the URL listed and add it into the image thing above. I am sure someone else can help better explain but congrats on your cow! I can't wait to see her. Nana is a good name. Congrats again!

65284 · #3 08/03/11, 12:48 AM

Pretty girl, but she is in serious need of some groceries. If she were mine I would worm her first thing and get her some sweet feed, a salt block and a bag of good loose minerals. She would look like a different animal with some weight on her.

Hard to tell about her age, but it looks like her udder isn't broken down and saggy like a lot of old cows.

If you have a way to restrain her, or if she will allow it, you might want to pick up and check that foot, not unusual for a cow to have an interdigital cyst, or some foreign object, thorn/wire/stick, piece of glass etc. between their toes.

Good luck with her, wish I could find a deal like that!

allenslabs · #4 08/03/11, 10:03 AM

I used to have a 5 yr old jersey and I would say your girl is somewhere in there. Hard to tell though but her udder is nice and high (mine wasn't as she was a dairy cull that went from milking 17000lbs of milk in a year to like 5000....major saggage! LOL!) which is great. She looks beautiful. Congrats on the find!

tkmdfarm417 · #5 08/03/11, 10:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 65284

Pretty girl, but she is in serious need of some groceries. If she were mine I would worm her first thing and get her some sweet feed, a salt block and a bag of good loose minerals. She would look like a different animal with some weight on her.

Hard to tell about her age, but it looks like her udder isn't broken down and saggy like a lot of old cows.

If you have a way to restrain her, or if she will allow it, you might want to pick up and check that foot, not unusual for a cow to have an interdigital cyst, or some foreign object, thorn/wire/stick, piece of glass etc. between their toes.

Good luck with her, wish I could find a deal like that!

Thanks....I have her on 50/50 sweet feed and she has access to salt, minerals, hay, water and open pasture. I think they just had her in a field but I am not sure. We looked at her foot and didn't see anything in it....but I am keeping an eye on her!

DWH Farm · #6 08/03/11, 10:54 AM

I am just bummed that you saw that ad first..

linn · #7 08/03/11, 10:56 AM

You might try using a dairy cow wormer on her.

Madsaw · #8 08/03/11, 10:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 65284

Pretty girl, but she is in serious need of some groceries.

She is just a hair on the thin side. But, if she was in full milk and milking hard then I would consider her fat. She is a normal looking working class(weight wise) jersey.
As to her age. I would guess4-5 also. Very young look in the face and not rolling back on the heals off her rear hoofs. You should beable to look for a tattoo in her ear with the metal tag. You will find a nice wax layer that needs wiped out then there should be a number then a symbol then a number. I beleive the last number is the year she was vaccinated.
Bob

Ronney · #9 08/04/11, 06:56 AM

Very hard to age a cow as they all age differently - my vet thought that of two cows I have, the daughter looked older than the mother! However, on looks, I would put her at around the 5-6 age mark as well. Nice looking little cow.

Keep an eye on that back leg especially if it's giving problems when she goes to stand and next time you have the vet out, get him to give her hips and leg a thorough going over. The problem may not be in the hoof, it may be further up and that could cause problems at servicing, calving and later on, with mobility and standing.

She's a tad thin but as mentioned, if she's milked hard that would account for it. There's nothing wrong with having kept her in a field but it does help to have grass in it

Mine spend their whole lives in the great outdoors with little supplementary feeding other than hay in winter.

Will be interested to know how she works out for you.

Cheers,
Ronnie