Tuesday, 28 July 2009
July 28, 2009
Jennifer coaxed 2.5 gallons from Sugar today, then made yogurt and Mozzarella cheese. Is my wife awesome, or what?
"Unpalatable Values"
From "Unpalatable Values: Culture as Gastronomy" by Andrei Navrozov
in Chronicles:
in Chronicles:
The Russian verb spurt, with its sound of milk hitting the pail, is
like our word for life. The forcible sundering of the peasant and his
cow, no less succintly, is the abiding aim of authoritarian
government, which, abhorring the individual's self-sufficiency that
threatens its nihilist absolute, seeks to suppress life itself.
Sent from my iPod
Monday, 27 July 2009
July 27, 2009
I didn't do much farming this weekend. Friday morning I went for my regular chiropractic adjustment and then took the boys to the first showing of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. The movie was good but it seems like each one deviates a bit further from the book. I'm afraid I may not like the Deathly Hallows movie. Saturday we had an all day celebration of my mom's birthday at our house. I was the grill master. Eat your heart out Bobby Flay!
Jennifer overestimated the amount of milk she was getting from Sugar back when we had to dump it last week. Now that she's filtering and bottling, we realize that we're getting 1.5-2 gallons a day. I had hoped for more but she is nursing two calves and we really have no idea how much they're taking. We do know that she's holding back her cream because we're getting an inch or less on a half-gallon jar and it should be 3-4 inches (I hope). I guess we'll make our butter this fall after the calves are weaned. And speaking of dumping milk, the mastitis seems to have cleared up without us having to resort to a systemic antibiotic. The milk is clear with no flakes, clumps, etc. and the test cards are good with just a slightly darker spot on the suspect quarter. The milk tastes sweet, which is the best test of all.
We're about 90% sure that we're not going to band (castrate) our bull calf. Instead, we plan to keep him intact and use him to breed Sugar next summer. Everyone we talk to, from all over the country, seems to never manage to get their cow bred on the first try with AI. Cows come into heat about every 3 weeks so two heat cycles can easily mean the difference between calving at the beginning of the spring flush and calving when the spring flush is over. Of course, there's no guarantee that natural breeding will take the first time but the odds sure seem a lot better than with AI. If we put the bull in with her on July 1st, we should get an April calf even if she doesn't settle on the first heat and comes in again. Just like with most things in farming, nature usually trumps modern science.
Jennifer overestimated the amount of milk she was getting from Sugar back when we had to dump it last week. Now that she's filtering and bottling, we realize that we're getting 1.5-2 gallons a day. I had hoped for more but she is nursing two calves and we really have no idea how much they're taking. We do know that she's holding back her cream because we're getting an inch or less on a half-gallon jar and it should be 3-4 inches (I hope). I guess we'll make our butter this fall after the calves are weaned. And speaking of dumping milk, the mastitis seems to have cleared up without us having to resort to a systemic antibiotic. The milk is clear with no flakes, clumps, etc. and the test cards are good with just a slightly darker spot on the suspect quarter. The milk tastes sweet, which is the best test of all.
We're about 90% sure that we're not going to band (castrate) our bull calf. Instead, we plan to keep him intact and use him to breed Sugar next summer. Everyone we talk to, from all over the country, seems to never manage to get their cow bred on the first try with AI. Cows come into heat about every 3 weeks so two heat cycles can easily mean the difference between calving at the beginning of the spring flush and calving when the spring flush is over. Of course, there's no guarantee that natural breeding will take the first time but the odds sure seem a lot better than with AI. If we put the bull in with her on July 1st, we should get an April calf even if she doesn't settle on the first heat and comes in again. Just like with most things in farming, nature usually trumps modern science.
Thursday, 23 July 2009
July 23, 2009
Rain! We got rain! Finally. Our pasture has been looking bad for weeks. Next year I have to make sure that what has already been grazed is mowed down to get rid of seed stalks by the end of May. Maybe I'll have the equipment to make a little hay. That would be awesome. No matter what, though, I have to make sure that I don't mow the whole pasture in June. The risk of drought is just too great.
Tuesday, 21 July 2009
July 21, 2009
Sugar gave 3 1/2 gallons this morning. Unfortunately, we have to dump it due to the antibiotic residues. Tomorrow morning Jennifer will test the milk to see if the mastitis is gone. Since she's stopped holding up I hope that will make a difference but I'm done with wishful thinking. The next step is a penicillin injection.
Sent from my iPod
Monday, 20 July 2009
July 20, 2009
Whew! Last Saturday (7/11) I came down with some bad stomach trouble and it lasted through this past weekend. It had to have been food poisoning because I don't think a virus could have lasted so long. I ate at 4 different restaurants between lunch on Thursday and lunch on Saturday so who knows where I got it. Nothing seemed fishy at the time. Anyway, I got nothing done over the last week on the farm.
We're now separating the calves from Sugar at night and milking once a day. She was holding back everything but about 3 quarts until this morning when she finally gave Jennifer 3+ gallons. Thank God! She's been quite a handful. Unfortunately, the mastitis is back in her right rear quarter and we can't seem to get rid of it. Antibiotics knock it out for a few days, then it comes back. The thing is, the milk looks perfect. The only way we know she has mastitis in the quarter is that the milk tests alkaline. If anyone knows a source for fresh comfrey, please comment. I'd also like to buy some cuttings and grow our own. That would help, I think. She's been eating dried kelp like crazy which should also help but I think she'd eat a pound a day if I'd let her and I can't afford that for long.
We're now separating the calves from Sugar at night and milking once a day. She was holding back everything but about 3 quarts until this morning when she finally gave Jennifer 3+ gallons. Thank God! She's been quite a handful. Unfortunately, the mastitis is back in her right rear quarter and we can't seem to get rid of it. Antibiotics knock it out for a few days, then it comes back. The thing is, the milk looks perfect. The only way we know she has mastitis in the quarter is that the milk tests alkaline. If anyone knows a source for fresh comfrey, please comment. I'd also like to buy some cuttings and grow our own. That would help, I think. She's been eating dried kelp like crazy which should also help but I think she'd eat a pound a day if I'd let her and I can't afford that for long.
Thursday, 9 July 2009
July 9, 2009
It's TGITh here at Liberty Farm. I've been on a four 10-hour day work schedule for over a year now so our weekend begins on Thursday evening. I just got a $1500 quote to grind out the old mortar and tuck-point our chimney, including re-laying the part above the roof where much of the mortar is gone. So, I don't know if my cocktail should be for celebrating the arrival of the weekend or lamenting this home maintenance outlay. We hope to turn our old greenhouse into a garage this summer, complete with a concrete floor and new driveway, and this is going to break into our budget.
We're seeing Sugar let the new bull calf, Porter, nurse more and more. She won't stand there and chew her cud like she does for her own calf, Taffy, but if she's preoccupied she's not so quick to knock him into next week. I really hope she comes around soon. We're letting Porter nurse at milking time when she's in the stanchion and Taffy is learning to nurse about an hour beforehand, so we're doing good to get about one and a half gallons a day. That ain't gonna cut it for long. When (if) Porter begins nursing ad lib, Sugar's production will hopefully increase to match and we'll be able to separate the calves at night and milk once a day in the morning. If we don't get at least two and a half gallons at that milking, I'll be disappointed. Right now, she's eating about $6 a day worth of organic grain (corn, spelt and Fertrell dairy mineral). I hope to be able to cut that back but we want to see her gain a little weight.
I'm very pleased to be able to report that there are no signs of mastitis in the milk. We treated her with a second round of antibiotics and all is clear. Tomorrow is the first day we'll be able to drink it. We still have our herdshares until the end of the month, so I'm hoping to make some cheese this weekend.
All the pasture mowing is done and I'm hoping for rain. The lambs are growing like weeds and the mommas are in good condition and still making plenty of milk. This will be the third year we haven't used any deworming drugs. Right now, the sheep are limited to grazing on the hilltop, where they rarely go unless there's no grass down near the barn. I'm saving that lower part for Sugar and the calves. Since cows and sheep don't share internal parasites, this is a good way to break the host/parasite cycle.
I bought 10 bales of first-cutting alfalfa today to give Sugar. She needs some dry forage to firm up her poop. Cow poop is never really firm, but right now it's practically liquid. Sorry for the graphic description, but that's life at Liberty Farm. As my butcher told me, "beef cows burp and dairy cows fart. You need to encourage that."
We're seeing Sugar let the new bull calf, Porter, nurse more and more. She won't stand there and chew her cud like she does for her own calf, Taffy, but if she's preoccupied she's not so quick to knock him into next week. I really hope she comes around soon. We're letting Porter nurse at milking time when she's in the stanchion and Taffy is learning to nurse about an hour beforehand, so we're doing good to get about one and a half gallons a day. That ain't gonna cut it for long. When (if) Porter begins nursing ad lib, Sugar's production will hopefully increase to match and we'll be able to separate the calves at night and milk once a day in the morning. If we don't get at least two and a half gallons at that milking, I'll be disappointed. Right now, she's eating about $6 a day worth of organic grain (corn, spelt and Fertrell dairy mineral). I hope to be able to cut that back but we want to see her gain a little weight.
I'm very pleased to be able to report that there are no signs of mastitis in the milk. We treated her with a second round of antibiotics and all is clear. Tomorrow is the first day we'll be able to drink it. We still have our herdshares until the end of the month, so I'm hoping to make some cheese this weekend.
All the pasture mowing is done and I'm hoping for rain. The lambs are growing like weeds and the mommas are in good condition and still making plenty of milk. This will be the third year we haven't used any deworming drugs. Right now, the sheep are limited to grazing on the hilltop, where they rarely go unless there's no grass down near the barn. I'm saving that lower part for Sugar and the calves. Since cows and sheep don't share internal parasites, this is a good way to break the host/parasite cycle.
I bought 10 bales of first-cutting alfalfa today to give Sugar. She needs some dry forage to firm up her poop. Cow poop is never really firm, but right now it's practically liquid. Sorry for the graphic description, but that's life at Liberty Farm. As my butcher told me, "beef cows burp and dairy cows fart. You need to encourage that."
Monday, 6 July 2009
July 6, 2009
Happy belated Independence Day from Liberty Farm! I'd hoped to get pasture photos last weekend but didn't get around to it. I'll have to turn my daughter loose in the field with the camera. She's a 10 year-old budding photographer.
We picked up an Ayrshire cross bull calf on Thursday morning. Fortunately, we got there before he was fed and were able to take him home in the back of my Jeep Wrangler without him peeing or pooping. I wrapped his rear end in a blanket for the ride but now that I've seen him in action, I know that would have been inadequate. His name is Porter House. Sugar doesn't like him much but has gone from trying to kill him to tolerating him in the stall with her and Taffy, so we're making progress. We let him nurse from her rear quarters when she's in the headgate at milking time but are hopeful that she will soon let him nurse in the pasture.
Sent from my iPod
Wednesday, 1 July 2009
July 1, 2009
Got about 4 gallons of milk today. Unfortunately, it all has to be dumped since we gave the antibiotic infusion. We'll be able to drink the Friday evening milking without any residue of the meds.
Sugar is getting pretty well trained to the milking process. We're getting a bull calf tomorrow. He's an Ayrshire cross. Hopefully she'll accept him without too much difficulty.
Pics later. I hope to get the camera out to the pasture this weekend and get some lamb photos. They're a cute bunch!
Sugar is getting pretty well trained to the milking process. We're getting a bull calf tomorrow. He's an Ayrshire cross. Hopefully she'll accept him without too much difficulty.
Pics later. I hope to get the camera out to the pasture this weekend and get some lamb photos. They're a cute bunch!
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