Meet Bessie, our Jersey cow. She came from a herd dispersal auction, where the cows were being sold from a dairy farm that came on rough times. Dan thought it would be a good place to find a quality cow inexpensively. They ended up looking a lot rougher than we expected. They were almost all under-conditioned(too skinny), and many had various other issues(mastitis, hoof problems). I was very skeptical of the idea, and when Dan bid on, and won a small, scrawny cow with uncertain milking status, I was unimpressed, to say the least. She was calm and cooperative when she arrived home, and very hungry. She was also in milk, so we started milking her once a day, to allow her body to put most of her food into regaining weight. We had the vet out to take a look and determine if there were any underlying sicknesses exacerbating her emaciation, and she got a clean bill of health! Now we just needed to focus on getting lots of good quality food into her.
A year later, and she is now my favorite cow. She is sweet and cooperative, and filled out nicely. Her size is perfect for a family cow – small and tidy.
She is bred, and due in April 2020. I am very excited for her calf! Dan turned out to be right about getting this little cow; I guess I should have more faith!
