cows

[chrisdvorak]

yup thats what im looking to get them for (just pets for the kids and to keep the field mowed)

 

[Duffster]

yup thats what im looking to get them for (just pets for the kids and to keep the field mowed)

Are you going to milk them?

 

[chrisdvorak]

i was thinking of getting 2 girls (calfs) and raise them so i don't have to worry about milking them every day

 

[JohnDeere4300]

i have a 3 acre field and i am looking to get 2 jerseys in it with a run-in shed do you think they will tear up the ground? the field is all cleared and has fence all around and the back side has a wall with lots of shade-trees behind it ,it does have field grass in it and i am planning on brush-cutting it once a month. do you think my plan will work? and pics of your run-in shed would be great too

3 acres would probably be OK for 2 jerseys on it.... Anything under 2 acres would not.

They will tear up the ground when it gets wet.

Why are you going to run a bush-hog on the 3 acres ?

Jersey cows are good for grazing... I would let them take care of the 3~acres.... Because if you cut it then the ground stands a better chance at getting torn up by them.

In the winter when all the green is gone and the rain & snow starts, then they will tear up the 3~acres real bad.

 

[chrisdvorak]

when the snow starts the ground freezes solid so im not worried about that

 

[Duffster]

Why are you going to run a bush-hog on the 3 acres ?

Jersey cows are good for grazing... I would let them take care of the 3~acres.... Because if you cut it then the ground stands a better chance at getting torn up by them.QUOTE]

That just depends.

The only way cattle will keep it "mowed" off well is if they are practically starving. Pet cows won't need as much to eat as growing cattle or a nursing mama cow calf pair and around here we run about a pair per acre and they can't keep up in the spribg and may need to be fed a little when it gets dry.

Mowing on a timely matter will make better grass in the later months.

 

[milkman]

i was thinking of getting 2 girls (calfs) and raise them so i don't have to worry about milking them every day

You sure don't want to try to milk the other kind.

 

[chrisdvorak]

I am going to feed square bales of hay so that should let the grass get nice and thick and ensure that there is less torn ground

 

[ol'George]

As having raised a small cattle herd for 30 years, the key to keeping a pasture under them is rotational grazing, using a cheap hot wire fence.
Split the pasture into at least 3 pieces. and rotate them between the two during the grazing season.
the 3rd keep as a feedlot,
It will get muddy and nasty in the wet season.
if you allow them on the other 2 pastures in fall/winter spring, in as little as 2 years you will have NO pasture!!
I have been there done that. and it will take 3 years to re establish a good pasture.
just some advice.
I sold my last cow two years ago and I still miss them!! they are like family.
I had a Herford cow that gave me a calf every year, for 14 years.
She was the last one I sold when I retired.
At Times I swear I still hear them rubbing on the barn or calling me to feed them. you will be there 7 days a week 367 days a year, --- I never found a "cow sitter"
In dry seasons, I didn't have to mow the lawn, as I turned them on it for a day or two just to weed/feed it, and they had some fresh grass to munch on.
I've pulled calves, got dumped on, gave shots, got my feet stepped on, came home from work early on the graveyard shift to help a difficult delivery.
Warmed milk on the stove to feed a calf with a bottle, got run into fences by a protective mother and shoveled sh--
got kicked trying to castrate a bull calf, and spent new years eve with a sick cow,,--
yes I was a citty cowboy, and if I had it to do over, I would in a heartbeat.
Ain't nothing like getting a wobbley legg calf up to his mother for his first "dinner" and watching him grow into a right pretty steer!

 

[Western]

Just to add to what the others have said. Don't forget to use a "drag", keep the manure knocked down, cattle usually won't eat grass where a pile of huhy is so what you get is allot of really green spots. Let it dry some and like every other week drag it and spread it. Great fertilizer. If you go the divided route by splitting your pasture up (good idea) this would give you working time on 3 acres.

I would only bush hog what they wont eat (patch of weeds ect tra) keep the weeds out to promote the grass.

Belief about the cows not eating by crap piles is an instinct to not catch "bugs" worms ect tra

 

[chrisdvorak]

im not quite shure, but to my understanding cows will only graze if they are very hungry and i am going to feed square bales every day, even if i only had one heifer and did the things listed would i still have to separate up my pasture?? and if they aren't scalping the pasture down wouldn't the grass come up thicker and be harder for them to tear up?

 

[Duffster]

im not quite shure, but to my understanding cows will only graze if they are very hungry

That is not true.

and i am going to feed square bales every day,

Why?

even if i only had one heifer and did the things listed would i still have to separate up my pasture??

NO

and if they aren't scalping the pasture down wouldn't the grass come up thicker and be harder for them to tear up?

Yes

 

[ol'George]

Cattle are naturally grazers and they will turn up their noses @ hay, if they have Good pasture. Wouldn't you?
They do like cracked corn in the manger. yummy!
Mine always had hay/corn free choice. that will fatten them up. making nice marbling in the steaks ( no hay in grazing season)
just like they will prefer to stand out in bad weather instead of coming in a barn. although they will come in when THEY want.
If you rotate pasture, their hoof's don't tear it up as bad and it gets a chance to heal.
The trick is to get them to clean off a area, then move them onto a new area. as you get experience, you will understand as it is a no brainer.
I liked that they kept everything trimmed around equipment. But they like to rub on things and handles chutes etc. on equipment, always got bent/broke. so ya learned what could be left in the pasture and what couldn't.
if you have trees in the pasture, electric fence around the base cause they will eat the bark killing the trees. they will always seek shade on sunny days,
to lay & chew their cud, and of course, gossip about current events Ha,LOL

 

[jimmyj]

Mmmmm, beef.....

 

[chrisdvorak]

here is the newest edition- 4 month old jersey

 

[Bird]

Good looking little heifer.

 

[chrisdvorak]

how long should calf scours last if on medicine? i was told 5-6 days, does that seem right? my jersey calf has them and she is still eating fine and drinking plenty of water and has had them for about 4 days-should i be worried?