Grafting a calf and other cow questions :)

[CornerstoneAcre]

We had a Jersey heifer calf, but sold her after deciding we really didn't want to wait two years for her to freshen. So now we are on the look out for another cow, but this time one closer to breeding age (or perhaps even already bred). We really have our heart set on a Dexter due to the smaller size, but aren't finding anything within our price range (aka cheap). I know you get what you pay for. But seeing as we are only a family of two (with a few, chickens, pigs, dogs and cats that would also help with any "excess" milk) we are hoping to get a healthy cow but aren't so picky on high production. I've seen young cows listed that are giving 60# of milk a day. Isn't that around 6-7 gallons? We would be happy with around two gallons and do just fine on that. We have a smaller acreage without much pasture but have an almost unlimited supply of "free" hay (good quality).
So here are a few of my questions:
1) Can cross breed dairy cows a decent investment considering the lower amount of milk we can get by with?
2) If we do end up with a cow that gives alot more milk than we need, can we graft a beef steer on to her to "use up" the extra milk?
3) How much milk will a "grafted" cow drink?
4) How hard is it to graft a calf to a cow - and what is the best way to try and go about it? (I would honestly rather NOT bottle feed and just have a calf nurse from the cow)
5) What breeds make a good back yard cow? As I said I'd like a Dexter or even a dexter cross. I have seen a Brown swiss cross (unknow cross) bred to a Dexter bull that might be interesting...

[springvalley]

OK, I will bite on this one, I`m surprised someone else hasn`t responded to this question. As I have said before, any cow will give milk, a beef cow will give at least two gallons of milk per day. Cows only produce a large amount of milk if you push them and make them produce it (IE-feed them alot of extra feed to do so). I milked a holstien/hereford cross cow at one time, by hand, and she would give us three gallon a day. So any good natured cow will produce milk, and most of the time plenty. I am not a big one on sharing with a calf, I think you either let the calf nurse or you milk and share yours with the calf. Your calf will be so much tamer than if you let it run with the cow and nurse by itself. And as a calf grows, it will drink more , and more, and more of the cows milk . Till you say to yourself, I`m not getting any milk. It is not hard to get a calf to nurse another cow, but some cows don`t like other calves nursing them. If you want cheap, and there is no such thing, you should have kept your jersey calf. That is what I would have done, your calf would have been use to you , and very tame by the time it got to two years old and had a calf of it`s own. My two cents worth, > God Bless America > Thanks Marc

[sammyd]

I will second springvalley and say that I much prefer doing all the milking myself and feeding the calf by hand. I have raised them both ways and will not go back to letting them run with ma.
A calf will take at least a gallon a day.
If I were to buy a cow I wouldn't worry about too much milk. There are so many ways to take care of an oversupply that it shouldn't be an issue. We milk anywhere from 6 to 10 goats. 6 gallons a day can be used up quickly even if there are only 3 humans here.

[CornerstoneAcre]

Springvalley: Maybe I came across wrong I'm not looking for cheap as in "hey somebody give me a cow". I just was saying that I'm not interested in paying 2,000 for some purebred, papered calf. I know the return on the investment would be better by far, but just don't want to make that initial investment. What I'm looking for is a decent dairy cow for home dairy needs only and the occasionaly beef from her offspring. I was merely stating that I was very open to crosses, which I see around here for much lower prices. The jersey just wasn't for us (she was going to be one of the bigger size jerseys if you go by her parents) and she was only 5 months old. I was thinking (hoping) that a Dexter cross would be smaller.
We are new to cattle, but have been raising goats for awhile. I have left my kids on their dams and liked the production I still got. Are cattle that much different in this regard?
The Jersey we had was not bottle fed, but came around very quickly with just a little handling - if I have a tame mother, won't the calf be able to be messed with and tamed as well?

[tinknal]

I've grafted calves onto both dairy and beef breeds. In my experience it is much easier to graft a calf onto a dairy cow than a beef cow. A dairy cow just doesn't care as much about who milks her, as long as she is getting milked.

[springvalley]

Originally Posted by tinknal

I've grafted calves onto both dairy and beef breeds. In my experience it is much easier to graft a calf onto a dairy cow than a beef cow. A dairy cow just doesn't care as much about who milks her, as long as she is getting milked.

I`ll second this Tink, dairy cows are much easier. And as far as a cheap cow, there still is no such thing, if it is cheap it probably belongs in the packer pen at the sale barn. Even cull cows bring good money around here, so if they are a good milk cow they will cost you some money. I have full sized jersey`s and love them, the smaller the cow you have the lower you have to go to the ground to milk. I`m a taller guy, so I don`t like to be on the ground to milk a cow. Cross cows are just fine, if that will do ya just find a good cow and buy her. A brown swiss cross is still going to be a big cow, my daughter has a jersey/swiss cross, and she is the tallest cow in the barn, but she is also SOOOOOOOO quite. Just find a good cow, don`t let the breed sway you, quite, healthy,sound, 4 good quarters, and Quite(did I say that) go for good quality and turn on your color blinders. If you have pigs they will also drink a lot of extra milk, trust me you won`t have any go to waste. Raw milk is also a good fertilizer for hay and pastures ground, so keep that in mind. Hope this helps some. > God Bless America > Thanks Marc