New nurse cow

[Ky hills]

Saw this supposed to be 4 year old Jersey cow with a heifer calf advertised on FB to sold at the stockyards. Currently have two bottle calves and got interested in the cow.
15-20 years ago I had up to 12 nurse cows, at one time had 8 in production at the same time raising dairy calves.
During that time the demand for replacement dairy cattle was high and you couldn't hardly find a good cow. I had bought a few heifers, and some 3 quartered or lower production cows from dairies.
This cow is sound in all quarters and gentle as a dog. Calf is supposed to be AI sired and looks to have what should be udder development..
Got the two calves on her as easy as I've ever done before.
I'd love to have had her back then.

 

[MurraysMutts]

First one to LOVE this post!!

There is something very special about a jersey cow! I hope she continues with you for years to come!

By my numbers it'll take her a bit to pay for herself. But YOU got a HUGE BONUS in that heifer calf with her!

 

[kenny thomas]

In the 1970's my wife kept 5 nurse cows with 2-3 calves per cow. Wean calves and put more babies on them. But it was very easy to find baby calves back then.

 

[Ky hills]

First one to LOVE this post!!

There is something very special about a jersey cow! I hope she continues with you for years to come!

By my numbers it'll take her a bit to pay for herself. But YOU got a HUGE BONUS in that heifer calf with her!

Yeah, it would take a while to pay for herself for sure. Short term I'm just glad I don't have to wash bottles, and buy more calf milk.
I used to have 3-4 calves on a cow at a time and wean them of in around 3 months and start another round on the cows. With these I'll just let her raise them.
When I first started buying dairy calves years ago, they had just started to have some value, the first ones I paid $25 for the folks said not long before they had just been giving calves away.
At first I passed on some chances to get heifer calves cause I didn't understand the dairy business and thought they were worth less than bull calves, because that's what I had seen at the local stockyards. Finally, got in with a dairy getting all of their calves and selling most of the heifers back to them around breeding size.
Towards the last heifers got to $500 for 3 day old calf. Sometimes more than that on the market.
I paid $1400 back then for a Jersey heifer around a year old at a dairy auction. She was my best cow, and we were AI breeding our Jerseys to Jersey bulls, I had 3 generations counting her.
Had a Angus Holstein crosses that I raised and kept for nurse cows too.
Both the dairy farms that I got calves from stopped milking and I just quit cause it was hard to find a steady supply of good healthy calves on the market.
Used to be 200 or more calves at sone stockyards back then, now there's hardly any, other than an occasional beef calf.
When we were in Oklahoma a couple years ago we went to the local stockyards there one day, they had several Jersey calves selling.

 

[MurraysMutts]

It's usually hit or miss around here. There is lots of overpriced dairy calves on Facebook.
Hardly see any at the sales.
The beef calves are worth more but they COST more too.
My best ones are black steers bought right. The last 2 did really well, especially what I had in them!

 

[Ky hills]

It's usually hit or miss around here. There is lots of overpriced dairy calves on Facebook.
Hardly see any at the sales.
The beef calves are worth more but they COST more too.
My best ones are black steers bought right. The last 2 did really well, especially what I had in them!

Saw a Hereford baby calf with a crooked head sell for $150 yesterday. Only baby calf they had, and he was split off the cow.

 

[kenny thomas]

What are people thinking when they buy something like that? Even with higher prices that will not likely ever be worth much.

 

[Ky hills]

What are people thinking when they buy something like that? Even with higher prices that will not likely ever be worth much.

I wonder that too. We were at the stockyards in Lexington the other day, and they sold some what should have been 3-4 weight calves but more like 200# that looked literally like imminent death. I couldn't believe they would have even got bid on them.

 

[MurraysMutts]

I sure get it, on the milk replacer and washing bottles etc. And this is so much more fun!!

Ya gonna dis-bud the heifer calf?
It's a loooong wait on those lil heifers. I'm still waiting on Opal! I'm gonna be so excited when she calves

 

[Ky hills]

Yeah, I'll use the electric de-horner.
Did you bull breed the heifer or AI?
I'll probably just let the bull breed this one.

 

[MurraysMutts]

Well, we thought she accidentally got bred with some of my other lil projects in there with her. But that didn't turn out.

Big Sexy made sure to let me know she was open. He got her. She will be along with a hereford sired calf in a couple months I hope!

 

[Ky hills]

Well, we thought she accidentally got bred with some of my other lil projects in there with her. But that didn't turn out.

Big Sexy made sure to let me know she was open. He got her. She will be along with a hereford sired calf in a couple months I hope!

She might have a brindle calf. I had a couple brindle red white faced out of Jersey Hereford crosses. That cross should make for you a good cow if it turns out to be a heifer.