Partial milking?

[bbmuddywolf]

Hello. New member here and new dexter owner looking for some guidance. I have a 2 year old cow who calved her first calf 2 weeks ago. I bought her with the intent of sharing milk with her calf. I have read numerous times to separate them for 12 hrs prior to milking and then to make sure I milk her out before putting her and her calf back together. Would there be any issue if I was to just milk out a cup or two per day without having them separated first?

[Ironwood Farm]

I had my first cow calve last summer. I was able to get a little milk while the calf was with his dam 24/7, but as the calf grew, my portion became less! At 6 weeks I separated them overnight, milked in the morning, and the let them be together all day. This way I was only milking once a day. My cow was not a big producer, and her calf was big (a Jersey cross bull calf) and so I never got the 'gallons a day' that other people have: Maximum was 1 3/4 qts. But she was a first timer and so was I, and she was really good at holding back for her baby! I ended up stopping milking when the calf was about 5 months old as the 2cups I was getting a day was not worth the effort.

I'm looking forward to my cow calving again late July. I'm hoping for increased milk amounts! I really enjoy milking and, of course, that delicious milk! Good luck!!

[kansasdexters]

bbmuddywolf - it depends on the cow and the timing of when you want to milk her. Cows do best on a regular schedule, and with a known routine. When you milk a cow, in order to get to a majority of the cream, you have to completely milk out a quarter, since most of the cream comes out last. Sometimes a calf prefers one side or the other and you need to milk out the quarters that the calf is neglecting, to keep the cow's udder balanced and refreshed each day. We have a 2nd time calver that was milked during her 1st lactation on a daily basis and now that she has just freshened with her 2nd calf, she is so full each morning that we have to milk her out every day, until her new calf starts to catch up with the supply.

Patti

[bbmuddywolf]

I would assume that the 12 hour separation of cow and calf is simply to allow her utter to fill up. If I milk her out completely once s day---probably would be in the morning--how long would it take her to produce more milk for the calf since he would have been 12 hrs with nothing?

[zephyrhillsusan]

bbmuddywolf, you could just leave two quarters for the calf right now, especially as it's so young. That way you don't have to worry about the calf going without. Once he's older and eating well, you could milk her out. She'll still hold up the cream for her calf, so he won't go hungry when he goes back to mama.

[bbmuddywolf]

Thanks so much for the help. I had noticed that the calf seems to prefer to nurse from the front two teats as the back ones always feel considerably fuller when I bring them in ar the end of the day. I will try and look after the back two for now.