| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| maryjane |
Posted - Apr 17 2014 : 09:58:01 AM
In a recent article (4/16/2014) in Mother Earth News, the author says in conclusion that if you have a kicker (How To Milk a Cow That Kicks), you probably need to "sell the cow to a commercial dairy where human-cow contact is minimal."
He offers several good tips like Know Your Cow’s Movements and Never Lose Your Temper! but then he goes on to say "Never Use Mechanical Devices," saying "There is no quicker or more effective way to teach a cow to dread the milking experience than to use these instruments."
I thought I’d share what works for me because when I’m training a first-time milker (whether young or old), she’s almost always scared and prone to kicking (especially prone to kicking off the milking machine) but it doesn’t mean she’s genetically hopeless. It just means she needs some gentle, consistent training.
I train my kickers by using what’s called a “flank rope” and hobbles. Eventually, I get rid of the flank rope but I always use hobbles when I milk (hobbleman.net/ask for Connie 989-386-2910/based on your setup, you can have Connie and her husband lengthen or shorten the middle connecting strap. I also have them put four extra holes in each cuff they make for me because mini’s legs are thinner.)
In fact, I train my cows to be comfortable with hobbles in the same way I train them to get used to being milked. Why?
All it takes is one little lift of a foot and off one of the suction cups comes. Once it loses pressure like that, the whole milker drops off, sucking in straw, hair, etc. and your milk needs to be thrown out. I’m a known crier when it comes to spilled milk!
Here are some photos of my daughter milking one of our mini-Jerseys using a flank rope (lead rope tightened around her so she can’t get a full-strength kick in) and then afterward, her feet contained in hobbles. This cow eventually got very used to milking and stands politely for the hobbles (no longer needing the flank rope) but in the beginning, she pumped her foot like a piston! She’s a gentle, sweet milker now and a very good momma.
More photos about this process in my book under the section Milking a Mini-cow.
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| 8 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Ron |
Posted - May 22 2015 : 07:16:42 AM
Thank you God for Harriet. |
| maryjane |
Posted - May 22 2015 : 05:57:21 AM
I should add that eventually the gal in the photos above stood to be milked anywhere although my daily routine was to bring her in and do what I do with everyone, strap one leg. But while I was drying her up a few months ago, I milked her in the field. Curiously enough, she'd only let me do it from the side she was used to being milked from in my parlor, so only her left side. I heard back a couple of days ago from her new owner who said, "She's doing great. Everyone loves her!" (They have four children.) |
| txbikergirl |
Posted - May 22 2015 : 05:47:35 AM
I read the Mother Earth News article earlier with interest and thought back to MJ and what her comments would be ;>
thanks for sharing everyone. although my cow will be experienced, I will not so am appreciating every little bit of info I can absorb. |
| CloversMum |
Posted - May 21 2015 : 9:26:44 PM
Thank you for sharing your experiences with Rachel, your cow. Great wisdom on your part, partnered with great observations of your cow. I enjoy observing and being quiet...It's amazing to see what our animals want to tell us if we will quiet ourselves and wait and watch. |
| happyfarmwife |
Posted - May 21 2015 : 8:47:20 PM
Our kicker was a sweet friendly little Jersey named Rachel. Rachel was great to handle, loved petting and would stand for hours to be groomed and loved on. She was always first to come for petting and we were shocked when she was a kicker. We purchased Rachel at 8 months of age and she came from a commercial dairy so had no early handling or training.
She was so great in the stanchion and allowed us to touch her udder including washing and drying and without complaint. However when it came time to milk, she was a witch! She would stomp, kick, stick her foot in the bucket and was so bad that we ended up putting 3 calves on her rather than fight the battle.
This year when she freshened, we couldn't find any extra calves to purchase so had to milk Rachel and I sported several perfect hoofprint bruises on knees and legs as she would aim and connect. Lots of cows stomp around but don't really aim for your person.......Rachel AIMED!
We struggled to find a solution and tried several options, none of which seemed to work for very long.
One day as I watched her nurse her calf I realized that even with the calf, she would kick and stomp around. She allowed her calf to eat but was not a quiet "stand like a rock" cow.
I'm spoiled....I have a lovely old Jersey that we milk for house milk that is a a dream girl to milk. She has a strong let-down reflex and often the milk is running by the time I get her udder washed and dried. If I'm slow to let her in, there is a four part puddle under the cow....so she milks easy and is very tolerant of HOW that milking happens. As long as you don't pinch her, she's fine....Grab a couple teats and go to work, she's ok with however it works out. We even "double team" with one person on each side of the cow. She's fine with that too!
I finally realized that when Rachel continued to be a problem child I had to try something different! Instead of "grabbing a handful" and going to work like I did with the old cow, I started placing the back of my hand on Rachel's flank and sliding my hand down to where I was going on her udder. I was slow and deliberate when I moved my hand toward her teats and also when I changed from front teats to back I slid my hand from one to the next instead of just a quick switch......
The change in Rachel was close to amazing! Took me a while to realize that Rachel wanted some "foreplay" and then she was fine to stand quiet for milking! She wanted to know where I was going and I talked to her before I touched anything to begin milking. Once I learned her requirements, all was good in the milk shed!
Rachel is a lovely cow, she has now gone to a nice family to provide milk for the family and loved beyond words.
Cows are honest......Often their responses that we feel like are anger or hostility are because they are scared or uncomfortable with what we are asking of them. We must remember that they are not milk machines, push the button and milk comes out........They are thinking creatures with their own thoughts, emotions and opinions on life! Their ability to think about things and make decisions is necessary to ensure that their calves(and the species) survives!
We are the outsider in this scenario.....we are asking to be allowed to take the milk that the cow produces to ensure the survival of her calf. We must ASK and then provide comfort and peace during that time and be smart enough to understand the cow's requirements in that agreement.
Rachel proved to me that I don't know everything about cows or milking.......she was a challenge to figure out but once we came to an understanding.......she was very very willing to work with me in the partnership! |
| farmer Liz |
Posted - Jul 30 2014 : 12:56:04 PM
Its great to see detailed photos. Our cow Bella was a kicker at first (although she's settled down now) and everyone told us to "tie her leg" but we found that made her kick even more because we didn't know what we were doing. We didn't know about the flank rope either. We ended up having to use two people to milk her, one to put weight on her hips so she couldn't kick and the other to manage the milking machine. She had come from a commercial dairy, I think milking hurt her, so she kicked. She has got used to us now and is much easier to work with, but she does "help" be removing the cups herself sometimes! |
| hudsonsinaf |
Posted - Jun 03 2014 : 08:57:05 AM
It saddens me that others suggest there is no hope.... and to get rid of the kickers. They deserve love too!!! The kind of love they are not going to receive if in a place where human contact is at a minimum. Thank you so much for sharing what you do! |
| CloversMum |
Posted - Apr 18 2014 : 8:58:24 PM
These photos are very helpful! At what age do you start training your heifers to be in their milking position? Obviously, they need to be trained before they deliver for the first time, so what age do you start? Also, love how clean and fresh your milk house looks! |
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