Need Advice

[Karen in Alabam]

My sister the Craigslist queen, found me a Brown Swiss and a Jersey that we might be interested in.

The guy has a mess of cows, but he likes to trade. He has only had these girls about 3 months. He says he has vetted them..

actually this is what he said:

they are both around five years old, I have only had these two cows about three months and I just had them vet check and de-horn last week, they have been very easy to handle and would take little time to make either of them a pet, their milk bags look great, if you bought them both I would take 1000 a piece. they are both due in February

The Jersey



Brown Swiss



Don't see a bag on either of them, but he says its still 4 months out--vet said February, but don't know that is could be the end of February and he says its not real accurate.

He is also willing to trade for some of our cows.

What are your thoughts on these cows.

I will also post some cows I might consider trading, and maybe you could give some pointers on that as well.

Thanks

[Karen in Alabam]

This is Rita,

She is part Jersey, born end of March. She is about 8 months old. She looks more like a beef cow. This picture was probably taken last month

What do you think she is worth?

We are not good at guessing weight, but my husband thinks she is a minimum of 500 pounds.

[BlackWillowFarm]

It seems strange to me that 5 year old dairy cows don't have any kind of udder showing. Have they ever been milked before? I see a Brown Swiss cow, but that other cow looks more like a Jersey cross to me. Before I did anything with what appears to possibly be a cow trader, I'd ask to see the receipt showing when he bought them and also see a vet receipt or better yet, talk to the guys vet about the cows in question to confirm their due dates. Do you know what type of bull they've been bred to? Also, if he's moving cows in and out all the time, I'd be sure to check for Johne's Disease among others.

[Karen in Alabam]

I don't think they have been used as milk cows. He said the vet said that it wouldn't take much to tame them, implying that they are pretty easy to handle.

I don't want to go down the road of the girl who was going to get the untamed Dexter. Though I have heard, never trust someone selling cows. Heard that from a guy I called a year or so back about Dexters.

[G. Seddon]

I agree with Black Willow Farm....I'd want to speak directly with the vet or the person he got them from and get confirmation on some things...vaccination/deworming status, whether they've calved before, what are they bred to, how did they raise their calves.

Honestly, Craigslist makes me nervous although I've never bought or sold anything on there. The cattle in the photos seem in good weight (if the pictures are current?), but if he just got them, then why is he so quick to sell them? I'm highly suspicious of these things. Maybe that's just me.

[BlackWillowFarm]

Originally Posted by Karen in Alabam

I don't think they have been used as milk cows. He said the vet said that it wouldn't take much to tame them, implying that they are pretty easy to handle.

Even if they've only raised calves before they should have larger udders than what we can see in the pics. It makes me suspect that you might not be getting the whole truth, but that's just me. There are a lot of shady people out there, unfortunately.

[MARYDVM]

If they were dehorned last week at 5 years of age then they each now have 2 large gaping holes in their heads where the horns were removed. I don't see that in the pictures. Sounds like a cattle dealer saying whatever he thinks you want to hear. The neck on that black and white cow looks a little "bully". Possible freemartin? Don't consider buying anything without verifying pregnancy first.

[lasergrl]

I totally thought freemartin on that jersey holstein cross as well. She is very bully, especially if she is supposed to be five years old.

[MO_cows]

The cattle look in good flesh and healthy enough, but nothing in those photo's matches the story. I also think they wouldn't be that healed up yet from de-horning a week ago. The "Jersey" looks like a Jersey/Holstein and her bag doesn't look like she's ever calved before. Neither does the Brown Swiss but the photo could be hiding her bag. And why would the guy who has spent the most time with the cows say "the vet said" they were tame? There is a reason cattle traders have a bad rep, I would keep looking.

[springvalley]

I`m with everyone else on here, dehorned last week as Doc Mary said would be large holes the size of quarters or larger in the skull. And as Carla has said they don`t have an udder, a five year old cow sould have something there. If they have raised calves that would IMO even make more of a udder and teat hanging down, even dry. I don`t think either one of them have had a calf before IMO, but I can`t see everything from here. I would sure talk to the vet about them. > Thanks Marc

[Karen in Alabam]

Thanks

I think I have my answer, it is a pass.

Thanks everyone

[myersfarm]

JUST were is that LIKE BUTTON

[Tad]

Myersfarm, I know what you mean! Definatly not dehorned last week, don't think they have EVER milked before. I am funny about that but when some one story starts to not check out I pretty much throw everything else out with it. Be cautious around people that deal in cattle I haven't found an honest one yet!

[suzyhomemaker09]

Yes yes...beware the Craigslist.....

It seems to be the going story around here that " oh I'm getting older and my arthritis is acting up...I just can't milk em anymore"
What a load of crap.....
I am still working out details with the untamed Dexter....The owner offered me a 6 month money back trial basis and I feel good about the deal after having been to his home several times and having lengthy discussions with him.

[Karen in Alabam]

So if you shouldn't get a cow on craigslist, and Dairies won't sell them. Where can you get a decent milk cow?

Maybe I should start a new thread on this.

[BlackWillowFarm]

Most dairies have cull cows that will go to the sale for one reason or another. Sometimes it's just because they don't make enough milk to pay for themselves and there isn't anything wrong with the cow.

Have you tried contacting some dairies in your area? I called around to several before I found my cow. She was injured just after freshening and wouldn't eat, got ketosis and the farmer said she'd never get up to production that year and he couldn't afford to keep her. She was slated for the sale barn, but he told me he was very happy I took her because she was such a nice cow it bothered him to have to send her to slaughter. She's a wonderful cow. I couldn't have asked for a better first cow. Now I'm milking her daughter and her granddaughter will be my third milker in 2013.

[Karen in Alabam]

My area used to be a bid dairy area, now the closest one that I know of is an hour away.

I will give them a call.

Thanks

[suzyhomemaker09]

I'm sorry..I never meant to say not to get a cow form Craigslist...just to be very careful.
Be aware of what you're looking for and not looking for.
How to judge animals....etc.

[Karen in Alabam]

Problem is I really don't know that much about cows.

Like some said, the jersey's neck looks beefy, probably a freemartin. I would not have picked up on that, especially since he told me they were pregnant.

I thought I should see some bag, and even questioned it with the guy, but I don't have enough knowledge behind me.

You never can tell why a person is selling an animal. I know that I would not get a full grown chicken from craigslist, because they are probably old and past laying--same withe fleamarket.

When the guy dropped Yo off (be bought her sight unseen--guy was from GA), she looked pathetic.

When we bought Maggie, and Liza they were local so we could get a look at them and didn't make the decision right away.

The picture the guy posted for Bones was a healthy calf, when I got there Bones was just standing there looking pathetic and lethargic and boney. Thankfully I was with a friend who told the guy we would take the calf if he gave it to us to see if we could save it. I probably wouldn't have said that--but the guy did give it to me. (He had 105 temp, pneumonia, then ear infection, then leg swelled up and oozed for weeks--all this in the first week) When I took him the other day to get his horns removed, the vet said I did a good job with him and that he looks really good.

I am a sucker, and I admit it, and besides that I want a cow--which makes me vulnerable to being taken. I am glad however I posted the pictures and didn't get taken on this deal.

I am open to all sorts of suggestions, and hopefully each time I learn more and more to where I can become knowledgeable enough to know what I am looking at. I am not there yet.

Like you have goats, my sister wants goats, and I had goats for five minutes when 5 of them came for a visit from down the street one day--had to wait for the owners to come home and come looking for them. I can assume that I may end up with the same issues when looking for goats, because I am pretty clueless.