Buying a Jersey Cow/or Calf.... What should I look for what to avoid?

[DoubleTake]

Hello!

I am New the forum but been on BackyardChicken for couple of years! So I know that there are lots of wonderful people out there with way more knowledge than me!! So I need help and advice!

I would like to get a milk cow and I have already researched and decided on a Jersey.. But having never owned a cow and the nearest thing I have done with cows is tried to rope them as a kid... Not real smart but nevertheless fun!

So what is your advice.. Should I get a calf or an old cow that is already used to being milked?? What are the pros to getting a calf?? If I get a calf what age is best?? What should I look for in a calf other then 4 teats! Does anyone know of a good Jersey breeder in Idaho or even Montana/Washington bordering Idaho? I have five acres fenced in and working on the barn should have it covered by October.. But will have a small loafing shed also. My father and my grandparents raised beef cattle years ago when he was in his teens (FFA ect) so I have someone to help me once I get a cow/calf but he doesn't know as much about the Dairy aspect.. Any other questions I should have??

Thanks for all the soon to be help!!

edited for bad spelling..

 

[WildRoseBeef]

You have a much higher risk of losing a bottle calf than you do with a dairy cull cow you can buy. Bottle babies take a lot of work and time to raise, because they need to be fed milk once every 2 to 4 hours, made sure they are healthy, etc. BUT, if you are getting a calf that has been weaned from the bottle (which would be at least 3 months of age), you just have to make sure she has feed (hay, pasture, grain, etc.), water, shelter, an adequate fence to keep her in, and ad-lib access to mineral. With cows, you also have to make sure she as access to the previous, as well as making sure she is milked once or twice a day. Keep in mind that with weaned heifers, you have to make sure they reach an adequate age and weight in order for them to be bred, and once bred, have to wait 9 months or so in order to have a calf before you can get some milk out of her. That's 27 months of waiting (24 if you get her at 6 months of age) before you get any milk. Heifers can also be a pain with breeding and calving too, because of their inexperience. With a cow, on the other hand, you just have to make sure she gets bred once a year so she keeps producing milk, and often you will be able to get milk right away as soon as you get her home, not having to wait over 2 years to get it.

IMHO, you might be better off getting an older cow than starting with a calf.

 

[DoubleTake]

Thanks Karin!

 

[Ariel301]

Some other things to consider:

A calf can be pretty inexpensive, while an experienced cow already in milk or getting ready to calve could cost quite a bit. With the calf, you've got a good long wait to get milk though, while you can start milking the cow right away. So you have to consider what is within your budget and how long you are willing to wait.

If you are getting an adult dairy cow that was "culled" from someone else's herd or a dairy farm, there is a reason they are selling it. Find out what it is. We thought we got a super good deal on an older goat from a dairy farm...turned out she had chronic mastitis in half her udder and could only be milked on one side.

If you are buying a milking cow, try milking it yourself before committing. You don't want to get her home and find out she's hard to catch and then kicks you whenever you touch her udder!

 

[clarmayfarm]

Hi there,

If you are buying a cow, then you know that she is a breeder and milker. Many heifer calves (dairy) in the market are freemartins - twins to a bull, and infertile. So make sure if you get a calf, you get it off the farm from someone you know.

As to a cow, work with a local dairy farmer. On our farm, we often have a wonderful, even pet, cows who no longer milk as well as others, or may have foot problems from being on concrete, or she may even be bred and ultrasounded with a bull calf. We like to find a home for these cows where they can be cared for. Less milk is often good for a family cow, some cows easily give 60-80 lb each day in peak lactation. Foot problems become much better when the cow is on pasture.

Make certain that the cow has no serious mastitis problems, you don't want to drink that! Also make certain that if she is more than 6 months fresh, she is bred or pregnant for the next calf. You dont want someones reproductive problems either!

Bottom line, buy from a farm, not a sale.

 

[hollybird]

i agree to buy from a farm before the auction sale. Every cow that has been in a harsh production farm will have a different personality and shorter life span. raising a bottle baby is a lot of work but your cow will be easier to work with all the rest of her years. Jersey cows can be very sweet or very angry depending on their past. Feel all four quarters and look for hobble marks on the legs.

 

[animalfarm]

I have 3 jerseys all from from dairy barns. Avoid the auctions thats where the worst cases end up. There are many reasons why they are culled from a dairy but the most prevalent are mastitis, burned out (older, lowered milk production), high somatic cell count, leg and feet problems and fertility issues. If a dairy barn is willing to sell a heifer calf, I would have to wonder what the problem is.

Mastitis cases usually end up at the auction as opposed to private sale and by default so do the most of the high somatic cell count cases.

2 of my girls were in the burned out category which means they simply don't produce a boat load of milk any more so you need to have an idea of how much milk you want on a daily basis. I let my cows keep their calves and I am able to get a gallon a day for myself for about 4-5 months. Once I am getting less then 2qt a day I just let the calf have her and by that time another cow is on line. A burned out cow may not produce milk as long as a dairy needs her to. I don't have a bottom line to worry about so I don't care and I want my cows to have 3 months down time between calves.

The 3 rd cow was only 3 yrs old and giving huge amounts of milk, but her teats were extremely large and the milk release too hard for the machines to work and she developed blockages ect. from not being milked correctly. Now I hand milk so she suited me just fine once we got things unstopped and she learned that milking didn't need to be painful. My only complaint is a lingering case of "milking elbow" and what do I do with 6 gal of milk a day and since she didn't come with a calf, I have to milk 2x a day.

I recommend a cow as opposed to a calf because there is little or no training to be done, and the cows personality is evident. Jerseys can be a bit excitable sometimes but they are still very sociable cows. The main thing to watch for from a former dairy barn cow is that they are very claustrophobic
and they don't like being locked up. I find that simply tying them for milking with a very loose chain attached to a collar so that they can move their heads makes them much happier. Also, the first time they get to keep their calves they are very afraid of losing them so they can be a bit neurotic but the second year they trust the system and relax so milking becomes even easier.

 

[aggieterpkatie]

Depending on what you're looking for, a "cull" cow from a dairy can be quite a good buy. Some are culled for low production, but depending on how much milk you want, "low production" for a commercial dairy might still be more milk than you know what to do with. Most dairies keep cows only 3-5 years, but those cows still may have many many years left if they're given a more relaxed home. Living in commercial dairies is hard on cows, and usually living as a family milk cow is much much easier on them. Maybe they're culling a cow with a blind quarter, but who cares if you're just looking for a family milk cow? I'd have no qualms about buying a cow with a blind quarter, as long as she's doesn't have chronic mastitis in her other working quarters. Maybe she didn't breed back right away, but if you're willing to be patient you could probably get her to breed back eventually. A few months of trying to breed a cow is costly for a commercial dairy, but not a big deal at all for most keeping a family cow.

The main thing is to tell the seller exactly what you're looking for. Hopefully you'll find an honest seller that will tell you the truth about the animal he/she is selling.