We're Open!

We're Open!

There's no question about what will happen down on the dairy farm

when inclement weather shuts down the  normal activities of our community.

Bundled up with several layers of warm clothes and boots to give us traction on the ice,

you  will find us doing what we do every day...

feeding calves,

milking cows,

feeding cows, 

and 

                                                                 
                              taking pride in our commitment to provide high-quality milk that
                              plays a critical role in the diets of adults and children by providing
                             nine essential nutrients, including calcium,magnesium, potassium
                             and phosphorus,in addition to 48 percent of the daily value of protein.

Celebrate World Milk Day

 

Routine is part of our every day life on the dairy  farm--feeding our cows,milking the cows, feeding baby calves and all the other chores that happen in a day to take care of the land and our animals.One of my favorite dairy farm  routines is   having a new calf born on our farm.  This mama gave birth just a few hours ago and I wanted to share this 'first kiss' picture in celebration of World Milk Day!

 

Routine for this baby today includes resting in the field with her mama, a bottle of colostrum to provide antibodies to protect from disease, and a name tag placed on her ear. Tomorrow she will be taxied to the calf raising area and become part of my daily routine! You can find more information about dairy routine and what's so good about dairy at Dairy Makes Sense.  

 

Hope you're having a dairy good  Wednesday! 

Daily Care Provides Quality Milk

After feeding baby calves this morning, I went back to look at each calf that has been born since the beginning of September.  We have added twenty to our group so far and about eighty more to be born! Although we will have calves born through the year, we usually have a group of heifers to calve in the fall.  We will have a total of thirty heifers this fall.  Adding heifers to the milking herd is important to the future of our farm.  It's one of my daily jobs to feed and monitor the health of each calf when brought to the calf hutch area.  For the first eight weeks, each calf is raised in an individual hutch, fed milk and grain twice a day and monitored closely for any illness.

 

While I was checking calves, Casey was in the pasture checking on the cows and heifers that will be calving today and in the next two weeks.  Next to the calves in hutches is a group of babies that we weaned last week.  As I looked at each group, I  thought about this full cycle of growth and development of our dairy cattle.   Everyday on the farm we are taking care of our animals  through every phase of their growth by providing nutritious food, appropriate medical care and comfortable surroundings.  Caring for our animals is how we provide quality milk!

Routine Commitments

Our daily routine on the dairy farm includes milking 300 Holstein cows at seven thirty in the morning and seven thirty at night,twice a day, three hundred sixty five days a year. We are committed to providing quality milk which begins with consistent routine daily care of our dairy cows. Routine daily care includes activities such as feeding the dairy cows,milking the cows and making sure the cows are comfortable. The word routine might sound dull and boring but I can tell you that when working with cows, there is never a dull moment. In everyday's schedule we must have flexibility to deal with the unplanned events such as delivery of a calf,repairing equipment, mending fences,or driving to town for an item that we didn't plan on needing. The intense heat that we have had in this past week also adds increased monitoring of the water supply and comfort of the cows.

As I walked back to the house tonight from a trip to the dairy barn before the evening milking, I noticed about half of the first herd of cows were already standing at the gate, ready to enter the parlor to be milked. Cows are very much creatures of habit and when time to be milked, you will often find the same cows at the head of the line. Routine makes the cows happy! Just like the dairy cows, I find a certain amount of comfort in following routine and schedule--it's one of the reasons I do like living on the dairy farm and working every day with my family!