What Happens in the Milking Parlor Stays in the Milking Parlor
I hate driving in the snow, but when you milk cows for a living you don't get 'snow days'. The girls are milked twice a day, 365 days a year. After driving seventeen miles, clinging to the steering wheel white knuckled, it is a great relief to pull into the snowy farm lane in one piece. The lights from the cow barns glowing ahead, and my co-worker and friend Jessi's headlights behind me, I can finally relax my death grip on the steering wheel. We clamber from our trucks bundled up in insulated bibs, layered with hoodies, gloves and warm winter boots. Farm dog Aussie runs up wagging his whole body in greeting.
Jessi and I ready the parlor for milking and then flick the switch to turn on the vacuum pump that powers the milking system, our signal that milking has officially started. We make our way back out into the winter morning to bring the cows up from their big, softly lit barn. Jess and I each take an aisle in the snug barn and start to motivate the girls. Hep na..... come on girls.......let's go. Come on Simone... Spotlite... today would be good girls!!. 736...... Lucy ...that means you too!! ... Come on Sonja time to get up!. We follow the girls as they amble out of the barn towards the holding area for the milking parlor, a few snowflakes start to fall, melting as they land on the cows’ warm bodies. The small Jersey cows hold their own with the larger black and white Holsteins and Brown Swiss cows. Pushy and stubborn, the Brown Swiss are usually the first into the milking parlor. We lean into the cow’s warm sides as we attach the milking units, saying a few soft words to each one, 'Hey big girl' ....... 'Stand still now' ..... our voices blend into the hum of the vacuum pump. Morning milking is our quiet time with the cows, our time sheltered in our cocoon, just us and the girls. A peaceful choreography of girls (cows), girls (humans) and milking units clicking along in synch.
In the mornings, being in the milking parlor is a bit like being in a separate country from the rest of the farm. We go about our jobs blissfully unaware of things happening on the rest of the farm. Rarely, other farm staff enter cautiously to visit (something to do with the sign above the door which reads 'Beware of Attack Cow’?). They are usually quick to leave if it looks like we might press them into service though! Our proximity to the cows during milking makes it the perfect time to make managerial decisions for the girls. All our girls get 8 weeks maternity leave. Before the birth of their next calf, they move to another barn with other close up moms to be. Seeing each cow twice a day makes it possible for us to pick up on a girl who might not be feeling well. We can check her vital signs and make decisions about any extra care she may need, or have our veterinarian make a 'barn call'. We keep a special eye on our new moms and make sure that they are making a good transition back into their job of a milk cow. Detailed computer records are kept for all the girls.
People tell us that the girls look the same to them and do not see how we could possibly tell them apart. And I say how could you not. As with any group, you hold more affection for some than others, we all have our favorites. Some of our girls like to supplement their diets stealing paper towels as they wait for their turn to be milked. Others like to share our snacks, cookies, apples, throat lozenges... Some of them are just plain sassy! A couple of girls seem to have perpetual 'bad hair days'. Our big Brown Swiss Holstein mix Lucy took months to stop kicking her milker off (and not to kick the person milking her). Even now she likes to take advantage of new people milking, she almost gets an amused look on her face as she deliberately and delicately lifts her hoof and flicks the milker off. You gotta love 'em all!
When a heifer (young female) has her first baby and becomes a milk cow at two years old, she receives her name, it is like a right of passage. We have a geneology system, say Darling has a daughter, her name will begin with a 'D'. So, Darling's daughter is named Dante, and Dante's daughter DaVinci, and so on. Somedays we just run out of names, and thus we have a cow called Cow. We have an obnoxious Brown Swiss called B.S., you can take that either way! We always hope for heifer calves (girls) so we can keep the different cow families going in the milking herd, many a vigil has been held waiting for a favorite cow to have her baby, always hoping for a girl.
We get many basic questions about the cow's reproductive cycle. I remind people that both humans and cows are mammals. We both gestate for 9 months, we both produce milk to nourish our babies. Many of the same basic principles of reproduction apply to both human and bovine females.... think about it... One big difference though is our digestive systems, they have four stomachs to our one, but that is a whole 'nother story.
It is not just the lives of the cows that unfold in the milking parlor. Human lives also play out in the safety of our milking parlor. It is where, now and then, some tears are shed. A comforting hug given. A place to unburden or complain. Many confidences shared, advice offered, paths changed and happy occasions celebrated. Even a few long- lasting relationships have begun whilst milking cows. It is as though a truth serum is released in the milking parlor. Dr. Phil has nothing on our early morning milking sessions!
During afternoon milking we are on show. A large window separates the visitor's viewing area from the milking parlor. A wonderful educational opportunity for visitors to the farm. But to those of us milking cows under this scrutiny it is akin to being goldfish in a bowl! Sometimes when we are dealing with a difficult cow, or it is 98 degrees, the cows are hot and irritable, and so are we, we wish we could pull down a blind and insulate ourselves! But then we would not see the little faces glued to the window, watching us with a natural curiosity only children are capable of. We would not be rewarded by a friendly wave or the pantomime that starts when one of the adult viewers knocks on the window to get our attention, and tries to ask us a question using gestures. If all is going well, one of us slips out to answer a few questions.
Jess and I not only have a unique job that we love, but we are also able to share that love with our visitors.
Nicola Noble lives in Maybee, Michigan with her husband, a farmer, and four German Shepherds. Her involvement in farming dates back to the 1960's in Ireland, and she has continued that journey at Calder Dairy and Farms since 1994. Please feel free to contact her at 734.654.2622. You may also visit the farm at www.calderdairy.com