Cow Pride

It is impossible to party during June Dairy Month without bringing recognition to the heart of our dairy story---our cows! We milk a total of 300 cows twice daily every day of the year. Our herd consists of Holstein dairy cows ,one Guernsey and three Ayrshire. Our cows are the present and future of our farm. We respect them for what they provide for us and we work diligently everyday to provide nutritious feed,clean water, and comfortable surroundings. I enjoy watching the growth and development of each animal that we raise from calf to milking cow.

There are actually six different breeds of dairy cattle: Ayrshire,Brown Swiss,Guernsey, Jersey,Holstein, and Milking Shorthorn. Each breed was developed in its own country and brought to America. You can find more information about each breed at http://www.dairyfarmingtoday.org/.

Here are some interesting general facts about dairy cows:

• the average cow weighs 1400 pounds
  


• live to be about 18 years old; a normal production life for a Holstein is around 6 years



• a newborn calf weighs 90 pounds and walks on its own one hour from birth



• spend an average of 6 hours each day eating and an additional eight hours ruminating or chewing their cud
  


• most chew at least 50 times per minute
  


• graze by curling their tongues around grass and pulling rather than nibbling like a horse does
  


• have 4 stomach compartments and consume 90 pounds of feed everyday
  


• drink the equivalent of a bathtub full of water each day
  


• sleep lying down--just like people
  


• have an acute sense of smell--can smell something up to 6 miles away

June Dairy Month is the perfect time to celebrate our product and the commitment of America's dairy farm families working everyday to provide high quality milk by taking good care of our cows!