I wanted to document a milking in pictures for you. This was easier said than done as I needed to bring in people unfamiliar with my camera (Our John and Tall Teenager) to take the actual pictures. And there is no way to set it up. Milking time is milking time! So, this post has taken three days to make. Usually I ONLY post what happened in the last 24 hours. But to get the complete story we needed a couple of reshoots. If I knew I was making a documentary I would have been sure to wear the same thing for each take but ah well. I have to work with Daisy and ignore my camera people so it took us a while.
Before I begin to milk I bring Daisy in off the field to settle in the yards by the milking parlour. Hairy MacLairy always comes too and stations himself under the tree to wait.
The first thing I do is rinse out the bucket and the lines with very hot water. Daisy comes to the door the minute she hears the quiet chug of the little pump. When I am ready I ring her bell and in she comes. Cows are clumsy and being so large they are awkward in a small space so we always work quietly, doing exactly the same thing every day in the same order, so she does not get anxious and hurt herself or me. She has a tether on the wall. And her bin is full of treats – greens from the garden (she loves cabbage) and alfalfa cubes, barley and oats. Not much. Just enough for a treat and to help her get into the routine. She can see cabbage in her feeder! 
After she is settled I clean her teats thoroughly with warm water, anything that touches the cups has to be spotless. She is on the pasture all day so she has not been very dirty so far. 
I turn the pump back on. Then attach the cups. 
The milk immediately starts to flow, at speed, down the line and audibly gushes into the bucket. She relaxes and chomps away.
If I keep my hand on her she is quiet. When we are by ourselves I might sing to her. Porgy and Bess is her favourite score so far. Oklahoma comes a close second. (Both records my parents had when we were kids growing up by the sea, so I know every word of every part!!) We usually don’t get very far as the milking is over in about three minutes. 
When the milk has stopped flowing I cut the suction and take off the cups. Then her teats are annointed with an Iodine wash. It is not pretty but it is best to keep any wee bugs out of the udder. Iodine is old fashioned but no bacteria can live in iodine. Anyone milking cows is fastidious about hygiene. 
I untether her but often she does not notice anyway. I went to untether her last night and discovered that I had not even put the clip on her collar. She had just stood there anyway. 
Watch out for that tail! Then I slap her on her rump and tell her to go outside and she follows me out, I open the big gates again and she and Hairy Maclairy wander back out into the fields. 
So far she is averaging 33 pounds or 16 kg of milk, each milking time. That is 3.8 gallons or 14.5 litres. Twice a day. She gives more in the morning than the evening which is normal.
After the milking, everything is cleaned and sterilised again. It does not take long but it does need to be thorough. I portion out the milk into buckets and bottles, then I carry my share of the milk up to the house, set it to cool and go back out to feed all the animals.
The milk is divided between the calf (Bobby Blanc) , the piglets (The Shush Sisters), the pigs we are fattening (The Plonkers), the bottle fed lamb (Minty), the chickens, the cats and dogs and the house. Big Dog is the one who sits in the barn door and waits for his milk, glaring at any cats who try to jump the queue. Raw milk is a pure whole food and very good for an old dog like Big Dog so he is indulged.
You can see now why I call Daisy the Mother Ship. She is one of the biggest cogs in the farmy wheel. This is why she gets very good care and the best fields. She is our treasure.
Yesterday I made the long awaited cheesecake. Felicity’s Cheesecake made from our own milk. Pseu sent me this recipe a few days ago. It is in the comments section of this post. Which is a wonderful place to be by the way. Your comments are the fuel that this blog runs on. This cheese cake is lovely, lovely, lovely. Thank you Sarah. Here is the original reference. 
AND also yesterday I made Mama’s Lasagne, every lasagne is different of course and this one is made with a layer of tangy home made ricotta mixed with home made yoghurt, rosemary and pepper. Home made noodles made with our own eggs. The sauce is made with one of the last jars of the 2011 summer sauce. This post from last August has my basic lasagne recipe and some images from old Route 66 service stations if you are into that kind of thing … which I am! 
There you are. The cycle.
Good morning. The haymakers field was cut yesterday so we will be baling again this week. There is another pot of yoghurt turning on the cold concrete floor of the cave. Today I will start another hard cheese. I shall gather two gallons of milk from this morning and two from this afternoon and start it tonight using the yoghurt as a starter. You have a lovely day.
I have a surprise for you tomorrow. I hear Daisy calling from Pats Gate! She is early. Gotta go!
celi
The Kitchen's Garden 
89 responses to “Milking a cow from start to finish in pictures.”
Thank you so very much for this post. I found it very interesting, and some how soothing. Perhaps I was one of your cows in a previous life.
Happy day to you and the farmy.
Fabulous informative post, thank you. I’m just curious – does the cabbage not give the milk a flavour/smell? Oh no, now we are hanging in suspenders until tomorrow 🙂 Laura
No. I cannot detect any difference. Though one day I am going to feed her garlic and see if that comes through, the garlic will be good for her! c
Good morning! Wow, what a process. I loved all of the step by step pictures! I think the last time I witnessed a cow being milked was during a field trip to a creamery when I was about 7 years old. It’s fascinating! I had no idea that it went so quickly and then I also noticed that her udder still looked full when you were finished. I guess I had thought it would collapse down.
The cheesecake and lasagna look amazing. I’m in awe of all of your hard work Cecelia! Wow!
Have a lovely day ~ April
A great documentary – you camera crew did some good work! What volume of the milk does Bobby get? Is it all from a bottle or does he get to suckle too? Sorry, I’ m a numpty in the cow department!
Christine
The little bobby has bottles now. He drinks a half gallon at a time twice a day. With little drinks during the daytime as I move him about or if it is very hot. He and Minty are on the same schedule. c
Do neither cow or calf mind not being able to do things ‘naturally’?
Christine
Thanks for this nostalgic trip down memory lane for me, a dairy farmer’s daughter. Although the equipment we used was different than yours, many things remain the same such as the gentleness of the cow, the cleaning of her teats and the milking equipment, her affinity for routine, her love of music. Thank you for taking me back in time to some of my best childhood memories, those from the barn.
You are most welcome audrey, it is indeed a special calm time between a girl and her cow.. c
How I love fresh milk – and cream more so. I was interested to see the milk ‘bucket’. Is this the broken one?
Yes.. this is the broken one. It is a lovely bright blue colour on the rim though! c
Hmmm…looking for the old, one-legged milking stool…
Thank you Celi SO much for taking the time to compile ALL those pictures of your milking! It brings back very fond memories of my uncle hand milking the cows at my Grandparents farm in the 50s and 60s. Your blog is such a treasure……
p.s. the lasagna looks delicious
Morning G’Mom and thank you.. I am very pleased with this page too.. c
Thank you for sharing more about your and Daisy’s morning routine! And what wonderful cooking you did over the weekend.
Thanks for today’s lesson, Celi. Like most, I had a vague idea of the milking process but not anymore. That lasagna looked fantastic! Today will be nice and cool. I hope you can enjoy it. I’ll be working the garden with my “crew”, the 2 boys that live upstairs
Good morning!.
Excellent day for it! Do they bring their own tractors like marie’s crew in her Little corner of Rhode Island! Laughter.. c
So cool to see the whole milking process Celi! It’s wonderful how Daisy is helping to feed the farm. We are lucky to have the goats helping us feed ourselves and the farmy here too! Your lasagna looks so good. Guess what, I made a zucchini lasagna yesterday as we have scads of zucchini coming out of the garden, and it turned out great!!! I’m always so excited when I make something that tastes good! You see, My John is a chef, and owned his own restaurant before me, so everything he makes is soooo delicious. So, I’m always very excited when I attempt something and it’s good! I’m going to try your easy butter cake next!!! Happy Monday!
awesome!! I am looking forward to hearing more about your cheeses too.. c
Wouldn’t it be nice if all animals had so much love and tender care.. imagine, cabbage, a buddy to chat with, a musical score and a gentle touch.. This post is what you’re all about c! xoxo
ps You’ve solved my birthday cake dilemma.. I’m off to make that cheesecake:) and ricotta for appetizers!
You have NO IDEA how relieved I am that the cheesecake recipe worked out for you! It looks beautifully light.
AND so tasty, almost delicate, I just had some with my morning coffee and as usual it is even better in the morning. Thank you so much for dropping the recipe in! c
🙂
What a team effort – you sing, daisy chomps! I’m off to oggle your lasagne recipe
Well done!!!
Linda
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