rachels.haven's Journal

[farmerjan]

Good confirmation is great, perfect type and udder a joy to look at... and if they have the disposition of a witch, totally USELESS....
The old type guernsey was a raw boned coarse looking cow... and many had dispositions of a saint... used for kids to ride on, went to and from pastures down the road when the kids took them out to graze.. many pulled a plow as double duty... bred and calved and lived for years and years.... and today's animal is refined, frail, beautiful "dairyish" and half won't breed, have mediocre dispositions, don't last but a couple lactations.....
Yep, give me a good old fashioned RELIABLE PAL/BUDDY any day....

 

[Baymule]

I like pals and buddies.

 

[Ridgetop]

Hey, ADGA 2024 Lamancha grand champion and reserve grand champion ARE dairy this year. They are Rockin' CB goats.

Cindy at Rockin' CB does a lot of cross breeding with Judy Hoy at Lucky Star. Years ago they used several beautiful bucks from the Quixote herd. We had a Quixote buck that threw beautiful udders. I think Quixote has retired. Both Cindy and Judy are big on star milkers and production so theybreed for perfect udders that will hold up. Your Lucky Star bucks may be developing udders partially from the extreme milkiness of their pedigrees.

You could call Judy Hoy and ask her opinion on what is causing these bucks to develop udders.

 

[rachels.haven]

You could call Judy Hoy and ask her opinion on what is causing these bucks to develop udders.

I guess I could try-at least an email. The worst she could do is ignore me. Thanks!

 

[Baymule]

Never know until you try!

 

[Ridgetop]

Judy is very nice. She will be happy to help you.

 

[Ridgetop]

Whatever happened with your well water situation?

 

[rachels.haven]

Whatever happened with your well water situation?

We're waiting to see how long the string filter to the UV sterilizer lasts before the water starts coloring up again. We are also waiting on test results to show that the sterilizer is in fact sterilizing. It's pretty obvious that our well casing is rusted out and compromised and letting in coliform bacteria and clay. We're trying to figure out when we should replace the well and not if.
Currently DH needs a car, truck needs repaired or replaced, roof needs replaced, we need a carport/garage and the fencing on the pasture is getting replaced in September AND the other house needs to sell. We're trying to dam off the expenses until it does.

 

[rachels.haven]

Judy is very nice. She will be happy to help you.

Don got back to me. He says I'm feeding my buck the way they feed their bucks and if I have doubts I can get a mineral panel run. Also that many of Pete's male relatives milked, so it's not a surprise he does too and if it gets big enough to interfere with breeding that I should milk him out in the fall before it's time to work. So I'll keep an eye on Pete, and keep feeding him alfalfa and a grain ration. And in another month or two of being here and settling in I can do a mineral panel.

It's funny he mentioned minerals. My big bucks make it their business to dump and destroy any mineral feeder I put out so they don't get any, which drives me crazy! I guess I'll start thinking about that again and try to design something indestructible to a 240 lbs animal with hormones and time on its...hooves...head/scurs? They aren't quite big enough for a bull mineral feeder, but anything attached to the walls gets ground off. And in the mean time I'll probably get a big bucket of minerals and dump them on the ground in a less used corner in their shelter to lick up because they can't destroy the ground (I hope). Or I might get bold and try one of those really solid flat mineral feeding bowls and hope they don't toss or flip and stomp them too soon. Good thing minerals are cheap...comparatively speaking.

 

[SageHill]

We're waiting to see how long the string filter to the UV sterilizer lasts before the water starts coloring up again. We are also waiting on test results to show that the sterilizer is in fact sterilizing. It's pretty obvious that our well casing is rusted out and compromised and letting in coliform bacteria and clay. We're trying to figure out when we should replace the well and not if.
Currently DH needs a car, truck needs repaired or replaced, roof needs replaced, we need a carport/garage and the fencing on the pasture is getting replaced in September AND the other house needs to sell. We're trying to dam off the expenses until it does.

When we moved out here to CA back in 89 we had two houses for 6 mos?? or more?? Same time of year too. Suffered through on bad realtor listing and got out of that as soon as we could and switched to someone we knew actually worked at promoting and selling houses.
Finger crossed your house sells fast, I know how that feels.