Oshkosh NE – September 2021
They come in as young heifers, 350-425 lbs., mostly from Wisconsin dairymen.
Their diets are mostly high-protein forage (triticale, alfalfa, sorghum, grasses). This feed is to grow, not fatten, the heifers.
Just before Artificially Inseminating (AI) them, they are put to stand in the stanchions so they are already stanchion-broke when they return to Wisconsin.
When they are yearlings(+) they are AI’ed with all female-sexed semen – they want cows, not bulls, to replace the milking cows.
They are bred to produce gallons of milk per day, to be milked for 4-5 years, 3 times a day.
About 60 days ahead of calving they are sent back to Wisconsin to birth their calves and start being milked.
Quite an extensive process! Now you know where your milk comes from!
