# Mini/Old World Jersey



## StarofHearts (Jan 6, 2014)

Does anyone have any experience with this breed? My husband and I are looking to educate ourselves on dairy breeds and I came across this breed and I am charmed. 

We have a family of 6 just as a note for quantity of milk to be consumed. LOL


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## Donna from Mo (Jan 8, 2003)

I have no experience with mini-Jerseys. From what I have seen, they are over-priced and dwarf-looking. Just buy yourself a small Jersey someplace. Forget the "mini" aspect. However, I am always ready to admit that I could be wrong, never having owned a mini-Jersey.


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## StarofHearts (Jan 6, 2014)

The larger size was bred into the Jerseys, traditional "old world" jerseys we considerably smaller. They can still produce 2-7 gallons a day and require less food for their output. For a small time homestead they are kind of perfect. A larger cow that I will have to spend considerably more on feeding defeats the purpose of having a dairy cow, spending less than 3.50 for 1 stinking gallon of milk.


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## txplowgirl (Oct 15, 2007)

I don't have a cow but am hoping maybe 1 day. Anyway, I came across this forum where you might be able to get some info. 

Some of these ladies have Jerseys. 

http://familycow.proboards.com


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## kycrawler (Sep 18, 2011)

We have a small jersey herd to raise bottle calves with . All of my jerseys are out of amish /mennonite lines . In my opinion mini jerseys are an over priced fad . Jersey heifers can be bought at breeding age for $4-500 if you know where to look and i just sold 4 springer jersey heifers for $900 each the prices asked for some of the mini jerseys are crazy . My cows weigh in the average of 650-700 lbs most milk about 4 gallons a day on some grain and good hay . I would personally rather have an average holstein jersey cross with a good personality for a family cow than any mini jersey If you time the auctions right the crossbred springer cows can be bought very cheap I have bought some in the 4-500 range bred and ready to calve . So i guess my advice would be to worry more about the cow than the breed


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## StarofHearts (Jan 6, 2014)

Okay... Asking for actual experience with the animals not opinions about cost. If the animals in general are sound then I am interested in them whatever the cost. I know they run expensive $2000-$5000, but at 400lbs with a 2-7 gallon a day out put the money I'd save in feed alone would make them comparable to a full size.


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## Farmer Jayne (Oct 21, 2013)

Ok, I've owned one mini jersey and one mini jersey-dexter cross. Neither of them survived. They are the only cows I've lost that weren't bottle babies. The mini jersey was prone to worms and seemed to pick up every parasite and infection around. I raised her with a jersey heifer and a brown swiss bull calf and they are still fine and have always been healthy. It could be that she was just a "poor doer" and it had nothing to do with her being a mini. 
The jersey dexter cross was very hardy and healthy. We bred her at 18 months to a mini bull known for siring small calves. She didn't survive the birth even with the vet's help. The calf ended up all twisted inside of her with it's head back and the heifer was so small they couldn't get it turned around or even use the fetal-tome (sp) on it.
The closest I will get to a mini now is a Dexter. It could have been bad luck or the mini's had special needs we weren't able to deal with. I am sure there are people out there who have had better luck, but I would not recommend them.


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## StarofHearts (Jan 6, 2014)

Thank you Farmer Jayne! That is helpful, it gives me a few questions to ask a breeder should I decide to look at one.


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## Oakshire_Farm (Dec 4, 2008)

I have 3 Jersey cows and I cross them to my dexter bull. They make a wonderful cross! I have a waiting list of people looking for small family milk cows. 

The oldest calves I have sold are pregnant with their second calves, they are a small cow, standing 42" tall and with the calves on them 50% or the time and being milked once a day they are giving 5-7lt of milk per day!


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## kycrawler (Sep 18, 2011)

StarofHearts said:


> Okay... Asking for actual experience with the animals not opinions about cost. If the animals in general are sound then I am interested in them whatever the cost. I know they run expensive $2000-$5000, but at 400lbs with a 2-7 gallon a day out put the money I'd save in feed alone would make them comparable to a full size.


 
Ok bear with my math here for a minute say you can buy a big 800 lb jersey cow for $500 or a 400 lb mini for $2500 the differance is $2000 and 400 lbs 3% per body weight dry matter consumption on 400 lb differance is 12 lbs of feed x 365 days per year 4380 lbs of dry matter at $145 per ton means it costs $317 dollars more per year to feed the big girl so in 6.3 years your mini jersey costs the same as feeding a full size jersey . What the numbers dont show is that the larger cow will produce more milk in that time period on equivalent feed 
expecting 3+ gallons per day from a mini jersey on average feed isnt going to work


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## haypoint (Oct 4, 2006)

StarofHearts said:


> Okay... Asking for actual experience with the animals not opinions about cost. If the animals in general are sound then I am interested in them whatever the cost. I know they run expensive $2000-$5000, but at 400lbs with a 2-7 gallon a day out put the money I'd save in feed alone would make them comparable to a full size.


Please bear with us, StarofHearts, there's a wealth of experience here and you'll get a lot of answers for questions you didn't ask and many you didn't know enough to ask. You can't put the stinkin price of a gallon of milk in a post and then not expect to get dollar and sense answers. Just the way people think. 
I find it amusing when people that know nothing about milk cows want to get something obscure. Like those that have cattle somehow overlooked the most obvious choice. If it were more economical to have mini- Jerseys, wouldn't everyone have been raising them? 
There is a great sense of satisfaction having your own milk cow. But the buying one, keeping her fed, bred, milked, needed Vet care, bedding, shelter, you might not be saving any money. Ever been tied down to an every 12 hour milking schedule? As you exit a 310 day milking cycle, that milk at $3.50 starts sounding reasonable, if not too cheap.
I doubt there would be a great feed difference between a high producing mini-Jersey and a low producing standard Jersey. But, that is just my opinion and you didn't ask for that.


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## Awnry Abe (Mar 21, 2012)

StarofHearts, I'll go way out on a limb and assume that we are cut out of the same cloth. At least I see and agree with your point of view. That being said, you will need to mini-ize the whole operation. I tend to overlook such details until it is too late and find myself scrambling for breeding stock at the last minute. Being surrounded by a big-beef world, I opted for dairy cows that were a bit bigger so I could breed them with the bull I use for beef, which is a little easier to come by. One of my three girls, that first-freshened last march with a difficult calving, didn't mature like I had hoped and now I have a bit of anxiety about this March. I'm praying for an early heifer. Her two pasture mates did mature like I had hoped, but they weren't of concern to begin with.

I wish you well in any event. We are first year rookies and are absolutely loving the family dairy cow experience. I don't think you'll have a problem coming up with enough milk for a family of 6, except maybe on days when a batch of fresh brownies is made!


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## cedarcreekranch (Nov 24, 2010)

I have 3 Jersey cows, 2 were bottle babies from a dairy and 3rd is about 40" tall, so a larger mini. The one larger Jersey has been so touchy after she calves, prone to milk fever, and hard to keep weight on but she is such a sweet cow I can't bear to sell her. The other 2 have both been easy keepers, raised several bottle calves each, and are nice tempered cows. I can't say there's anything inherently wrong with minis if my little one is any example. But I't think twice about shelling out thousands of dollars for one.


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## SueMc (Jan 10, 2010)

I don't have an opinion on the breed but thought you might like this website:
http://minijerseysbydexter.homestead.com/index.html
He apparently is a well known breeder and appears to have beautiful little jerseys. He could give you all the pros and cons of owning mini's plus a very accurate idea of pounds of milk/cow/day. I've thought about visiting as he lives about 45 miles from me. I love my Guernseys and don't mind their medium size so would not be interested in "trading down" (just a joke!).
I've also seen a mini jersey herd near Arthur, IL in case you're close enough to Central IL to shop for your cows around here. I could get contact info for that farm if you're interested. I frequent an Amish dairy supply store and the owner knows about everyone in the area with a cow.


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## StarofHearts (Jan 6, 2014)

Thank you guys for your honest opinions. I kind of feel like some people aren't giving helpful opinions, if all you tell me is that they are expensive it is not helpful. I am aware they are more expensive and it just comes across as snotty and rude. It makes me want too leave this forum because I feel like my question was ignored and I was spoken down to.

OakShire: Thank you! Very helpful information, I hadn't heard of the dexter jersey cross before. How big (lbs) do they get?

Kycrawler: That math is very helpful!! I've never owned a cow so I have no idea how much they cost (on average) to feed, I just know that a smaller animal eats less. lol I know that full size cows will likely produce more, I just don't know how much I'll be able to use, if I get a full size cow who is producing 10 gallons a day I'm going to have a huge over abundance of milk, there is only so much butter and cheese I can make after all. That is why I was interested in the mini to begin with, plus with the animal being smaller she should be easier to handle for some one with no experience.

Haypoint: I have 4 kids, the amount of milk my family can go through in a week is obscene. LOL But I still think that a full size cow would produce too much for us to handle. 

Awnry: Most breeders that I have looked at know that stock is few and far between so they offer AI straws and usually sell a large number from many unrelated bulls so that wouldn't be to bad as long as I remembered to order the straws on time LOL.

Cedar: The one cow sounds like she's a little hormonal after she calves (I feel her pain).

Sue: AWESOME! Thank you! <3


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## haypoint (Oct 4, 2006)

Sorry that the replies sounded like you didn't know what you were getting into. Open discussions can be like that. I wish you all the luck in the world finding the elusive ideal family cow.


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## SueMc (Jan 10, 2010)

Star, I don't think anyone was trying to be mean. Stick around and you'll find people here are very, very helpful and encouraging in whatever endeavors you ask about!
I'm pretty thick skinned but I would puff up like a poison toad sometimes when Haypoint would say some things especially about raw milk, but he adds a lot to many discussions and we all have an opinion. Plus I respect anyone who sticks with what he/she says when others are fighting back! 
Besides, he can build a good looking barn and will share how to do it!

Something else to think about regarding mini's is how close to the ground you're going to have to go to milk one of those little girls!


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## StarofHearts (Jan 6, 2014)

SueMc said:


> Star, I don't think anyone was trying to be mean. Stick around and you'll find people here are very, very helpful and encouraging in whatever endeavors you ask about!
> I'm pretty thick skinned but I would puff up like a poison toad sometimes when Haypoint would say some things especially about raw milk, but he adds a lot to many discussions and we all have an opinion. Plus I respect anyone who sticks with what he/she says when others are fighting back!
> Besides, he can build a good looking barn and will share how to do it!
> 
> Something else to think about regarding mini's is how close to the ground you're going to have to go to milk one of those little girls!


I'm not hurt, just irritated. I don't care if people think it's an expensive animal, I care about the quality of the breed. 

The sites that I have visited before have said that they train their minis to use a milk stand like a Goat.


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## Awnry Abe (Mar 21, 2012)

StarofHearts said:


> I'm not hurt, just irritated. I don't care if people think it's an expensive animal, I care about the quality of the breed.
> 
> The sites that I have visited before have said that they train their minis to use a milk stand like a Goat.


Now, that would be a luxury! One of these days, I am going to bend down to attach the claw and never get back up!


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## StarofHearts (Jan 6, 2014)

Awnry Abe said:


> Now, that would be a luxury! One of these days, I am going to bend down to attach the claw and never get back up!


I don't see why you couldn't train a full size cow to use one as long as it's built sturdily enough.


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## cybercat (Mar 29, 2005)

What we did is buy a Jersey cross. She was bred to a jersey/guernsey that was smaller than her. Our cow was in milk and had an adopted jersey/ angus heifer on her. I paid $850.00 for them. I would not dish out the money to buy registered Mini because I can breed down to it with a regular jersey. It might take longer but it is more fun too. Deals like this are much easier to find. Minis are not easy to find or get hold of in adults. Only the young are for sale and then you have to wait three years to have milk. Waste of time and money in feeding.

Now on temperament. Jerseys can be a bit much to handle when they are large size. The bulls are known for being the worst of all the cattle. But this does not apply to the so called minis. From what I have seen and learned from those that have them the bulls are alot easier to handle. The small Jersey does not give as much milk more like 3 to 5 gallons as opposed the larger ones giving 6 and up in gallons. Our jersey cross is giving us milk and feeding the calf. We get in our morning milking over a gallon from front teats and calf does back teats. We do not take evening milk.


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## cybercat (Mar 29, 2005)

What we did is buy a Jersey cross. She was bred to a jersey/guernsey that was smaller than her. Our cow was in milk and had an adopted jersey/ angus heifer on her. I paid $850.00 for them. I would not dish out the money to buy registered Mini because I can breed down to it with a regular jersey. It might take longer but it is more fun too. Deals like this are much easier to find. Minis are not easy to find or get hold of in adults. Only the young are for sale and then you have to wait three years to have milk. Waste of time and money in feeding.

Now on temperament. Jerseys can be a bit much to handle when they are large size. The bulls are known for being the worst of all the cattle. But this does not apply to the so called minis. From what I have seen and learned from those that have them the bulls are alot easier to handle. The small Jersey does not give as much milk more like 3 to 5 gallons as opposed the larger ones giving 6 and up in gallons. Our jersey cross is giving us milk and feeding the calf. We get in our morning milking over a gallon from front teats and calf does back teats. We do not take evening milk.


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## haypoint (Oct 4, 2006)

We need to be very careful to advise anyone on temperament . There are some that think Dexters are as tame as lambs. I have seen a few that were wild as the wind. My jersey would let me put my arm over her neck and lead her anywhere. Stood in pasture while I milked her, untied. 
In general terms, dairy bulls can be mean, but all bulls pose great danger.
Part is genetics, part training. 
But if you are training to the point of your cow getting up on a milking platform or any other tricks, you will have already formed a strong bond and invested much time.

IMHO, once a day milking often leads to mastitis that can damage a cow. I do not recommend it.


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## suzyhomemaker09 (Sep 24, 2004)

OK one thing that I have noticed lacking in the thread about mini cattle is the mention of Chondrodysplasia and how it affects breeding.
If you are planning on having just a single cow and doing AI on her it's easier to use straws that have been tested...but then you'll also need to know the genetics of the cow you have to be more aware of the breeding possibilities that you will have.


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## StarofHearts (Jan 6, 2014)

From the feed back in this thread I think the mini breed is too unstable at the moment for me to indulge in. I do know I want a SMALL Dairy cow. So now my question to you all, what is your favorite breed of SMALL dairy cow? I have 4 kids (7-5-3-1), 2 of whom are moderately hard of hearing and thus remarkably LOUDDDD! lol So the cow I get (I don't care if it's a "mutt" as long as it's a dairy mix) needs to be mellow and not prone to starting/shying. I know each animal is an individual and I will consider that when I go to buy the animal, I'm looking for breed generalities. 

Thanks a bunch you guys!


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## Awnry Abe (Mar 21, 2012)

I need to post a picture of our small dairy cow. I don't know what breed she is. She is remarkably smaller than our our other two dairy cows (a Jersey and a Brown Swiss)--who are remarkably smaller than our average beef cow. She is hideously ugly, has a fish teat---but out produces the other two combined. Each day. No joke. (That is a knock against the other two--or more importantly me. I let their production drop too low because of mismanagement.) With all three, I can see only minor variations in their ease of handling. The largest of the three is actually easiest to handle during the milking routine. But she is totally not fun to work with out in pasture. Contrarily, the smallest is stubborn during milking, but a breeze to work with out in pasture. Go figure. YMMV. But as for generalities, all three are keepers. (except the one that occasionally tries to knock my block off). 

I think mellowness comes from the routine of milking. There is occasional calamity in the milk room that I will think will have them unglued, but doesn't. Then there are other things, like a stray piece of trash fluttering in the air, that spooks them. They will quickly become accustomed to your kids. 

One thing that may have made a big difference is that I got all three as young heifers--six months old-ish. They got used to me and my nube-ile ways. I've since read that this isn't the best way for a newbie to start, but I'm glad I didn't know then because I wouldn't have these three awesome cows.

Alright, I just said a whole lot of nothing. If I had to do it all over again, I would select a breed known for a moderate to heavy cream content. In my tiny, limited view of the domain, that eliminates only the Holstein. After that, I'd throw breed out the window and start evaluating the individual cow.


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## Farmer Jayne (Oct 21, 2013)

Just to stir the pot, our best milker so far was a Florida Cracker Cow. I know that they are not available where you are, but I mention it because no one around here considers these dairy cows, although they used to be widely used as a dual purpose family cow. Folks thought we were crazy because she wasn't a "milk cow". However, she is smart, easy to handle, and gave us 1-3 gallons a day with awesome cream. And, crossed with our Dexter bull, she makes the nicest babies with the roundest butts I've seen. 
My point is, all cows can be milk cows. Don't write off a good cow just because she's not a Jersey .


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## copperhead46 (Jan 25, 2008)

I think one of the best so far is the Jersey/Dexter cross. You get a nice manageable size, more milk from the Jersey side and a little beefier from the Dexter side, if it's a steer you want to butcher. I know a couple of folks who breed them and they make a nice family cow. I'm glad you are kind of going off the "mini"...I have had minis and a lot of them are bred down culls. Check the web for Bellfaire cattle, that's the pretty name for the cross.


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## Ziptie (May 16, 2013)

Our info..
We have 4 kids (all small). Everyone is a big milk drinker. We have a Jersey paid $1200 bred about 3-4 years ago. She weighs about 800lb. Great with our kids, dangerous around strangers, and pigs(she really really really hates them). 
When I milk her(we have a machine) don't even need to tie her. When my hubby milks hers he has to tie her and has made a board contraption so she does not kick him. When she first calves we milk her every day only in the morning (~4 gallons per milking). At this point I try to make soft and hard cheeses (really don't have a good place for them to cure though) and have a few pigs. Once the calf gets bigger we milk every other day. When we don't get enough milk we start separating the calf at night. Calf is now 10 months old. We are milking her every other day and getting (2 gallons a milking). If we have too much milk I just make a batch of cc cookies.:bouncy: 

Was thinking along the same line as you a few years ago. The minis were just too spendy and I wasn't going to drive all over the county to get one. I had to go to another state just to get the cow we have. 

Good Luck!


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## DamnearaFarm (Sep 27, 2007)

Glad you've changed your mind, StarOfHearts.

When you're looking for an animal for pet purposes, I think it's fine to go out there, if you want.
When you're looking for a working animal, sometimes it's just better to find a way to make an established, well known and less expensive breed fit your needs. A smaller dairy cross sounds perfect for you. I plan on looking for the same when I get out of milk goats and into a milk cow. 
Good luck and keep us posted.


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## haypoint (Oct 4, 2006)

Because I've had Jerseys, I vote you get a pure Jersey and you breed her to Jersey. Very calm cows. Do get the horns off any cow you get. Jerseys tend to give a higher percentage of cream, so you'll get more butter.


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## StarofHearts (Jan 6, 2014)

haypoint said:


> Because I've had Jerseys, I vote you get a pure Jersey and you breed her to Jersey. Very calm cows. Do get the horns off any cow you get. Jerseys tend to give a higher percentage of cream, so you'll get more butter.


You've never had any issues with difficult personalities?


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## StarofHearts (Jan 6, 2014)

Farmer Jayne said:


> Just to stir the pot, our best milker so far was a Florida Cracker Cow. I know that they are not available where you are, but I mention it because no one around here considers these dairy cows, although they used to be widely used as a dual purpose family cow. Folks thought we were crazy because she wasn't a "milk cow". However, she is smart, easy to handle, and gave us 1-3 gallons a day with awesome cream. And, crossed with our Dexter bull, she makes the nicest babies with the roundest butts I've seen.
> My point is, all cows can be milk cows. Don't write off a good cow just because she's not a Jersey .


What on God's green is a "Florida Cracker Cow"? I want one just because I love the name!! LOL :bouncy:


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## Awnry Abe (Mar 21, 2012)

StarofHearts said:


> What on God's green is a "Florida Cracker Cow"? I want one just because I love the name!! LOL :bouncy:


They only eat crackers made of OJ.

We met a couple on a cruise a while back that milked an angus as their family cow for many years. They moved from NYC to Missouri and one of the first things they did was went out a bought a little black heifer so they could milk. Everyone one told them "they were wrong", but they didn't see the conventional wisdom and had a wonderful symbiotic relationship with a beef cow. To me, their story says that a person can do very unconventional things and still come out smelling like a rose.


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## haypoint (Oct 4, 2006)

Awnry Abe said:


> They only eat crackers made of OJ.
> 
> We met a couple on a cruise a while back that milked an angus as their family cow for many years. They moved from NYC to Missouri and one of the first things they did was went out a bought a little black heifer so they could milk. Everyone one told them "they were wrong", but they didn't see the conventional wisdom and had a wonderful symbiotic relationship with a beef cow. To me, their story says that a person can do very unconventional things and still come out smelling like a rose.


The road to where is paved with good intentions.
Sure, Wild Bill Cody broke a Bison to ride in the circus, but it wasn't his first ride. I saw a photo where a boy taught a pair of turkeys to pull a little wagon. I'm sure he did little else that summer.
Just as draft horses have to be easy to manage, disposition is critical. Same for beef cows vs milk cows. Gentleness isn't critical, not even really important, in beef cattle. A spooky milk cow would create hardships in the barn twice a day. Because you intend to milk her, a milk cow will be handled more, restrained for milking, trained well before calving. Beef cows won't get combed much if ever. A dairy cow needs to be combed and kept clean, to insure the milk is kept as clean as possible. So, a gentile cow by nature, with plenty of hands on training, tends to create a gentile cow. Jerseys are quite a bit smaller than the most common Holsteins. 
A milk breed bull is another story and any bull calves you get should be banded as soon as possible.


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## barnbilder (Jul 1, 2005)

My grandmother milked Herefords, lot's of people around here milked Herefords or Shorthorns, way back when. I have a neighbor that has always milked beef breeds, even Charolais. There are some really calm and laid back beef cows out there. Just go to a 4-h show and you will see that some of them are very tame and able to be groomed. That being said, there is a reason that dairy breeds are dairy breeds, the beef breeds don't put out a lot of milk, although the milk that they do put out is rich and creamy. But a dairy breed would certainly give you more consistent results.

We came across a mid/mini Jersey heifer. While in search of a bull, we settled on breeding her to a standard jersey with small stature scores on his daughters. One thing that is alarming about the minis, a lot of people selling them don't have pictures of cows in milk, and some of the pictures out there are not very flattering. There is also, apparently, no DHI testing being done on the minis, so there are no milk records. I'm sorry, but the whole point of a milk cow is milk. It needs to milk more than a goat to be worth feeding even what a mini sized cow will eat. "Cuteness" is a good sales gimmick, but when they are too short to fit a receptacle under their udder that is big enough to hold their milk, it is time to breed some legs back on some of them.


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## Farmer Jayne (Oct 21, 2013)

StarofHearts said:


> What on God's green is a "Florida Cracker Cow"? I want one just because I love the name!! LOL :bouncy:


Florida Crackers are cousins of the Long Horn. When the Spaniards came to the New World in the 1500's they brought cows. These later became the Long Horns in Texas and Mexico, and the Crackers in Florida. Here's a website: http://www.floridacrackercattle.org/
If I did the pics correctly, the first one is my beautiful Bella, the second is her bull calf from 2013 and the third is her heifer from 2012. The dad to both of these is a Dexter bull.


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## Terri (May 10, 2002)

My husband's family is from a place where small farms are (or were) mostly expected to feed the family as well as produce a paycheck.

One favorite way to produce milk for the family was to have a half-dairy cow. A half-bred cow would produce enough milk for the family, and if they bred her to a beef bull they got a calf that would be worth something for beef, and if a heifer was kept she might make a good milk cow as well. It was not unusual to see milk cows that were 1/4 dairy.

A popular way of handling these part-dairy milk cows was to bring them into the barn at night and separate the calf. In the morning the cow would be milked and then the cow and calf would be turned out to graze: the milk for the rest of the day would be for the calf. So, the owner of a half dairy cow or a quarter dairy cow would be milking once a day.

I do not own a dairy cow and I do not know any more than that: this is what I have been told by my husband's Uncle who lived in the area.


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## barnbilder (Jul 1, 2005)

I hope the people in marketing at the American Angus Association don't catch wind of the fact that beef breeds can be milked. Then we will have genuine Angus milk, and you won't be able to give away Jerseys at the sale barn.


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## SueMc (Jan 10, 2010)

Star, before you give up on the mini's (don't get me wrong, I'm not a big fan of mini anything), check out the mini jersey sites. I think yahoo groups may have a couple of them. You'll should get good opinions from folks who raise the breed.
I love anything cow so think you'd be happy with any big (or small) calm, doe eyed, friendly cow who's happy to see you twice a day, especially if you have a big brush in your hand for quality time after milking!
Cows are awesome! They truly are the gift that keeps on giving.


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## Lost-Nation (Dec 15, 2005)

Disclaimer: I'm a dairy goat person who "dabbles" in cows, having a pet/beloved Guernsey family milk cow for the past 7 or so years & just recently adding Jerseys - little-ish ones, but not those waist-high ones that cost a couple of appendages just b/c they're cute & small, & trendy. (there are a couple of mini breeders who are also breeding for nice udders & good production, on milk-test & everything, but sorry, the majority are breeding novelty pasture decoration type things to make $$$)

I don't know abt asking the breeders of the $$$ Minis - of COURSE they'll tell you how fabulous they are & how your life isn't complete without one, LOL!

I wholeheartedly agree w/ the people who are talking about efficiency. I don't see any sense in feeding something that eats as much as 8 goats, & gives as much milk as 1 good goat, either. It's a farmer thing. We can't help it. ig:

Matter o' fact, I bought one of those a couple of months ago in the form of a smaller-statured Jersey (46" at the hip). I bought her w/ an even smaller-statured Jersey (43" at the hip so qualifies as a Mid-Sized Mini) who gives 3.5 gallons (both first fresheners, BTW), is as sweet as can be, & doesn't require a bunch of fancy feedstuffs to keep giving pretty close to that much milk, even being accustomed to the silage/grain/etc. commercial dairy diet & transitioning over to my minimal grain/grass-based regimen.

I got a really good deal on them b/c the kid was wanting to go "Show Holstein" with his herd & had his eye on some $$$ stock, so wanted them outa there & the $ in there ASAP, to go buy his fancy show heifer, LOL. He also fell in love w/ our Farmcollie puppies & suggested deducting her price from their purchase price

I sold the bigger/low production one just a couple of weeks after their purchase b/c she was one of those "stereotypical temperamental Jerseys" you always hear about. Plus, I really do NOT see any sense in feeding something that big, that much, only to get a gallon & a half of milk. That's some expensive pig feed! (their primary job right now is finishing out pigs, LOL)

I also agree w/ whomever said to just make your own - find a nice, smaller statured Jersey, if possible - if not, just a **nice** Jersey since that's most important - & breed her to smaller-statured bulls!:clap:

I'm a research junkie & keep a close eye on "the market" to be sure the price is fair for what I'm buying or selling, & Jersey milk cows are running anywhere from $1000 up to double that, just depending on if they're in milk, bred back, how much they're producing, how "family milk cow-ish" they are, pregnancy tested, location, stuff like that. All of those criteria hold monetary value & factor into price. 

& oh yeah, be careful b/c they're pretty addictive! After selling that persnickety low-producing milker, I bought a group of heifers that I didn't need - but boy were they cute & awwww, in need of TLC (& I'm a sucker, LOL) & . . . yeah. It's hard not to succumb!


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## commonsense (Jun 1, 2008)

I keep a small dairy herd that is mainly comprised of Jerseys, small-statured but not minis. I had a few large breed dairy cows, but they really do eat more, take up more space, push around the smaller cows, etc, so I sold them and kept a really nice bull calf to raise as my replacement bull. He is a pure Jersey bull, but short, so I will continue to keep my future cows on the small side. 

I like the smaller cows, but really have no desire to go "mini", just because it's harder to attach milking equipment to a low cow with a full udder. And, we have zero calving issues, everyone is sized just right. 

Temperament-wise, I only had one jersey who was nasty. She was a phenomenal milker though, so as soon as I got a heifer from her, I sold her. A couple of my jerseys are a little flighty, but they settle down well into a routine and become very sweet. 

So for me, my ideal herd is small, but not mini.


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## Bellaforte (Oct 12, 2012)

I know this thread is 2 years old, but MAN is that information useful! I was looking at mini-cows (my family eats a lot of dairy products, doesn't drink a ton of milk and we don't plan on selling) so was thinking minis made sense, but you guys are convincing me to look into small Dexters and other just plain smaller cows of other breeds. 

I can't put into words how helpful having all of you guys' knowledge is as we're researching/planning!


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## farmerdan (Aug 17, 2004)

I milk on a grass fed organic dairy farm. Some of the cattle are Jerseys. I believe they came from an Amish farm in Wisconsin. They are very short and milk well. I milked registered Jerseys in the 80's and they were 1-2 feet taller than the Jerseys on the farm I milk on now.


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