Re: Milk Cow Equipment

[Guest guest]

Sorry, but I can't speak to the equipment, but if that cow's never been

milked, you need some sort of stanchion to keep her from swinging side

to side. We accomplished this by setting up the cow right next to a

wall, with a feeder to her front. We measured how wide the cow was and

drove in three or four T-posts for a 'wall' on the other side of her

while she's standing to be milked (you have to stop the posts well

before where her udder will be, though, so you don't have to work

around them).

With new cows, we generally start slow. If she's not fresh yet, bring

her into the stall and feed her twice a day to get her used to the

routine. If she is fresh and has been nursing, we've found it best to

milk out of sight and, if possible, earshot, of the calf. That way, if

you're weaning that calf for your milk, you don't have the constant

bawling in your ear while you're trying to milk.

There are a couple of things we've used for kickers that work - one is

a rope around the midsection. This rope is tied to the wall under the

cow, brought up in front of the pelvis and secured tightly to the wall

just above the cow's back. The other is hobbles. They're ancient, but

they work. Normally we only use these until the cow settles to the

idea of us handling her, aka, when she stops kicking and flailing about

when we try to milk).

Finally, I've never tried to milk with a calf tied to the mother. I

have tried to milk on one side, with the calf on the other (we milk by

hand) and it's real hard, to say the least. The calf can cause a lot

of difficulties because it's another something you don't necessarily

have control over and your throwing it into an operation that's already

new to everyone involved.

Good luck.

[Guest guest]

Sorry, but I can't speak to the equipment, but if that cow's never been

milked by hand, you need some sort of stanchion to keep her from

swinging side to side. We accomplished this by setting up the cow

right next to a wall, with a feeder to her front. We measured how wide

the cow was and drove in three or four T-posts for a 'wall' on the

other side of her while she's standing to be milked (you have to stop

the posts well before where her udder will be, though, so you don't

have to work around them).

With new cows, we generally start slow. If she's not fresh yet, bring

her into the stall and feed her twice a day to get her used to the

routine. If she is fresh and has been nursing, we've found it best to

milk out of sight and, if possible, earshot, of the calf. That way, if

you're weaning that calf for your milk, you don't have the constant

bawling in your ear while you're trying to milk.

There are a couple of things we've used for kickers that work - one is

a rope around the midsection. This rope is tied to the wall under the

cow, brought up in front of the pelvis and secured tightly to the wall

just above the cow's back. The other is hobbles. They're ancient, but

they work. Normally we only use these until the cow settles to the

idea of us handling her, aka, when she stops kicking and flailing about

when we try to milk).

Finally, I've never tried to milk with a calf tied to the mother. I

have tried to milk on one side, with the calf on the other (we milk by

hand) and it's real hard, to say the least. The calf can cause a lot

of difficulties because it's another something you don't necessarily

have control over and your throwing it into an operation that's already

new to everyone involved.

Good luck.

[Guest guest]

The best advice is to call . He is an honest guy and is very

helpful. You can use all of your old equipment as long as it is

stainless. I would recommend all new rubber parts. Newer isn't

necessarily safer but it is more expensive. Lids are not expensive. You

can also call me from the number listed at our web site. I'd be happy

to talk with you about what should be new and what should be replaced.

Jessi

LHR Manufacturing

http://www.milking-machines.com