Moo, Whinnie, Cluck

 

Our next door neighbor Kyle popped over for a visit.  Somehow the conversation moved to raw, unpasteurized milk straight from the cow.  Yep, I can hook you up, girlfriend!  We called Ann, a high school biology teacher and licensed Apopka farm owner.  She has two brown Jersey's for milk, a bunch of chickens, horses, and the friendliest short-legged stocky black cows called Dexters.  They're a pretty sturdy breed that does well in Florida.  I admired the bull's curly bangs and Ann told me that those curls are a sign of virility. She didn't have to tell me...I saw his footballs!  Kyle got a $10 gallon of Jersey Juice and we both learned a lot about cow and horse feeding, chickens, and well, everything farmy.

  

On our way home, we stopped at Kyle's barn to feed her horses.  She has a beautiful tall Tennessee Walker, whose previous owner named Harley.  Kyle isn't fond of that name, so I changed it to Carly.  She just didn't seem like the motorcycle type, and I have always liked Carly Simon.  This Carly has a beautiful brown coat with a glorious splash of paint on one shoulder, black mane and white polka dot knee socks. Carly holds her head high, far superior to all others in the stable.  Carly's colt Bambi is nearly grown and not yet broken, but Kyle showed me how calm she is with a saddle blanket on, and when Kyle draped herself over Bambi's slick  back, the young horse just enjoyed all that loving and hugging.  Louie is a stately Mule.  He's the biggest, prettiest, long-legged mule I've ever met.  Actually, Louie is the ONLY mule I've ever met.  His alert ears are long, high, and close together and this makes him look ever so smart.  I didn't know that mules are so easy to care for.  They eat less than horses and they don't have a horsey smell, in fact, nose pressed against Louie's side, I could only detect the mild hint of the grass he rolled in earlier in the day.  Who woulda thunk?  Best of all, like the horses, Louie is very sweet.  Kyle invited me to go riding with her, and says her big girl Carly is a smooth horse to ride.

Velvety soft horse noses, friendly curious cows, the sweet smell of hay, and a nice friend to share it with made this a perfect day.  I think I'm ready for a couple of chickens!

Raw Cow's Milk

A local middle school teacher named Ann has a small Apopka farm and sells free-range eggs and raw cow's milk. My 23 year old milk drinking maniac son and I drove over to see what's what and we were pleased to walk out into the pasture to meet Clover, and Paris - who is ready to calf at any moment.  Paris is not being milked so near to delivery.  We got to watch Clover being milked (with a machine) and she produced 4.5 gallons of Jersey Juice.  These two Jerseys are sweet pets that will live out their lives on the farm, even after they are no longer productive.

Most people who drink raw milk are "foodies" and are particular about what the cows get to eat, where the live and how much "cow time" they get.  Ann's Jerseys eat a soy free diet of grain and grass and free choice hay. Florida's soil is worthless for sustaining a milk cow; we don't have real soil, it's sand, and dairy cows would starve to death on just Florida grass. Ann has a friend who is allergic to soy and could not drink any milk (grocery or otherwise) until Ann found a soy free cow food, because soy is one of those things that does pass through the cow and end up in milk.

Ann also has a small herd of about a dozen Dexters, small black cows, and she has one butchered occasionally, which I am curious to try out.  She names the Dexters too, but they have "reality names" like T-Bone, Burger, and Stew.  Ann has a variety of chickens that scratch what they want, wander in the fields, and enjoy the sunshine.  When she gets a bully rooster, he becomes dinner, as it should be. She sells big brown eggs with strong healthy shells.

I just drank a glass of delicious custard yellow milk.  It tastes similar to Gustafson's Farm milk from the store, but it is creamier than whole milk.  The cream seperates, so you have to give it a shake before pouring.  I can use a turkey baster and take some of the top cream for my coffee.