Management Plan for Dairy Cow

Materials:

• Cow: small, cheap, Jersey, in milk, not too old but at least a year, from local dairy with organic practices.
  • Milk Jerseys in King City, 25 mi away - Teddy Pankau - +16604830567, +18165932316
• Fence: 1/8 mile livewire
  • http://kansascity.craigslist.org/grd/3061259874.html
  • 9137313580 Kansas City,$30
• Rods: mail-order from Livewire; http://www.livewireproducts.com/products-page/fence-posts--rods/37--55-stirrup-post
  • Code: 44417
• Solar Fence Charger: 112
  • http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0002YX8QC/sr=8-5/qid=1339905417/ref=olp_product_details?ie=UTF8&me=&qid=1339905417&seller=&sr=8-5
• Shelter/Mobile hut: scrap metal 8'x8' on wheels Cow Hut Design

Costs

• Cow: variable depending on source
• Fencing: ~$60
• We are eliminating the cost of feed, shelter, veterinary medicine

Grazing Plan

• From spring-fall rotational grazing, on ~2 acres until the forage is mowed, then moved. Timing for rotation depends on forage available.
• Grazing on land that isn't eroded, has <5% west-facing slope, and sufficient forage
• WINTER: feed baled hay, using baler and adequate storage (future pole barn for storage of dry hay and tractors?)
• Water:
• station her near a pond, to be built
• Keep her water trough full by pumping to it directly or carrying a tank to her with LifeTrac

Milking

• Daily, or twice daily during her highest milk output
• For one cow, milking by hand is easier
  • dedicated milk bucket/container
  • a jar for yogurt/kefir
• For more than one cow, milking with a simple machine will work
  • Replicable, with modular parts that are easily replaced from simple materials
  • Udderly EZ Milker has product that is hand held, I'd like to design something that is simpler, with a larger capacity
    • http://udderlyez.com/pdf/SheepGoatCowMareMilkerBro.pdf

Scale

To start with, one cow will do. When we have more people, up to 30, we'll need another one or two cows. They could be the offspring of our original cow.

• For Scale, as we increase the herd size, we'll need:
  • Proportionate amounts of fenceline, up to 1 mi of livewire plus posts
  • simple milking machine design and fabrication
  • Addons to the cow shelter, modular and replicable using scrap

Health

• Prevention: healthy environment, good forage, stress-free management
• Herbal supplements
  • Garlic
  • Free choice diatomacious earth or kelp for gut issues in calves
• Daily monitoring for signs of illness

Reproduction

• Calves in spring
• Milk her through fall
• Breed her in October (by bull service or using semen from a small bull, AI performed by a neighbor)
• Dry Period: November-Calving
• Calves: keep them with her, perhaps wean if you'd like to acclimate the calves to people more
  • Females: raise up, breed them (use diverse genetics)
  • Males: raise up, castrate, slaughter eventually

Definition of Done

• Spreadsheet with specific sourcing and prices that have been verified
  • Tools/materials