THE TRYING & BUYING OF YOUR FIRST COW

Image Gallery PHOTOGRAPH ? M.HALMINSKI/SUPERSTOCK

Issue # 130 - February/March 1992

By Lisa Faulkner

HOT BISCUITS DRIPPING with real butter you made yourself, thick yellow cream over cereal or berries from the garden, delicious yogurt or cottage cheese that you know is pure and fresh because you've made it—with the help of your own cow, of course. Sound good to you?

It did to us. When we finally escaped from the city and settled into our homestead, we knew we wanted a cow. But having never met one face-to-face, we didn't know how to go about choosing and using a cow. And what would have been as natural as breathing to a country-raised homesteader was an unmapped area for us—as it probably is to some of you.

During the process of our cow quest we acquired information from many sources, including books, neighbors (especially those who have had intimate acquaintance with a cow), pamphlets obtained from the county agent, and, after we found her, from our cow. We hope that getting all of this information together might be a help to those of you whose dreams also include a cow.

A Cow for You

First things first. What kind of cow do you want? This question depends entirely upon the number of people in the family and the amount of milk you can feasibly process. Basically, your choice is between a smaller cow who eats less and produces less milk (but probably more than enough for the average family), and the larger breeds who eat more, cost more to feed, but who also give much larger quantities of milk. The first group consists of Jerseys and Guernseys while the second group includes Holsteins, Milking Shorthorns, Brown Swiss, and Ayrshires.

As we have a small family, we decided on either a Jersey or Guernsey. Both average around 800 to 1,000 pounds, produce milk with a high butterfat content (richer milk), and both have a reputation for being gentle and making good family cows. Being absolute greenhorns, we felt that this last point was very important as we foresaw a long future with our milk cow.

After considerable debate, we settled upon a soulful-eyed Jersey. But if you have a boisterous family or if two or more persons will be doing the milking—which can be very upsetting to a cow—you may opt for a Guernsey as they are slightly calmer.

Perhaps the main disadvantage of the above breeds is that they will not produce a top calf to raise for beef. Even when they are bred to a beef bull, their calf will never get as big as one of the other breeds, and the fat will be yellow. Yellow fat tastes the same, but some people don't like the appearance and it will affect the sale value of your calf. In our area, calves which are obviously part Guernsey or Jersey bring only half the amount that a Holstein calf will bring. Your cow will be producing a calf yearly, so think about what you're going to be doing with the "bonus."