I know – it sounds crazy. why would I buy my own cow? But after reading this article from Salon.com about organic milk (which costs almost $10 a gallon even here in dairy-friendly VT): http://dir.salon.com/story/news/feature/2005/04/13/milk/index.html?pn=3
Did you know that large dairy farms – non-organic ones – feed their calves chicken manure? I have chickens and that’s just disgusting.
Not to mention rBGH and the whole Monsanto business – http://www.organicconsumers.org/monlink.cfm
So – I did a little basic math. I have enough pasture for a cow to eat along with my sheep and llama for five good months out of the year. So I’ll need seven months worth of hay at $3/bale. That’s $650. Plus I’ll need about $500-$750 worth of grain a year – $10-$15 bag per 50lb bag per week. So far I’m at $1400. If a heifer costs me $1000 and I have her for 10 years, that’s about $100 per year. I’m not including the cost of vet care – yet. So – about $1500 a year for a cow – and we get all the milk, butter and cheese we can eat (I’ll have to figure in the cost of rennet at some point).
I spend $1820 a year in milk alone. $1300 in butter and about that much in cheese. Wow. That’s almost $4500 a year in dairy products- and that doesn’t include yogurt, sour cream or whipped cream on occasion.
I think I’ve made my decision…we’ll have to see what the rest of the fam thinks…
Henry Cate says:
You might consider a goat. They take less room, but still give lots of milk.
13th June 2007 at 5:43 am
Organically Inclined › Buying the Cow - Revisited says:
[...] Here are the original reasons I considered buying a cow…enjoy! [...]
13th June 2007 at 6:54 am
Betsy says:
How about not using cow’s milk at all and just going vegan…which is actually a lot healthier and better for all involved including the cow, whose milk is supposed to be used for her cow baby…not our human babies. We are the only species who seems to think we need to drink another species milk to survive. Why is that?
If you must drink milk, there are better alternatives such as rice milk or almond milk.
And, if you really want a cow for the sake of having a cow, try adopting a rescued cow from Farm Sanctuary or Happy Trails…rescue centers always looking for good homes for their abused cows, that they have saved from the dairy and meat industries.
13th June 2007 at 9:51 am
Michelle Kennedy Hogan says:
Hi Betsy,
I totally agree with you. Truly, on every level, I agree. Frankly, it’s not the milk (I could live without it) but the butter and cheese that I don’t know if I could do without! OK – I know I could do without them, but I’m not sure I want to.
I do agree about adopting a rescued cow though – what a great idea – I’m surprised I never thought about it! In fact, my kids and I have considered rescuing farm animals ourselves…this might be a bit of the “push” we need to get started.
Thanks for writing!
Michelle – michelle [at] organicallyinclined dot org
13th June 2007 at 4:12 am