If I milkshare with a calf...

Dusky Beauty · #1 09/08/12, 07:49 AM

... could I separate him/her from mama cow in the morning and milk her in the evening? or do I have to separate the calf at night and milk in the morning?

I think my neighbors would appreciate the nighttime quiet and I'd prefer the sleep! lol!

springvalley · #2 09/08/12, 08:08 AM

You sure can, doesn`t matter when you do it as long as you do it on a regular time period. Cows don`t care when you milk them , as long as you do. When my Father milked cows and worked off the farm. He use to milk at noon and midnight, it was a crazy time to milk, but the midnight shift is nice and peacefull, and cool in the summer. > Thanks Marc

cathleenc · #3 09/08/12, 08:18 AM

I kept the cow and calf in pens right next to each other, at night when separated. They could lean on each other touch noses but not suckle. There was very very minimal noise and only the first 2-3 nights. Both aclimated almost immediately.

I began milk sharing when the calf was 2 weeks old. I would milk mama out, have a warm bottle for the calf - feed the calf, and then reunite our cow/calf. Remember the cow won't have milk immediately if you've just emptied her and the calf is going to be really hungry and eager when very young.

My milking schedule was 10 am/ 10 pm - after I got my human kids either off to school or post-dinner off to bed. Worked great for me and wow! the night sky every night was something I'll never forget.

Dusky Beauty · #4 09/08/12, 01:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cathleenc

I kept the cow and calf in pens right next to each other, at night when separated. They could lean on each other touch noses but not suckle. There was very very minimal noise and only the first 2-3 nights. Both aclimated almost immediately.

I began milk sharing when the calf was 2 weeks old. I would milk mama out, have a warm bottle for the calf - feed the calf, and then reunite our cow/calf. Remember the cow won't have milk immediately if you've just emptied her and the calf is going to be really hungry and eager when very young.

My milking schedule was 10 am/ 10 pm - after I got my human kids either off to school or post-dinner off to bed. Worked great for me and wow! the night sky every night was something I'll never forget.

hmm the 10/10 split might work well for us. The problem with early mornings for us is that DH does evening shifts-- sometimes not even home until after 11, so the typical 5 am /6 am morning milk call would be..

After kids are on the school bus would be good.

arnie · #5 09/08/12, 08:54 PM

I'v always kept the calf in the barn and barn lot and let the cow in with the calf as I milk he gets his share and I get mine twice a day at first I get more then as time goes and he grows now I'm down to one quarter and still get a gallon a day .the calf is now over 550 pounds there has not been any incesant mooing .this is how we always milked .this method keeps the milk cow coming in for milking like clock work where she has hundreds of acres of pasture to wander in and the beef cows only come in every couple days for salt during the grazeing season the cow gets her grain or other treats in the milking stall and they both adapt to the scegule and routine .

Cliff · #6 09/08/12, 09:10 PM

You don't really want a calf locked up in the daytime long term. They should be out with their mother grazing and such.

They aren't loud at night when locked up, especially if they're close and mama knows where baby is and vice versa.

eta - maybe your husband could go out when he gets home from work and lock the calf up - then it wouldn't be locked up for all that long by the time he'd get back out to milk.

Dusky Beauty · #7 09/08/12, 10:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cliff

You don't really want a calf locked up in the daytime long term. They should be out with their mother grazing and such.

They aren't loud at night when locked up, especially if they're close and mama knows where baby is and vice versa.

eta - maybe your husband could go out when he gets home from work and lock the calf up - then it wouldn't be locked up for all that long by the time he'd get back out to milk.

Oh, I'm the one doing the milking, it's just that going to bed early in order to get up early is not in the cards due to his town job schedule.

And to elaborate, our setup is not the standard farm setup with meadows most people imagine, we are on a rural 3 acres creating a little desert oasis for ourselves. The cow pen is 125x50, still deciding where to put the next pen, or if we should just fence in a smaller portion of that pen. "The Pasture" will eventually be the 3/4 acre buffer between the road and the house, but it's gonna be some work with a backhoe to and irrigation to get it going-- its more of a long term project. I'll be keeping my stock on local alfalfa for the first year here.