If your lucky enough to have land...

...would you consider keeping a milk cow? I am so tempted to do this! They say it is a lot of work, but my idea would be to just get a milk cow and keep her for a like a pet. Let her graze and feed her, keep her healthy. The milk can dry up for now. If there is a situation where we can't go to the store or whatever, then breed her and and keep calves on her so that she will produce but you also won't have milk running out your ears!

 

I would probably do this. It might sound like a lot of work but it would be worth it! My uncle has chickens in his ranch and would trade eggs for milk with his neighbors. I have yet to try anything as fresh as what we would eat with him.

 

I think that this is a good idea. I would do it if I had the space to do so. I have thought about getting a couple of goats and chickens. Chickens would be easy enough for me since I can just keep the coop in my yard. I would love to have enough space at some point to where I can just live off of the land. One can dream for now, right?

 

Cows require huge resource consumption. Also, cows only produce milk after they have given birth, and dairy cows must give birth to one calf per year in order to continue producing milk. Typically they are artificially inseminated within three months of giving birth. Is something quite complicated to keep on for several years. Is a serious agricultural and livestock commitment, and I would better leave this trade to full time farmers .

 

I was born and raised in a city apartment so I have no experience. However, based on the stories of my husband, it is easier to have a goat than a cow when milk is the purpose. The goat is smaller hence easier to manage and also easier to milk. Although the cow can give you up to 2 liters of milk every morning, a goat can manage only 2 glasses or a little less than 1 liter. So if you have 2 milking goats then that would be equivalent to one cow. Another advantage of the goat is you can keep it in a floored corral unlike cows where they stay in a roofed corral. So when the rain is continuous, the goats can be comfortable in a wooden house of sorts.

Since both cows and goats are grazers, it would surprise you that goats are choosy. Their favorite is mulberry and the thick and tall grasses. Some goats also feed on corn although I'm not betting on it. The best is to let them graze in the open field.

 

I'm with Keith. H. and Corzhens on this. Go for goats. They're much easier to manage, far less prone to mastitis and won;t hurt you if they kick you or sit on you! You can tether them, but use a ring on the stick or they'll wind themselves round and round and then yell to be let loose. They won't eat your washing, they'll chew on it see if they like it and make a horrible mess of it and they can whip the heads off a row of growing cabbages faster than you can run (trust me, I've been there, and they weren't my cabbages!) but they're good and useful creatures with character. Tasty if eaten young enough too.