08/04/11, 06:59 PM
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Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: SW Michigan
Posts: 16,408
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I didn't want your question to go unanswered- there are others here that can help you more than I can.
It all depends....
Yes, you can raise just one. It's better if there are two. Some horses chase cows around a pasture and don't let them eat. A lot depends on the cow and what she's used to having around her.
Are you thinking of buying a calf and raising it? I started with Milk replacer and calf manna (starter grain), then moved up to whatever feed I thought was best. I used something called 'beef master' since it's what's available here. Some feed mills will mix what you want if you buy enough at a time. i didn't find much difference in milk production in what I fed my cow as much as how much I fed her. You feed what they need to keep their body condition up while producing milk. I have a six month old steer we feed about 1 gallon of grain a day - some days 1 1/2 gallons. My milk cow got about 1 gallon per milking.
Hay- full-grown can be up to a small bale a day - about 50 lbs. Some will eat more, some will eat less. How much also depends on what kind of hay - alfalfa, grass, mix? Then there's the question of how it was baled...on time, too late, or rained on twice..... How much they eat can depend on the weather and what kind of shelter they have.
Milk production depends on what you feed, how much of it they get and what cow you buy. There is as much variance between breeds as in cows within the breeds. Some produce a little- some alot. It just depends on the cow.
It cost me getween $4-5 to produce 1 gallon of milk - if I didn't count the cost of the milking machine and electricity for the hot water. But cost depends on how you do it. Grain has gone up a bit since I milked. I was also feeding other cows at the same time, so it was difficult to estimate how much the cow was getting and how much the others were eating.
You might find that it's cheaper and easier to buy a cow already in milk, already trained to milk and already been through a calving. Raising a calf is expensive. 2 bags of milk replacer is $145 here, then there's the grain ($30 per month for me for 2 years) and hay ($4 a bale for 5 months of my year), water. If it gets sick, there's the vet fee. And you will need to have a heifer bred - I paid $60 if she came in heat while the AI guy was in town. If not - it was $145. Buying a cow will eliminate a large portion of the learning curve. You can have the milk tested, know her history (does she get mastitis often?) and have at least one experienced partner in your effort. Often, you can buy a cull cow from a large dairy for meat prices - I bought a pregnant one for $600.
Last edited by Callieslamb; 08/04/11 at 07:14 PM.
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