Milking Is A Supply & Demand System
Sunday, January 26, 2025
Clemency is a paternal half sister to Celerity and Spring
Spring on her first milk test as a FF
Someone asked me about milking their cow and this information in my response applies equally to goats or even dairy sheep.
Milking is a supply and demand system. The more often the udder is emptied, the more it will refill.
In the first 30-90 days, you are setting her milk production up for the whole lactation. The more you and that calf take, the more her body will get the hormonal signals to produce more.
Also, in the first week or two, her hormones are more amenable to any new routines because they are priming her to accept a bumbling newcomer who is still learning how to extract milk. It's the best time to set your feeding/milking routine for the whole lactation. She'll be more accepting of a new person milking just like she would be to a new calf nursing.
Heavy milking animals cannot be allowed to stay too full because of the risk of mastitis. In addition, the full udder will tell her she's producing too much and she'll produce hormones to cut back in production, which is usually not ideal.
We have goats that will milk their kids full time and must be milked once or twice a day or they will also get too full and be more susceptible to mastitis. Other goats we had in the past don't produce a drop more than their kids need and anyone who wants milk must first remove the kids long enough for the doe to build up a supply. Milk production of your breed is a huge factor in how you manage your cow.
If your desire not to milk her is to give yourself more time off milking, setting the routine may save you more trouble than these few weeks are worth.
If your desire not to milk her is to give the calf all the calf wants, then I highly recommend you leave the calf with her 24/7 and also bring her into the stanchion to eat while you check her udder and relieve her udder of any milk that has built up since the last milking. This will stimulate her to maximize production to support you and her calf and set her lactation for higher milk yield. She will get used to the routine at the best time hormonally and you'll have milk right away while minimizing her chances of mastitis. There's no concern at all of you taking milk the calf needs. She'll make more within minutes and the calf will learn exactly when milking times are and quickly empty as much as his stomach will hold just before you go to milk her if the calf felt any lack the last time she was milked before she made more.
