A lot of care and dedication is required to maintain a healthy and productive herd. Starting when a calf is born, our animals receive daily attention to their needs. Calves are fed milk for the first six weeks, and then they are fed grain, hay, and water. When they reach 3 months of age, we start them on a forage ration, which is made up of corn silage, haylage, and grain. As the calves continue to grow, their feed is adjusted to meet their nutritional demands. Their diet still consists primarily of corn and alfalfa with some supplemental grain. At one year of age, these heifers are consuming nearly 40 pounds of feed each day!

Soon after reaching their first birthday, they are artificially inseminated. Their first calf will be born 9 months later. At that time, this heifer will start milking or lactating. As this heifer enters the milking herd, her diet will change quite dramatically. The highest quality forages are fed along with various grains and other nutritional supplements to meet the demands of a milking cow. As she adjusts to her new role on the farm, her appetite soars to over 90 pounds of feed each day. She will also be capable of producing over 10 gallons of milk each day.

All the cows are artificially inseminated about every 13 months. This keeps the cows productive and provides the farm with young stock to serve as replacements for older milk cows. The average cow remains productive for about three lactations (milking cycles).

As a cow matures, she will grow to as much as 1,800 pounds. She may eat up to 150 pounds of feed and produce over 22 gallons of milk each day.