Calf-Sharing. Once a Day Milking!

Owning a dairy cow doesn't have to be as complicated and time consuming as you might think. Having to milk twice a day, every 12 hours, is exhausting (we speak from experience with goats) this is an issue that turns a lot of people away from the idea of owning a family milk cow. People do not like feeling tied down and having to live their life within those 12 hours between milkings. So how can you 'have a life' and still own a family milk cow?

Here is how we do calf sharing and once a day milking. We have been doing it this way ever since we first got our dairy cow as a heifer and it is so much simpler.

When our cow had her calf we left them together and let them bond. This way Mama cow could raise her own baby without us interfering. This also saves us the headache of trying to bottle feed and raise a calf.

The first 3-5 days the mama cow will be producing colostrum for her baby. It is very important for the calf to get as much of the colostrum as possible. We try to wait to start milking her as long as possible. However, with our Jersey cow, she produces way more than what her little calf can drink and will start leaking. This could lead to infection in her udder if she is laying around in the mud or dirt. So, we normally have to start milking her the second or third day to give her some relief.

You can drink colostrum! Because of the abundant supply of nutrients and proteins in colostrum it has many health benefits for you to drink including: immune function, gut health, and skin health.

Locking the Calf Away From Mama Cow.

We generally don't lock the calf up until we notice it is drinking more and more milk and there is less milk for us when we milk. This past freshening we didn't have to lock the calf up until he was almost 2 month old! When we first start locking the calf away we only do it for 6-8 hours and slowly work our way up to 12 hours. This way it is not such a sudden change for both calf and cow. When it comes time to start locking the calf away make sure the calf has plenty of water and hay. Even when they are very young a calf will start to nibble on hay. You may also chose to supplement the calf with calf-starter, although it is not necessary. Our calves never showed much interest in it so we give the calf a handful of grass or alfalfa pellets as a treat to get him into his pen to be locked up for the night. We lock the calf away during the night. They mostly sleep at night so it is less stressful on the calf.

A calf can be weaned at 6 months of age. This doesn't mean you have to panic and start milking twice a day. The cow will adjust to how much milk she has to produce. The more you milk the more she will produce. The less you milk the less she will produce. When it comes time to wean start locking the calf up earlier and earlier and still milk your cow at the same time. This way it is not such a sudden change for them.

Another benefit of calf- sharing is if you are away and know you won't be around come milking time you can just leave the calf in with it's mama and you don't have to worry about milking, the calf will do it for you.