Re: Question about Raw Milk & Milking Machines...

[Guest guest]

First to answer your question about machine milking. We have done it both ways and if you are looking for some time saving then hand milking is by far faster then machine milking when you milk up to 6 to 8 goats. The saving comes from the clean up in hand milking. To properly wash up a machine so all is spotless and sanitary takes 20 - 30 minutes each milking (yes you can do it quicker if you have a huge wash up area and not worry about getting every thing perfect). Washing up for hand milking takes about 5 -10 minuets. The actual milking time is about the same for both under 6 animals. By having a machines only saves you muscle and milking is a good way to get exercise, unless you have carpel tunnel issues.

When we did go with a machine after we were milking about 16 we chose a new machine. Call Hamby Dairy equipment. They are very helpful and can answer all questions about choosing the best for your situation. However I would not reccomend a machine for under 6 goats unless it is for health issues from inability of your hands to milk.

As for the drinking raw milk.............if you have just started drinking raw milk, then by all means make sure , really sure your milking technique is correct and your care of the milk is correct. I would not pasturized the milk. When new people start raw milk many go through a body cleansing. And it hurts! Your body is getting rid of toxins. Keep going and eventually your body will clean out and it will not hurt anymore. But do not pasturize! That defeats everything. Most of those buying milk are looking for raw milk.

Now onto the short life our your milk............we have kept raw milk up to two weeks tasting fresh and good. It comes from first being extrememly sanitary (don't worry about a hair!) Milk pails and storage containers need to be clean. But the biggest thing first time milkers don't understand about goat milk is....... extrememly fast cooling of the warm milk.

Putting warm milk in the fridge does not cut it. Your milk will never keep for two weeks! A suggestion: Milk into a SS pail, pour ASAP through a strainer into a clean glass jar that is surrounded by ice water with rock salt in it (like making ice cream). when it hits 38 F then put it in the fridge for storage. You will notice a difference. Another thing that will help is store in small containers and keep them closed and use each container up when ever you open it. (store in pints or quarts if you use that much).

The other thing that will help is possibly changing your feed. We found that when we eliminated soy from the goats diet the milk tasted muh much better. We also can taste the difference between many different producers milk by what they feed. Your milk will be much sweeter without soy and your goats longterm helath will benefit.

Rhonda

Cranberry Ridge Farm

goatmilk@...

PS email me if you have any other questions.

Re: Question about Raw Milk & Milking Machines...

Hi, I am fairly new to this group, but I wanted to ask a couple of questions to y'all that have been doing this stuff longer than I have.I'm milking 2 goats now but will be milking 4 by Summer, and need to buy a good milking machine that does not cost an arm & a leg if I can find one. Are the Surge milkers good? If not, what others are best and which are easiest to use and CLEAN. My time is very valuable (who's isn't??) because not only do I milk the goats and raise & show horses in my "spare" time but I also am an Accountant for an Oil & Gas company and that means I work full time too. So I'm looking for the best value for my $$ that is also the fastest to use and clean.My next question is about raw milk vs. pasteurized. Can the raw milk cause upset stomachs in those of us drinking it? It tastes great, and my son loves it, but the past couple of days he's been complaining of his stomach hurting and I can't help but wonder if it's the milk. The goats are very healthy and we've been milking them for about 3 weeks now with no problems. I have not bought store milk since then--that is wonderful. Also it seems as though at times my stomach will hurt a little but we still keep drinking it! Should we go ahead and heat it up to pasteurize it a little or keep drinking it raw? I'm not sure what the next step would be because as long as the milk tastes and smells good, and we use very sanitary practices (yes there will be a hair or two in there when I strain but I don't worry so much about that stuff--I figure what we breathe in every day is WAY worse than a little goat hair or dust!) I would not think it would cause any problems.Also--how long, in y'all's experience--does raw milk keep in the refrigerator? It seems like mine tastes great for a few days but then I can taste that weird after taste and I don't like it. Most of the time it's used up before then though. We keep the fridge at 35 degrees F, and we keep a thermometer in there as well to see what it really is, it stays below 40 always, but I know it needs to stay below 38 (it almost always is below 38 but every now & again it'll read 39).We're gearing up to start selling this milk soon and I don't want to make anyone sick so I need some advice quickly! I would appreciate ANY AND ALL advice/opinions, and you can e-mail me privately also or on here, either way is fine!Thanks for your time,

Dreams*Divine Dairy Farm, www.kbarstarqh.com/DreamsDivineFarm.htmlQuality LaMancha & Nubian Stock for Milk & ShowGoat's Milk, Cheese, and Farm-Fresh Eggs

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