Educate me please

[CornerstoneAcre]

On the Pros and Cons of getting a Dexter vs a Jersey cow for home milk and beef needs.
A few specific questions I have:
Which calves would be ready to butcher sooner? Or is that solely dependant on the size I want to butcher them out at? Mind you I've NEVER done cows before so I'm actually quite unsure as to when one SHOULD choose to butcher a cow.
Which heifers have the better more docile temperment? I am NOT going to have a bull, but I have heard that the Jersey bulls can get quite nasty - just wondering if the cows can be that way as well.
We don't have a ton of pasture yet, but have a fairly "unlimited" supply of hay. Will that make a difference for which breed will better suit us?
Since the Dexters are not real popular up here and tend to be smaller, am I going to have problems finding a "safe" bull to breed a Dexter Heifer to?

Others experiences with each breed (both good and bad) sure would help us out deciding which to choose. Thanks everybody.

[genebo]

Your wants and needs should determine which breed you get.

A Dexter gives about 1/2 the milk that a good jersey does. It also eats a lot less. Both can raise a beef calf, but Dexter beef tastes better and yields much better.

A good plan for milking and raising a beef calf is to take one gallon per day at a single milking from the Dexter and leave the rest of her milk for the calf.

You can usually take double that from a jersey in two-a-day milking.

Both calves will deliver about the same amount of wrapped freezer beef.

Both breeds mature their calves at about the same rate. You can harvest them for beef at any age, but the best beef will come at around 27 months old. That's when they reach peak flavor and marbling. Dexter beef wins in flavor, tenderness and marbling.

Dexters are renowned for their gentle temperament and that includes the bulls. A well trained Jersey cow can be just about as gentle, but Jersey bulls are reputed to be the world's meanest breed.

A Dexter wins in the feed category. She has a very efficient feed conversion rate and can maintain body condition on less feed than a jersey. Her lower milk production requires allows lower quality hay to suffice for her. Not junk hay, just not premium hay.

There are lots of dexters in Michigan. You can get a list of them on the association web sites.

Borrowing a bull isn't a common practice. Artificial Insemination (AI) is much more common. You buy frozen semen and have an AI technician administer it. There are lots of Dexter AI bulls, again listed on the association web sites and other places.

Pick whether you want 1 gallon per day or 2 gallons per day. If you don't want the extra milk, don't pay for it. get the smaller cow that eats less.

Note that the milk production amounts I'm telling you are what you can expect to get while simultaneously raising a beef calf. Eliminate the calf and you should be able to double the output from either breed.

A common crossbreed is a Dexter/Jersey cow. Halfway between the 2 breeds.

If you go for the jersey cow, have her bred with Dexter semen. You'll get a better beef calf if it's a bull, or get a Dexter/Jersey heifer you can readily sell.

[CornerstoneAcre]

genebo - THANKS. That was superbly helpful!! I really think what I was thinking (the Dexter) would be best for us. I'll look for an association web site and do some checking.

[francismilker]

I've heard a lot of good about the dexter/jersey cross that are called belfairs. I'm interested in seeing one of them in action. Seems to me that this particular breed would give you the best potential of a beefy calf or a saler calf at yearling age. (Simply from a size and mother's milk ability.)

[Catalytic]

My input...Dexter calves are soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo cute!!!!!!!!!!!!

Here's my girl and her new heifer calf (a week old today!)



Here's hubby with the 3-4 day old Dexter calf, and a newborn (maybe 2 hours old) Nubian/Oberhasli/??? doeling for size comparison

[lakeportfarms]

There are lots of Dexters in Michigan available, we sell 20-25 per year here ourselves, and there are several people with much larger herds than ours. Now, if you are looking for a Dexter cow that is presently in milk, or trained to milk, that is a different matter...you'll find more Jerseys like that because they are a bit more troublesome and expensive to milk with the additional feed requirements and things that crop up because they produce sooo (and I would say too much) milk for most families, and it can be very taxing on their health if they are not properly cared for. Less experienced owners get frustrated and sell them.

Depending on your facilities, a Dexter will be a little more hardy in our winters with their longer hair. I assume you don't plan to keep her in the barn all the time, and its better for them to be outside as much as possible anyway.
I'd suggest a couple of Dexters, since cows are herd animal, and then you can stagger their calving to always be in milk, or milk them both if you want more. If you are not in the mood or busy, let the calves be your "automilker" those days.

If you get a Dexter for milk, look for those that are out of the "milkier" lines. If you'd like some lines, PM me and I'll give you some to look for as well as some of the breeders here in the state.

[CornerstoneAcre]

catalytic - Oh my - Those are some CUTE pictures....I'm sold LOL

[Menglish]

Cornerstone, there are plenty of Dexter's in Michigan if you know where to look. I have a small but growing herd and live in Mid-Michigan. Let me know if I can help you locate some stock.

Edited to add: Just a heads up but I just sent one of my Dexter bulls to service my sisters Jersey cows. Possibly some calves for sale in 9-10 months.

Mike

[MARYDVM]

Just a slightly different viewpoint. Some Dexters are dual purpose, but certainly not all. My Mini Jersey X Dexter is a great little milker, and raises a nice calf at the same time. Her 3/4 Dexter daughter is a cull as a dairy cow. She raises a nice calf, but there's nothing else to milk out until the calf is weaned. Obviously her Dexter sire did not provide any genetics supporting milking ability. Some people raising Dexters have never milked one, yet will assure you they are all perfect dual purpose cows.

So, examine your priorities. If milk is really important to you, I'd go with the Jersey. If you don't need to count on much milk, a Dexter will probably make better beef. Of course, if you can buy a cow already in milk, then you know exactly what you're getting.

[BlackWillowFarm]

When I decided to get my own milk cow I planned on getting a Dexter, train her to milk and raise her calves for the freezer. I looked at a few herds and called a few breeders in Mich. They were all really nice people with very nice herds. Non of them were actually milking their cows though. Then I answered an ad for a Jersey cow for sale. This cow was trained to milk and could be tied in the aisle of the barn for milking. Since I had zero cow experience the idea of a trained milker became more appealing to me especially since all the Dexters we'd looked at were curious and didn't mind hanging about, but none of them would let me touch them. I started to realize I might be biting off more than I could handle by getting an untrained milk cow.

I switched my search from Dexter's to Jersey's. There are a lot more Jerseys for sale, the prices are usually less and most of them are trained to milk. I ended up with a trained Jersey cow and haven't regretted it. We've been eating Jersey beef for three years and in my experience, it's the best beef we've ever had. If you ask about beef quality, you'll get many opinions on which tastes best, but you'll also see many people attest to the great flavor and tenderness of Jersey.

You will get more milk from a Jersey and for some people it's a problem, but I manage to use it all. Whatever isn't needed for the house is fed to the calves, dogs, pigs, chickens. I also make butter, cheese, yogurt and have plenty of cream for my coffee. I never have to dump the extra milk even when at peak I was milking almost 14 gallons a day from my two cows. I also have a very small herdshare going with a few families. That helps to defray some of the costs of keeping the cows.

Jersey's do come with higher feed requirements and you may have to deal with some calving issues like milk fever or ketosis.

There are pros and cons to both breeds. Maybe take a look at both before you decide to buy.

[CornerstoneAcre]

I'm seeing that a few people in Michigan with Dexters have posted!! Thanks - PLEASE feel free to PM me and I'd love to find out where you are (I'm in Wexford County) and know what you may have available now or in the future. Perhaps even the crosses would be a good choice for us. Tons of milk is not our priority at this time. We would easily get by with under a gallon a day, but I do agree that I may be able to find plenty of uses for any "extra". We also have pigs, dogs and chickens LOL. I'd be afraid to do any type of herdshare as my luck somebody would choose me to "crack down" on.