Latestarter's ramblings/musings/gripes and grumbles.

[Devonviolet]

I don't think the syringe size will work as Dot has sausage teats that are quite a bit bigger than the syringe

I was going to comment on this & forgot . .

The syringe looks smaller than the teat on both our girls too. The teat is smaller at the bottom, so get the syringe as high on the teat as you can. I find if I twist, as I push it up, it goes further. Once you turn the pump on, the suction will pull the teat further into the syringe.

I think we discussed this before. But, as a reminder . . . only leave the pump on long enough to get the milk flowing, then let go of the button. When the flow slows down, turn the pump back on, for 6-10 seconds. Just long enough to get a good milk stream. Then let go, until the stream slows down. This helps prevent damage to the teat.

 

[Mike CHS]

Gemplers carries a foam filled tire that I keep meaning to check into but the only time I think about it is when I need to put air in one of my mower tires.

http://www.gemplers.com/shop/tires#flatfree

 

[CntryBoy777]

Ya doung okay over there Joe?....been a while since ya posted, so just checking on how ya are doing....

 

[greybeard]

So I got 1/2 the remaining back pasture done/mowed today before I got another leak in a rear tire... 3rd time this has happened...

Slime, TireJect, or it's equivalent . Everything I have except my highway vehicles has Slime in the tires. They have it for tube and tubeless tires now.

 

[Latestarter]

Well @Devonviolet that syringe is definitely not going to work... It's way too small a diameter and I'm pretty sure I'd hurt her or damage her teats if I tried to force them into it. Next time we get together I'll return the kit. I really appreciate & thank you for your thoughts, consideration & effort. She has such nice teats and orifices and milks out so easily, that it's really not much of a chore to do. Maybe I'll count squirts on each side to see how many it takes to empty her. One side has a thicker stream than the other, but they both flow really well. If I thought I could trust her to not put her hoof in the bucket, I'd milk 2 handed... I really believe I could do it now as I milk equally well with either hand.

Thanks Mike, I don't think I want to spend the $$ required to replace all the tires right now... The plug kit is quite a bit cheaper. But I did bookmark the site.

Thanks GB... I didn't really want to put stuff inside the tires, but I'm getting tired of having to plug them. I'll look for slime and use it on all 4 of the lawn tractor on the next puncture. How do you know how much to put in each tire? Does it say on the can (I hope/expect)? Will one can do all 4 tires on the lawn tractor? Guess I'll read the can when I find it. I have one of those gauge tire chucks for my compressor and the "latch" works perfectly on vehicle tire valves but for some reason it will not seat/seal on the tractor valves... Either the threaded area is too short or something else I can't figure out. If I physically force it against the valve and hold it, I can get enough pressure in the tires to ride on them, but the pressure is not what's ideal/required. most of the air pressure escapes around the chuck and doesn't go in the tire. I need to get a different style/type compressor chuck, without the gauge, just real basic, and hopefully it will work.

Hey Cntryboy. Yup, doing OK. Just haven't had a reason to come on. Nothing of any real value to contribute. As you know, there's plenty of other things that need doing.

So I was out milking Dot this morning and CC decided I would make a nice spring board... I was down on one knee and the next thing I knew I had a baby goat dancing on my upper back, neck, and shoulders. Glad she didn't decide to try for a head mount. This went on several times before I was able to block her so I could finish milking in relative peace. Needless to say, that T-shirt went directly into the laundry pile upon house reentry... It had many little poop hoof prints all over it. She tried again this evening but I was on to her & as soon as she started looking and preparing for her leap. I blocked her and she didn't try any further. Glad, since I was wearing fresh clean jeans and T-shirt. Got pretty sweaty earlier working outside with the chain saw.

An advantage to living out in the middle of nowhere and not visible to neighbors (unless they want to walk through the woods 500' down the fence line to spy), is being able to strip down and hose off outside and not have to bring all that nastiness inside the house. Really like that the hose water starts out warm and then switches over to cool. At least (and I'm glad) I don't have carpeting except in the bedrooms. That does make for much less mess. Wish I had a swimming/fishing pond on the property, then I would use that instead of the hose.

Happy dad's day to all you dads out there. Hope you have an enjoyable and relaxing day.

 

[Bruce]

I've wondered before so I'll ask now. Is there some reason people don't tie down the back feet of a "nervous" doe for milking so they don't step in/kick over the bucket?

I have a generic "ball foot" tire chuck for my compressor. It doesn't screw/latch on, nor does it have a gauge; you just push and hold. I overfill a tad, then use my "gauge on a hose with release valve" to bring it back down (same as I do with my car tires). I think the tires are only supposed to be something like 12 PSI.

 

[frustratedearthmother]

I've done that while training does. With my gals I usually don't have to do it more than a week - if that long.

 

[CntryBoy777]

Good to Hear from ya....glad things are goung Good their, and I sure know about the things to do....and if ya ain't doing them, they ain't getting done....now, I have a bunch of "Projects" I have been waiting to get on...I just have .to Get on....
That's great that your hands are beginning to work for ya, instead of grief.....don't forget about us here, tho....Knowing ya are Breathing is one less thing to be concerned with amongst all our "Doings".....

 

[Latestarter]

The problem is flies... they land on her hocks and the natural result is the leg lift to "kick them off". If she were moving around it wouldn't be an issue. But since she has to stand still, we both have to deal with the fly issue. She's not kicking about the milking. She has no issue whatever with me milking her and in fact most milking times she's waiting for me to take her over to the fence where I attach her and do the milking. She doesn't get grained while I milk either. She stands there very nicely and coughs up some cud and chews away while I milk. But if the flies are thick and landing on her legs, that's when the stomping and kicking comes into play. I'd spray the whole area for flies, but don't want to poison the area as they lie down there, their hay is there, & I also don't want to poison the goats, or the milk that I drink...

 

[CntryBoy777]

Something that has helped mine with the flies is dusting them with DE. Ya can put it in their sleeping area and where they lay, too. It will kill the larvae and will lessen the amount landing on them.....tho, not all. Ya do have to do it regularly if ya get rain, but if it is dry it will continue to work. It kills mites, fleas, ticks, also.