Got me a new Jersey today!

Oakshire_Farm · #1 11/24/13, 09:12 PM

Today I was "given" a 4 year old Jersey today!

Here is the catch, they want a heifer calf in a year out of her and 2 gla of milk per week!

The down side........ her name......... "New Jersey" What the heck kind of name is that for a cow??? They said they had a old jersey cow and she had a jersey calf, and they called her the "New Jersey".... and it stuck. After a long texting conversation with a friend she has been renamed....... "Gertrude"

I am going to pick her up next week. They have been milking her when the need milk and leaving the calf on the rest of the time. She calved in May, so no clue what kind of production is like. But she seemed nice enough.

I lost my old Jersey 2 nights ago, she was old. 13+ years old. Has not been holding her weight, we have been talking about putting her down since last fall. She took a fall a few weeks ago, I got her up, got her in the barn for a few days. She was good to go. She went down again. I am sure if we pushed we could have got her up, but it was her time

**gone-a-milkin** · #2 11/24/13, 09:55 PM

Wow.
That is quite a trade.
Do they have her bred back for you?
How long do you need to give them milk?
At what age will you give them the calf?
What if it is a bull?
What if something goes wrong?

I wouldn't say they are 'giving' you this cow, that is for sure!

I have so many questions. That is the tip of the iceberg.

Sorry to hear about your old lady cow.

Good luck and keep us posted.

coonhunter · #3 11/24/13, 11:43 PM

"I wouldn't say they are 'giving' you this cow, that is for sure!"

I wouldn't either. That's over $500.00 a year just in milk.

Oakshire_Farm · #4 11/25/13, 12:28 AM

I have a dexter bull and 3 other Jerseys, so it does not have to be a heifer out of this cow. They will get the calf once it is weaned, so 3 or 4 months. I know it is not really a "free" cow, but I have to milk the cows every day and the extra milk will go back to them. She is not bred back, they had a 6 month old dexter bull over to visit, but he did not have a hope in "reaching" they said he tried for 2 cycles.

Coonhunter, what does raw milk sell for in your area??? Here is is illegal as heck, but sells for $12/gal. or the milk shares in the area, go for $50/month, for 1gal/week. So quite a bit for that So that would be $100/month. So much more that $500/year. But to me it is worth it.

G. Seddon · #5 11/25/13, 05:55 AM

A 6-mo. old Dexter bull CALF? Well of course he couldn't breed her...yet!

I'm glad you think this deal is worth it to you, but it sounds to me as if you have all the work in addition to all the risk.

coonhunter · #6 11/25/13, 08:03 AM

Raw milk $5.00 and up here. I used the bottom end.

Freeholder · #7 11/30/13, 08:39 PM

I'm raising a Jersey bottle-calf, and will probably do a similar deal with her when she freshens in a couple of years. I have goats to milk, and prefer to drink goat milk, but want some Jersey cream for butter. I have friends who are also close neighbors, and have six children, and the dad was raised on a dairy farm (and they used to have a goat and the older kids know how to milk). So what I'm hoping to do when Rosabelle freshens is pass her over to them in exchange for a couple of gallons of hind-milk each week. I'll also help with her feed, by buying a ton or two of her hay each year, though. In the meantime, I'm enjoying my big baby, LOL! My dad and Grandpa had a dairy farm for a while when I was young, but I've only had goats for most of my adult life; Rosabelle is my first cow.

Kathleen

haypoint · #8 12/01/13, 09:33 AM

How can you supply them a heifer next year? If she has a bull, do they take that or are you obligated on giving them her calf two years from now? What happen if you fail to keep her milked twice a day and she gets mastitis? Your "deal" is based on everything going right and it never does. You need a written agreement, with all the possibilities spelled out. Cash up front is often a better deal.

Oakshire_Farm · #9 12/02/13, 10:00 PM

Well the deal fell through...... I called him saturday afternoon to arrange pick up time for sunday morning and he changed his mind.........

Kinda jerked my chain! I was counting on having the extra milk, I just got a call from a guy I raise calves for, he needs 5 weaned holstein steers in april.....

So now I have to chose plan B or plan C

"Plan B" - I know of a woman that has a 7 year old Jersey, bred to a short horn bull, due in January $600. She has been machine milked, but is not a big producer. Her calf will be a nice freezer calf for fall 2015.

"Plan C" - Pick up a cull dairy cow, my husband works on a dairy, get a cow that is not producing up to "dairy" standards. Bring her home milk her till either calves are weaned or till my holstein calves in feb and either keep 2 holstiens or butcher her and grind her into hamburger and sell it all. Holstein cull cows go for about $500 here, I can sell burger for $5.00/lb..... if I can get 400lbs of burger off her I can come out ahead, and have milk for the calves.

Spamela · #10 12/03/13, 03:13 AM

I don't know if it is just me but I would go with the jersey. 600$ sounds like a fair deal and you'll get a nice calf out of her. There are a lot of unknowns with a cull. My two cents

Oakshire_Farm · #11 12/03/13, 04:11 PM

The "cull" would be coming from the farm my husband works on, so there would not be any true "unknowns" I was talking to his boss. She said she would go through the herd and see if she had anything that would work for me. I would never consider going to a auction and picking up a cull. I know most of the dairys in our area (there are LOTS) and I trust all the farmers. They are where I get my bull calves from. All are great about not letting sick calves go, they all get a great start! And are usually free or up to $50.