The family milk cow

[Zundapp]

How many of you grew up with a family milk cow or goat? Or had a neighbor with one or the other. Or maybe that have one now. Tell us about it.

[beenthere]

I did, and she was a Jersey cow named "Hallie" (don't know why). I milked her every evening, and a brother every morning. We supplied milk and cream to two neighbors along with our family of 4 boys. Churned butter from the cream, had fresh buttermilk to drink, and cream to pour over fresh strawberries, currants, and gooseberries. That was back when I was 11 - 16 year old.
Good memories.

[Qweaver]

We never had cows but my girlfriend's (now my wife) family had a milk cow( Flossie) that Sarah was responsible for milking.  When we went out on a date Sarah either had to milk (by hand) before we went out or Flossie would be impatiently waiting by the fence for Sarah's return.  Nothing like going out on a date accompanied by cow smells.  
Quinton

[thurlow]

My Dad first bought cattle in 1951..........10 or 12 head, beef "type".  There was Heart, Judy, Bessie, Big Teat, Betsy.........can't remember the rest of them.  We milked Ole Betsy;  she was solid black (mostly Angus; maybe partly something else) and gave an acceptable amount of milk.  My mother did the milking, I was responsible for finding her in the pasture in the late afternoons, where she would often hide in a thicket and for driving her to the barn, where she stayed penned up over night.  Remember the taste of the milk when they had been in the wild onions or bitter weeds?

[logwalker]

We had a good ol' gal we named Daisy. She was a Jersey/Guernsey cross. Raised 5 kids with the bounty she produced for us. Gave us a calf each year we raised for beef. My job for a few years was to milk her in the morning. When I think of what the modern youth is missing it makes me a little sad. Joe

[fishman]

my grandpa left a large farm in so. L.A. in 1931 lotsa milk cows and strawberries, plus all the other animal and plant life needed in those days for a self suffienct family of 11, as the oldest he was responsible for the milking(by hand, of course) i wasn't allowed to look at a cow, until i left home my granparents raised me from 6 mos. old, i sure learned a diffrent way of life than my freinds, now i can really appreciated my upbringing, amazing the work ethic that genaration had.

[beenthere]

................ When I think of what the modern youth is missing it makes me a little sad. Joe

Strong hands for sure...
And couldn't agree with you more.  Makes the Grandpa's job of teaching and telling stories all the more important. .......also the Grandma's 

[Norm]

We had milk cows from the time I was able to remember until about the age of 12. Mostly Jersey's but a Guernsey or two also. We milked by hand until the last couple of years when we got an older vacuum machine. We milked twice a day and one of the jobs I had was to bring them in. We belled the lead cow but I swear that one could tip toe through the thickest brush without moving the ringer.

The one I remember as more pet than anything was a huge old Jersey named Nolah. We could ride her but the backbone was just a bit to sharp to do it for long. After we sold them off we kept her and another one that I've forgotten the name of until they died of old age.

[sharp edge]

Our cow was called Reddy. She provided milk and a calf every year for us. The middle of the day ma told me to get Reddy. Thought it was about that time of year again, better not ask to many questions, so went and got Reddy. When I got back no one was around, they all got ready and went to town.

SE

[Patty]

We lived on a farm outside Oregon, WI one year. We had 2 milk cows, Katy was a Holstein and Dolly was a jersey. Katy's milk was for drinking and from Dolly's milk, mom made butter. Instead of coming in to be milked like normal cows, they would head to the back of the farm and hide in the marsh  .  My little brother and I had to slog through the wet marsh to bring them in every night after school. Ah yes....the good old days!! 

[Haytrader]

Dang Patty,

I bet you sure miss that.
 

My wife tells me how much she misses saddling her horse every evening when she was a kid to get the sheep in for the night.

[tim1234]

Neve had a whole milk cow, but I now own part of a cow.

We are part of a cow share and get milk from our cow.  Albeit we have to pick it up every few weeks.  Government wants to shut it down, but can't find anything wrong with it. 

Cows are pastured and no antibiotics or other drugs.  Milk tests better than the big dairies milk.

Tim

[Tom]

We had a cow for a several years when I was a tyke in the early and middle 1940's. It got us through the diaper years and then was given to Mr. Guettler who had a dairy.  Granddad still went to the dairy to get the milk.  Everybody in town was friends back then and I think he must have made some kind of deal with Mr. Guettler.   I remember the cow but wasn't too sharp on business deals back then.

[Zundapp]

My earliest memorys are going out to the barn with Dad to milk the cow. After awhile, he sold her & we bought milk from the neighbors. All my growing up years there was always an abundunt supply & I don't hardly remember drinking anything but fresh cows milk. When we bought our place 15 years ago we got some goats to eat down some brush & knapweed. Decided to milk one. Started to sell the surplus. Word got out & we couldn't meet the demand, got up to where we were milking 3 goats & were turning people down left & right. I couldn't beleive how many people wanted fresh goats milk. Then we got shut down. Now I understand its a felony to sell raw milk (I beleive you can still produce it for your own use). I don't understand that. In all them years I never heard of anyone gitting sick from it. Oh well, go figure

[Furby]

I did, and she was a Jersey cow named "Hallie" (don't know why). I milked her every evening, and a brother every morning. We supplied milk and cream to two neighbors along with our family of 4 boys. Churned butter from the cream, had fresh buttermilk to drink, and cream to pour over fresh strawberries, currants, and gooseberries. That was back when I was 11 - 16 year old.
Good memories.

Bet you got more milk from Hallie then her brother eh
 

[beenthere]

 
Good catch der Furby

I could modify that line, but won't spoil it

[ARKANSAWYER]

  I was going to say that if you were milking Hallies brother you had a friend for life.    Furby caught it before me.

  GrandMa and GrandPa always had a milking cow.  One summer I was there the whole summer and got in good with the little darling.  She loved to be milked but was prone to go to the bathroom while you were under there milking and you had to move the pail to keep the mess off of it.  My younger sister came with my parents to fetch me back from the summer visit and she went with me to milk the cow.  She was standing behind the cow trying to watch me milk when the tail came up and my sister remarks  "Now I can really see!"  But not for long as I moved the pail just as the mess plopped onto her head.         Thats been over 35 years ago and it still brings a smile to my face.  Just wished there was a video tape of it.

[thecfarm]

My parents never had any animals,but my Grandmother had 2-3 of everything.I was young and don't remember too many names.I can recall the animals roaming around the farm here.I can remember one work horse my Father had,Buster.Queenie was his side kick,but died when I was very young.My grandmother had a big pig that we called Velma Brown,that's the women we got it from.It would run loose and I would go up and scratch her back and she would roll over on to her back so I could scratch her belly.She would lay there and grunt.

[Sprucegum]

When I was 13-16 Dad and I milked 4 cows, morning and night. If I had a question that was the time to ask. I always got a straight answer.

[Burlkraft]

I grew up with 85 of dem cows.........Love Milk....Hated Milking....