# Adjusting to raw milk



## holliehmstd

I just wanted to see how everyone here that has not been a life-long raw milk drinker! has gotten themselves and their families adjusted to raw milk. I have little ones who guzzle milk and I am sure that those first tastes of milk once we have a cow are going to be so tempting. But I just want to make sure that we get our stomaches adjusted to all the good bacteria and don't shock our systems.


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## steff bugielski

I do not think they is any adjustment need. Raw is how your body likes food.


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## Rockytopsis

I don't do any thing when I have fresh milk but drink it. You could mix it half and half for a gallon or so if you feel the kids need to get used to it.
Nancy


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## BlackWillowFarm

I started drinking it about six years ago. Never had an adjustment period. If you think the kids might need one, give them about four ounces to drink, wait several hours and see what happens.


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## holliehmstd

okay! Sounds good to me. I have heard different people say they started off with a tablespoon and increased to a cup. The frugal mom in me thought that sounded weird and potentially wasteful. I am sure my kids will guzzle it right down. To each his own but if I finally get my fresh milk, bathroom breaks or not, we are drinking it!!


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## BlackWillowFarm

My BIL has five kids and when they come for a visit, they all sit down at the table and drink it by the gallon. Each one always asks for seconds. They've never had a problem with the milk when they're here. 

My daughter came for a visit last summer with my 18 month grandson. He was drinking bottles and bottles of the stuff. He wanted more and more. He did fine too.


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## matt_man

My kids just went straight to raw when we started milking cows and never had any trouble. Our twin girls were raised on it after 4 mo old because I couldn't nurse them. They are fat and happy 3 year olds now.


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## willow_girl

> But I just want to make sure that we get our stomaches adjusted to all the good bacteria


It's not the "good bacteria" you have to worry about; it's stuff like listeria and campylobacter. :yuck:

When I milked my own cows, I bought a vintage 2-gallon tabletop pasteurizer on eBay for less than $50 and used it religiously. Never got sick from the milk, nor did anyone else who drank it. The milk still was delicious, and we had fresh cream skimmed from the top, made butter and ice cream, etc. 

I'd highly recommend pasteurization of any milk used for home consumption, especially since a friend of mine was sickened from drinking raw milk and was crippled by Gullain-Barre syndrome (this despite having spent a lifetime taking care of cows). Better safe than sorry!

JMO. :shrug:


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## Dusky Beauty

I was pretty pro pasteurization when we got started because milk handling was all new to me--then on Christmas day I excused myself from the family party to drive home, do the milking and go back--- just didn't want to take the time to pasteurize. 
Skimmed twice, put it in the freezer--- tastes SO much better than when I boiled it and stays fresher longer. (The kids also suck it down faster than they did when I was pasteurizing.)

When I remember to drink a glass of milk (raw) I've noticed my nose isn't stuffy or runny the next day for the last week and a half. I forget and I get stuffy/runny/sneezy. 
My cows are healthy, my jars and pails are sanitized, I don't have outside exposures, I don't bring in new animals, I'm sanitary and fast to chill. 
I'm not too worried anymore.


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## holliehmstd

Dusky Beauty said:


> I was pretty pro pasteurization when we got started because milk handling was all new to me--then on Christmas day I excused myself from the family party to drive home, do the milking and go back--- just didn't want to take the time to pasteurize.
> Skimmed twice, put it in the freezer--- tastes SO much better than when I boiled it and stays fresher longer. (The kids also suck it down faster than they did when I was pasteurizing.)
> 
> When I remember to drink a glass of milk (raw) I've noticed my nose isn't stuffy or runny the next day for the last week and a half. I forget and I get stuffy/runny/sneezy.
> My cows are healthy, my jars and pails are sanitized, I don't have outside exposures, I don't bring in new animals, I'm sanitary and fast to chill.
> I'm not too worried anymore.


Yeah, there is no point to me to do all that work and not enjoy the milk without pastuerization. Just MHO. I know that there are reasons to pastuerize in a large scale dairy operation but that is not me and not what I want. Closed herd, sanitary practices, cooling quickly and testing seem to be better than boiling off anything that is beneficial. And it is an extra step that I don't have to take...which is important in this busy household!!


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## LettucePatch

My family started drinking "raw" milk about 3 years ago. 

We found it occasionally at the farmers market when a certain family was there. My kids never knew which kind of milk was in their glass, but they always drank the gallon of "raw" milk in just a day or two vs the pasturized, store bought gallon would last nearly a week.

Since we have moved out of the city into the country, we have a wonderful lady that we purchase milk from. We have also bought a milk cow that is due early summer. We purchased a milk goat last spring and love her milk and the cheese that we made from it.


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## Chaty

I have had a milk cow and I also have milk goats...no adjustment at all...I do better on goats milk and that is all we drink anymore. Decided goats are cheaper and I dont need 4 gallons of milk each day from 1 cow. No one here ever knew the difference, I think its better tasting and my DH went on a drink milk only diet and lost 10 lbs in a week and all he did was drink raw goats milk...only...!


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## laurajean23

I transitioned my family to raw milk a couple years ago when my oldest was 2. I wouldn't let her drink much milk before the switch, and now both of them guzzle it down like it's going out of style! None of us had any problems with gut bacteria adjusting to it, and we jumped in with both feet.


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## Laverne

I pasturized goats milk once to make cheddar cheese. I did a low temp. pasturization, I think was 145 F. I went ahead and added culture and rennet. Made the curd. That curd was like rubber and would not meld together to make the cheddar. I came to the conclusion that even lower pasturization damaged the milk.


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## arnie

You know how to handle your milk keep every thing clean if your cow is healthy and clean .I started with the pasturizer but it hasn't been used I belive that useing the raw milk and honey grown in your local en iroment they share the antibodies and imunables with you helping to prevent you from grtting I'll. Just my own opinion .never had a cold in years


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## theemon

im so curious about this myself, id love to find someone local with goats milk to try. im hoping to have a milking goat in the future but never drank goats milk...


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## commonsense

No transition period for us either...cow calved, I started milking her, as soon as her milk cleared, we started drinking it, and that was that. No pasteurized milk since, and never a single problem.


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## haypoint

Just get it tested for ecoli, staph, listeria and campylobacter and let them drink all they want.


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## BlackWillowFarm

haypoint said:


> Just get it tested for ecoli, staph, listeria and campylobacter and let them drink all they want.


Sounds like good advice.


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## TRAILRIDER

When I brought each of my does home they were milking. I milked each one and strained, cooled and tasted the milk. One is a Saanen, one a Toggenburg and one an Alpine/Nubian. All their milk was wonderful, with a very tiny difference between them. Soon as I brought them home we started drinking nothing but raw goats milk. It never tasted odd to me. But now if I had to drink cows milk from the store it tastes awful. More like milk flavored water. that's just my opinion. But I am partial to my goats!


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## Miss Kay

The whole point with raw milk is you want the enzymes and good bacteria that pasturizing would kill. But, just remember that milk is only as safe as that particular cow, on that particular day, with that particular milking. You must get it clean, very clean, each and every milking. We use a milker and I like that it is a closed system. No bugs, no dust, nothing to get into it from teat to container. I strive to make sure I never ever see anything in the strainer. If I do, then I failed somewhere in the cleaning department that milking. I trust my milk but I may not trust anyone elses. But when you do it right, nothing is better!


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## DroppedAtBirth

I've found it most interesting that most "probiotics" I've seen marketed are naturally occurring bacteria found in raw milk. I don't know that I'd be willing to buy raw from someone else but we drink all of our jersey's milk raw and have heard it compared to vanilla ice cream and milk shakes by visiting friends/family.


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