@Warren Allison ... this is not in any way to mock you... BUT.... back when you were first talking about all the nurse cows, and all the calves you could raise for Zeke's bank account and all the money you could make on them, I had to zip my mouth and not laugh at you.... your enthusiasm was wonderful... but all I could think is this guy has NO CLUE.....
So, now after doing a few, and on very very wonderfully receptive cows, so you have not gotten a taste of the ones that can be MISERABLE WITCHES if the mood strikes them.....you see that they are labor intensive in the beginning, and it is not cheap buying orphan calves to put on them either...
It is a labor of love for people that like to fool with dairy animals, and who like messing with baby calves. Yes, there is money to be made, but it is not the gravy money so many seem to think... "OH that cow raised 4 calves, as opposed to one on the beef cow".....
It is a great project for someone with a cow that makes more milk than they want for the house use, yet still want to milk.... and also allows for someone to NOT milk if it does not suit their schedule.... but baby calves that are grafted need extra effort in the beginning, and nowadays, they are costing through the ying yang.... and when you pay those high prices, you da@# sure want to make sure they live and grow...
Thank you for sharing the experiences of Gail, and the calves, and all those things... and realizing that you sure aren't going to turn over the kind of money for the little effort you do, with the enterprises you get into with the buying and selling the various different groups of cattle you deal with.
Yes, labor intensive and very very time consuming if you are putting the effort into them that they need. A person has to enjoy them to really make it work...