The " Christmas Cows"

Comet and Dancer came to me shortly after "Big Elley". I was still working with Elley and trying to calm her a bit when my husbands cousin in Montana called and asked if we were still looking for a milk cow. This was all in April-May of 2008. She had a friend in Victor Idaho who has a small Organic Dairy farm. He had a couple 4 year old Brown Swiss cows he was looking to sell and was worried he would have to sell them at an auction.

Russell said if I was interested I should call on them and see if we could get them at a good price. Two cows is a lot of money! So I called and talked with the owner. He said he would give me a good deal on them if I would take both cows as they were born a week apart and had grown up together and he could not see them being apart.

All the arrangements were set including me "promising" my doctor that I wouldn't go on any trips out of town being so close to giving birth myself. All said we ( including me ) loaded up in the truck again and traveled up to Victor Idaho. We arrived at the farm the cows were at and had to wait for the owner to show up. He was out irrigating one of his Organic pastures. When he showed up we walked back to where the cows were at. Comet was the one with the star and white feet and Dancer was the solid brown. These were the "Christmas cows" as the names state. Plus we found out they were both born in December.

Honestly they looked very intimidating with those horns! What had I got myself into this time! I already had one cow I couldn't touch and a calf that was still a year off at that point from having a calf! But me being me, I couldn't go all that way to come home because horns were intimidating.

We pulled the trailer around to the barn and got all set up to load them in. Come to find out the calves that were on them were going also. Mike didn't want them and couldn't sell them for much with being just a month and 2 months old. So cows and calves loaded, Paper work in hand, A quick conversation and once again we were on our way home with our new cows.

Now was the challenge of milking them. How was I going to do this being pregnant and all. The kids had never milked before and me only a few times when I helped out my friend. At least I didn't have to do it by hand. I had ordered a milk machine and a couple buckets and strainer and all the goods BEFORE I got my first cow.

My milk shed was not yet finished or cleaned out as it had been used for storage and hadn't had a milk cow in it for 40 some years. But it had the stanchions still, just needed lots of cleaning and re arranging. So instead I used the boys portable wash stanchion for the 4H steers. I ran the cows down a little ally way into the stanchion, they had to back out and this was hard to get them to do.

I got the first one in had all my stuff set up and was able to bend my fat pregnant belly over far enough to milk the cow. And what would you guess happened? Whack!! she kicked me right in the leg! I was so mad! But these were my cows and they had to be milked. I was determined to get the job done. I was in to deep to back out now and also had to teach the boys to milk as it was already June 16th and I was due to give birth any time in the next week or so.

So I finished milking the first "Bad Cow" and proceeded with the next. Got her moved in and washed up. All the while doing the best I could in case feet came flying at me. She just chewed her grain and waited. I got her hooked up to the machine and milked out with no issues. Thank goodness that was over!

The next few days were spent working with the cows and the kids and finally a phone call to my friend begging her to milk when I went into labor. No way were the boys going to be ready to milk while I was away! Not any issue other than they needed more time and the cows were still giving me fits at milking time!

But that first glass of good Fresh Raw Milk from my own cows was so worth every pain and ache and trip and everything that had already gone into it! And I was on my way to becoming a dairy cow milk maid. It was looking to be a great summer! 3 new cows already that year ( Elley, Comet and Dancer ) and a new baby of our own on the way!