Here I sit, drinking milk that is less than 5 hours old! :) Four days ago, we became the proud owners of this 2 year old Jersey! Besides the learning curve of how to pasteurize without completely cooking the milk, everything has gone amazingly smoothly. I asked the Lord to help us pick an animal that would be a good fit with us, and I am thankful for what I feel was His choice. In one day, Annabelle went from being driven along with a herd on a dairy, to being led on a halter rope and tethered in a pasture. By the second day with us, she learned how to get her tether rope untangled from around her hooves, and began nudging her new-found masters for treats in our pockets. :) Only once, so far, has my knot not been snug enough on her tether. I looked up to find her not where I left her; she decided that lawn is much lusher than pasture! :) Some have asked about the time comittment that she adds to already busy days...but consider this...If I had a horse, I would feel bad about daily saying to my children, "sit here on the swing set, I am going to go riding". However, she has to be milked, so other things just have to wait. A lot of good thinking and singing and praying can happen in a 20-30 min. milking session, where all is quiet exept the zing of the milk into the pail, Annabelle's rythmic chewing and the occasional ruccus of a young chicken that can't find his place on the perch. Sure, there are times when Daniel needs a nap and I'd rather be finished, or when I missjuge how long I need and we are late to be somewhere... and she just WILL NOT be hurried...but for the most part, it's not really so much an added chore but an added activity, and a pleasant one at that! :)
3 comments:
She is so-o Beautiful! Alesha, It sounds like the extra time needed in milking Annabelle will be a joy for you and perhaps a "moment" in the day just for you! Not to mention the wonderful healthy milk addition for the whole family.
Congratulations on the new additon to your family!
Mom B....and Granny B!
She is beautiful and I love her name! In a little while you'll be able to assign the milking to kids. How many times do you have to milk her? Does her production fluctuate to meet demand (similar to us? =) ) Does she have a "max"? Fresh milk! I'm so envious!
Beck, up to a point, her milk production fluctuates to meet demand...though she will adjust her milk supply according to how much protein is in her diet. Though some large dairies milk 3 times per day, and a cow can be "weaned" down to 1 milking per day, we choose to milk morning and evening. From the reading we've done, it seems that it is better for her to always milk her completely dry, and adjust the amount of milk you want by the number of milkings and her diet, instead of just milking some of what she has at a given time. Also, since the cream comes last, (like us, so I've been told. :), we want to milk her out all the way each time.
She is really a sweetheart, and has been a lot of fun! We've had some trouble getting the cream to separate...especially if the milk is already pasteurized...so tonight I am letting it separate raw and will pasteurize it later to see if that helps any. The mental game of learning something new has been almost as fun as the creature herself...though slobbery cow kisses are fun! :)
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