Back in March, when my friend Emily came to the farm to shearing the ewes before lambing, I mentioned that we were thinking about getting a dairy cow. Jefferson, one of our beautiful calves, had passed away, so we had the space. But more importantly, Caroline, Zac and I had become obsessive cheese makers and wanted a cow of our own to milk. We were thinking of a Jersey cow, as they are small and produce less milk than some breeds, with a high butterfat content.
Emily’s eyes lit up. “You don’t want a Jersey,” she insisted. “What you need is a Lineback. I’m going to find you a Lineback.” She spent the rest of the day talking about the superiority of the Lineback and by the time she left, we wanted one desperately.
But it isn’t easy to buy a cow “in milk” and I honestly thought it would be a year or two before a dairy cow made it’s way to Juniper Moon. Then about a week later, Emily post on my Facebook wall, “I bought a cow for you today.” It was like some kind of magic.
Our new cow was delivered smack in the middle of our shearing party, which was lucky for us, because Emily was on hand to show us the ropes.
I think she might be the most beautiful creature in I’ve ever laid eyes on.
I named her Luna, ’cause she’s big and white and lovely. She is also the nicest cow, letting us rub her ears and love on her.
Did I mention that she’s going to have a calf any red hot minute now? Emily is going to take the calf back to her farm so that her daughter Lydia can raise him up for a 4H project. I can’t tell you how happy that makes me because, Emily and Lydia? They are family to me in every way that matters.
We’re a little nervous about the calving, since it will be the first time for us and for her, but hopefully all will go smoothly and we’ll just walk out to find a tiny calf in the pasture one morning.
While we are waiting for Luna to calve, we are training her to be a good milker. Twice a day, we lead her into the bar on a halter and feed her while we stroke her udder and talk sweet to her. It’s been two days and already she’s waiting by the gate in the morning and evening.
This shot is to show you how much bigger Luna is than Madison and Monroe. Remember, she is a “small” cow. Can you imagine how big the mediums are?
In addition to providing milk, Luna is part of the parasite reduction team, grazing ahead of the sheep flock and absorbing the parasites that kill sheep.
