frustratedearthmother
Sustainability Master
Thanks so much for the pics! I love how 'superman' is on duty, lol!
Barefoothavens Journey - Everything Starts Somewhere.
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goatgurl
Almost Self-Reliant
just found your thread. what a lovely place you have! and an adorable 3 year old, I'm so glad he is feeling better. thanks for all the pictures, boy what a difference youall have made in a few short years.
rhoda_bruce
Almost Self-Reliant
I've never been to New Zealand but I lived in Lakes Entrance, Vic when I was really little. I'm a bit ignorant about the tribal issues....I would have just thought you were somehow just very dark complected, which could be explained any number of ways. Very cute children and very no-nonsense approach to self-sufficiency. Welcome to SS.
Denim Deb
More Precious than Rubies
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Congrats on getting the milking done!
Mini Horses
Sustainability Master
Glad DS is doing well enough to keep watch of the cow.
Good job for him!
Pepper is a lovely girl....but, we need pics of the calf, too. Do you bottle the calf or share time with cow & milk 1X day? Always wanted my own milk cow -- still do!! I love to do butter & it's great from cow milk. But, being only one here to use it all, I have milk goats. Great milk!! 1-1.5 gal day from one is a lot for me to use. Can't imagine what I'd do with the amount a cow gives.
Guess I will find out soon as 3 goats kid late Jan & 2 more in Feb. I make cheese, yogurt and use some for animal feeds. Have made butter but need to buy a separater to get enough cream at one time to make it worth the effort. Procrastinating because they are expensive but, feel it will be purchased very soon now.
Good job for him!Pepper is a lovely girl....but, we need pics of the calf, too. Do you bottle the calf or share time with cow & milk 1X day? Always wanted my own milk cow -- still do!! I love to do butter & it's great from cow milk. But, being only one here to use it all, I have milk goats. Great milk!! 1-1.5 gal day from one is a lot for me to use. Can't imagine what I'd do with the amount a cow gives.
Guess I will find out soon as 3 goats kid late Jan & 2 more in Feb. I make cheese, yogurt and use some for animal feeds. Have made butter but need to buy a separater to get enough cream at one time to make it worth the effort. Procrastinating because they are expensive but, feel it will be purchased very soon now.
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barefoothaven
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barefoothaven
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Thanks rhoda_bruce. Yes, our boys are handsome but I'm their mum so of course I'd say that lol.
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barefoothaven
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Glad DS is doing well enough to keep watch of the cow.
Pepper is a lovely girl....but, we need pics of the calf, too. Do you bottle the calf or share time with cow & milk 1X day? Always wanted my own milk cow -- still do!! I love to do butter & it's great from cow milk. But, being only one here to use it all, I have milk goats. Great milk!! 1-1.5 gal day from one is a lot for me to use. Can't imagine what I'd do with the amount a cow gives.
Guess I will find out soon as 3 goats kid late Jan & 2 more in Feb. I make cheese, yogurt and use some for animal feeds. Have made butter but need to buy a separater to get enough cream at one time to make it worth the effort. Procrastinating because they are expensive but, feel it will be purchased very soon now.
Thanks Mini Horses
Peppers calf was separated from her a few days after calving. Our neighbours who gave us Pepper kept the calf.
I milk her once a day around 10am. But she got mastitis in one udder not long after we got her home so I was hand milking that one twice a day till clear. And still am as that udder is a bit slower than the others.
She gives around 12-13 Litres of milk per day at the moment. She should get to the 15 Litres a day mark soon.
I use to have a lead on her halter when I fetched her in to her stanchion/stall but now she runs straight out the paddock when I go to get her, & into her stall (she gets oats in her feed bin during milking) lol.
I have always wanted milk goats too! Maybe one day.
I am considering buying a cream separator also. Yes, they are rather costly but well worth it I think.
That was one of the reason we got a milk cow, so we could make our own butter & cheese & just have fresh milk.
New Zealand is a HUGE dairy country. Most of our dairy gets shipped over seas. But we are still charged ridiculous prices for butter & cheese.
One day in the supermarket I saw a New Zealand companies butter at $7 for a pound. The cheapest is an average of around $4 a pound.
And 1 kilogram of cheese is around $9-10 at the moment.... Mad, mad, crazy!
So this & just having a healthier, fresher, product is what's pushing me towards making our own..... It's very exciting
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barefoothaven
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Thanks Deb... Yea, I'm actually milking a cow lol.
sumi
Rest in Peace 1980-2020
Pepper looks like a sweetheart! I worked on a dairy farm in my teens, weekends and holidays. My first weekend there, I watched a calf being born. What a wonderful experience! 
The actual milking was fun for me, even if the cows were a bit otherwise somedays… I never did get the hang of milking by hand though.
Reading your posts here made me think about cows and maybe getting one when I'm in the position to. Are they o.k. by themselves?
The actual milking was fun for me, even if the cows were a bit otherwise somedays… I never did get the hang of milking by hand though. Reading your posts here made me think about cows and maybe getting one when I'm in the position to. Are they o.k. by themselves?
