| Author |
Topic |
|
|
txbikergirl
3197 Posts
|
 Posted - Nov 21 2015 : 5:01:03 PM
|
I posted this in another thread but it got lost in the mix, so thought i would see what y'all thought.
i have been watching sally the past few days and she is lifting her leg as if to kick elsa when she nurses. it isn't a lift like in the parlor where the hoof just lifts and sits down, this is up so the knee bends and she is ready to kick fullly - but elsa recognizes it and moves on to another teat or stops headbutting, and then sally puts it down for a bit. it isn't just one teat it is all four, as i was worried perhaps one had a bad cut or was sore. so after elsa has moved to the new teat, she gets a bit on it then the lift starts again and elsa moves on to the next. repeat. repeat.
is this a sign she wants to wean her, or just normal? not sure if it is new or just me finally noticing it. we only have them together once a day now for 30 minutes to nurse in late afternoon, and about 10 minutes in sally starts this... and if they are left together over 30 minutes elsa is done at 20-30 and moves to her own corral or area.
|
_(199x300)_(66x100).jpg?v 93697001) Firefly Hollow Farm , our little farmstead. Farmgirl living in the green piney woods of East Texas on 23 acres with a few jerseys, too many chickens, a pair of pugs and my Texan hubby (aka "lover boy") |
|
|
txbikergirl
3197 Posts
|
Posted - Nov 22 2015 : 11:48:22 AM
|
this morning i decided to let elsa in to nurse instead of milking sally, and to watch this process and see what was happening from the other side as previously i was always over the fence on the side opposite the calf when watching this.
sally does continue to do this with all four teats, but from the calf side i can see that she is picking her leg up high and bending at the knee and almost nudging elsa like "move on" and then holding that knee/leg there ready to nudge/kick if needed - and the moment the calf lets go to move to another teat the leg goes down and is relaxed. sometimes i can see sally just barely start to lift, but elsa recognizes it and moved on so sally relaxes and does nothing.
elsa got a good nursing on all four teats and eventually just walked away. the udder was nice and empty and looked good, and none of the teats are any more chewed since i have been managing the nursing to only let them be together for 30 minutes once a day (today will be an exception as she got in an unusual morning session).
so wondering if this is normal or if sally is getting tired of nursing and wants to start limiting it. she did seem fine nursing other than the leg raising, she was eating and seemed content. |
Firefly Hollow Farm , our little farmstead. Farmgirl living in the green piney woods of East Texas on 23 acres with a few jerseys, too many chickens, a pair of pugs and my Texan hubby (aka "lover boy") |
 |
|
|
maryjane
7074 Posts
|
Posted - Nov 23 2015 : 07:48:38 AM
|
Observing and then observing some more is what makes my cow world turn. What I appreciated about Sally O'Mally was her no-frills personality. She's an in-charge-I-mean-business kind of gal and her leg lifting seems to fit into that. Perhaps it’s time to wean. You might use the opportunity to diminish their time together to 10 minutes total to avoid all the moo-ing an abrupt change creates. Then again, her water intake may be a strong factor. Keep up the watchful eye and let us know what you decide! All of it goes into the learning pot.
Also, in the article about milk let-down that Janet found recently and I posted, the author talks about pregnancy and oxytocin. I've almost always seen a decrease in milk production once a gal is pregnant, with the amount slowly decreasing as they approach their due date, which is one of the reasons I'm not going to breed Fanci again or Eliza Belle until next summer. BTW, right now I have 31 half-gallon bottles of milk in the fridge waiting for Ashley to start a couple double batches of cheese. I'm getting 7 to 8 gallons a day from Fanci and my two minis. Yeah!
|
MaryJane Butters, author of Milk Cow Kitchen ~ striving for the stoicism of a cow standing in the rain ~ |
|
|
|
CloversMum
3486 Posts
|
Posted - Nov 29 2015 : 7:31:41 PM
|
| 7 to 8 gallons a day?? Oh. my. goodness. What a wonderful thing! And, I'm most definitely looking forward to having two milk cows here on our place some day and having the luxury of making all sorts of delicious yummies. Ashley has her work cut out, for sure! |
Loving life and family on our Idaho farm, Meadowlark Heritage Farm; A few Jersey cows; a few alpacas; a few more goats, and even more ducks and chickens |
|
|
|
txbikergirl
3197 Posts
|
Posted - Nov 30 2015 : 5:29:51 PM
|
| we've cut the nursing down to once a day for 20 minutes for now. lover boy handles this task most of the time and he uses that time to muck out so 20 minutes works for him ;> once i get back from my business trip mid December we'll start to the 10 minutes and then wean altogether. |
Firefly Hollow Farm , our little farmstead. Farmgirl living in the green piney woods of East Texas on 23 acres with a few jerseys, too many chickens, a pair of pugs and my Texan hubby (aka "lover boy") |
|
|
|
farmlife
1413 Posts
|
Posted - Nov 30 2015 : 7:50:44 PM
|
| I didn't notice Elli lift her foot to nudge Gus off when he was nursing, but she definitely seemed to have an "I'm over it." attitude as he got older. She got much less patient with him. Sometimes she would walk as she grazed and he nursed, or she would make herself less available if you will. It sounds like Miss Sally O'Malley is just a no nonsense kind of gal. She knows when she's ready to be done. |
|
|
|
CloversMum
3486 Posts
|
Posted - Dec 01 2015 : 1:20:51 PM
|
And how old is Elsa now, Cindy?
How old was Gus when Elli started weaning him, Keeley?
We are finally working out a system to limit Humble's access to Clover but he's still young. |
Loving life and family on our Idaho farm, Meadowlark Heritage Farm; A few Jersey cows; a few alpacas; a few more goats, and even more ducks and chickens |
|
|
|
txbikergirl
3197 Posts
|
Posted - Dec 01 2015 : 5:04:49 PM
|
hi charlene. miss elsa is now exactly 5.5 months. So 6 months on 12/15. I hadn't realized how big she had gotten, until she popped her head up from nursing and i was on the same side of her and momma - momma no longer towers over her! not that elsa is big, but just not a little calf any more, our little girl is growing up.
once i get back from CA we will start pushing the weaning, up to this point sally is really guiding us but once a day for 20 minutes seems to be working for her. |
Firefly Hollow Farm , our little farmstead. Farmgirl living in the green piney woods of East Texas on 23 acres with a few jerseys, too many chickens, a pair of pugs and my Texan hubby (aka "lover boy") |
|
|
|
farmlife
1413 Posts
|
Posted - Dec 01 2015 : 6:57:46 PM
|
| Gus was probably about 3 months when Elli stopped being super attentive and available for his nursing sessions. She got a pretty severe grass cut on her teat just before he turned 4 months old, so that is when we weaned him for good. She probably would have happily fed him for a while after that on a more limited basis, but we made the decision for her based on her teat health. He thought it was fun to try more than one teat at a time, etc. Really when he started messing around when nursing is when she got less patient. Since Gus refused to drink milk from a dish and was already eating hay and a little grain we went ahead and sold him. It seemed like a moot point at that time to encourage him to drink from a bottle since we were raising him to be a bull. |
|
|
|
txbikergirl
3197 Posts
|
Posted - Dec 13 2015 : 06:51:17 AM
|
we completely weaned elsa on Dec 4th, it all happened much faster than anticipated at the time of my last post above of 11/30. we could see sally becoming impatient and controlling the amount of nursing time, but she then just decided "i am done" on 12/3. so we ended up weaning on 12/4 which gave me two days before i left town for a week of work. milk increase was immediately up, of course. and cream content up too as she isn't holding back anything now. and boy those teats in just two days became softer and nicer and lovely.
what is funny is that sally almost seems more needy about elsa now - elsa HAS to be within sight of sally now or sally isn't happy. when we take 3 minutes to go from pasture to barn and back to bring elsa out to pasture with sally, sally just gets all worked up about it. but elsa frankly doesn't care. so with the weaning they have reversed roles. they are in separate paddocks and we haven't used the quiet wean nose product. |
Firefly Hollow Farm , our little farmstead. Farmgirl living in the green piney woods of East Texas on 23 acres with a few jerseys, too many chickens, a pair of pugs and my Texan hubby (aka "lover boy") |
|
|
|
CloversMum
3486 Posts
|
Posted - Dec 13 2015 : 07:37:22 AM
|
This helps! Thank you for sharing. We are definitely in the middle of weaning; however, Clover is still holding back her milk for Humble. She is seeing the benefit of not nursing as she was ready to be separated from him last night .. waiting at the gate for Ethan to put her in with Betsy. We, too, have separate areas which is nice.
Did you need to bump up to twice a day milking or are you still just milking once a day? |
Loving life and family on our Idaho farm, Meadowlark Heritage Farm; A few Jersey cows; a few alpacas; a few more goats, and even more ducks and chickens |
|
|
|
maryjane
7074 Posts
|
Posted - Dec 13 2015 : 11:03:01 AM
|
| Great news Cindy! I should add that the quiet wean only fits a calf much smaller than Elsa is now, more like a 2-4 month old calf, depending on the size. I used it on Eliza Belle when she was 4 months old. It barely fit and she's a miniature. |
MaryJane Butters, author of Milk Cow Kitchen ~ striving for the stoicism of a cow standing in the rain ~ |
|
|
|
txbikergirl
3197 Posts
|
Posted - Dec 13 2015 : 4:20:45 PM
|
charlene we are sticking with once a day milking. the milk seems to be holding steady at 1.7 - 2 gallons per day at this. we are also trying a new dairy feed add-in, slowly adding/mixing it in to the chaffhaye as sally won't eat it separately. its a soy free dairy heifer feed from a texas local mill, gmo free and organic. but we want to use it as an add in, not a full ration.
i have to admit than in the next week we have gone from morning milking, to evening milking, and back again. not ideal for a dairy cow, i know routine is tops. but lover boy can't milk in the morning so we had to move to night with my absence and then back to morning with my return. both those times we actually did milk twice per day to transition for that one day. i am sure sally will be a happy girl as yesterday she was moved back to morning milking and that is where it will stay going forward. but honestly she has been such a trooper for us, better than we deserve honestly. |
Firefly Hollow Farm , our little farmstead. Farmgirl living in the green piney woods of East Texas on 23 acres with a few jerseys, too many chickens, a pair of pugs and my Texan hubby (aka "lover boy") |
|
|
|
CloversMum
3486 Posts
|
Posted - Dec 13 2015 : 7:29:47 PM
|
It's nice to hear that others have to change milking times. Life happens. We've had to do that but now are on a regular routine ... I'm spoiled as Ethan does most of the milking but I help with cleaning everything up and making yogurt/butter/kefir with the milk.
Clover is getting chaffhaye, Modesto Mills dairy pellets, and kelp. But after talking to Ethan we realized that Clover has not had access to Redmond rock salt and not been getting dairy vitamins. That will change as of tomorrow morning. |
Loving life and family on our Idaho farm, Meadowlark Heritage Farm; A few Jersey cows; a few alpacas; a few more goats, and even more ducks and chickens |
|
|
|
txbikergirl
3197 Posts
|
Posted - Dec 14 2015 : 5:03:37 PM
|
charlene, a word of warning for when you wean we REALLY noticed an immediate need for the salt/mineral lick the moment we weaned elsa. she had NEVER shown any interest in it, and the day after we truly 100% weaned she ran to it. and then we only had them in our pastures, so each morning when we moved her from the barn to the pasture she literally ran to the lick and spent several minutes chewing and licking. so we got more licks and put them in the barn corrals so now she uses them regularly.
of course we expected her to drink and eat more once weaned, but it didn't register to me that the lick would me immediate. just another example of how mother nature has it right with feeding the little ones ;> |
Firefly Hollow Farm , our little farmstead. Farmgirl living in the green piney woods of East Texas on 23 acres with a few jerseys, too many chickens, a pair of pugs and my Texan hubby (aka "lover boy") |
|
|
|
CloversMum
3486 Posts
|
Posted - Dec 14 2015 : 5:11:03 PM
|
| Good reminder! Humble will have his own salt/mineral lick as will the rest of the cow gang. Thank you, Cindy. Another reason I so appreciate this chat room. |
Loving life and family on our Idaho farm, Meadowlark Heritage Farm; A few Jersey cows; a few alpacas; a few more goats, and even more ducks and chickens |
|
|
|
txbikergirl
3197 Posts
|
Posted - Dec 14 2015 : 5:38:30 PM
|
i know what you mean charlene, all the information on HJO is amazing. its my "go to" place for all things cow and farm. just love that not only are there so many friendly helping hands, but a database to search to satisfy any immediate needs.
not to mention just the fantastic spirit and old fashioned country feel of the place. LOVE IT!! |
Firefly Hollow Farm , our little farmstead. Farmgirl living in the green piney woods of East Texas on 23 acres with a few jerseys, too many chickens, a pair of pugs and my Texan hubby (aka "lover boy") |
|
|
|
CloversMum
3486 Posts
|
Posted - Dec 14 2015 : 9:26:51 PM
|
I was using the database just today to search again about nutrition during weaning!
Think of all the years of experience we have at our fingertips ... amazing. |
Loving life and family on our Idaho farm, Meadowlark Heritage Farm; A few Jersey cows; a few alpacas; a few more goats, and even more ducks and chickens |
|
|
|
CloversMum
3486 Posts
|
Posted - Dec 22 2015 : 9:21:56 PM
|
Humble is completely weaned and appears to be doing really great. (knock on wood!) He has a mineral lick that he shares with Tony per Cindy's recommendation above. He still calls every once in awhile for Clover but is quite content with Tony. One more first of cow experiences over and done...phew.
|
Loving life and family on our Idaho farm, Meadowlark Heritage Farm; A few Jersey cows; a few alpacas; a few more goats, and even more ducks and chickens |
|
|
|
maryjane
7074 Posts
|
Posted - Dec 23 2015 : 06:32:03 AM
|
| A steer and a bull together is a great combo. |
MaryJane Butters, author of Milk Cow Kitchen ~ striving for the stoicism of a cow standing in the rain ~ |
|
|
|
CloversMum
3486 Posts
|
Posted - Dec 23 2015 : 08:51:06 AM
|
| They are a great combo once they figure out that the other is not of the female variety! haha They aren't in competition, Humble can just be a companion for Tony. |
Loving life and family on our Idaho farm, Meadowlark Heritage Farm; A few Jersey cows; a few alpacas; a few more goats, and even more ducks and chickens |
|
|
| |
Topic |
|
|
|
![[flourish]](/images/flourish-txt_mobius.png)
Weaning signs
![Heritage Jersey Organization [logo]](/images/HJO-logo.png){kind=logo}
