deepblueneptuneMar 121 min readWeather warms, Spring is near…Chickens are working overtime in the egg factory. Overalls and gloves are discarded for shorts and spring sunburns. Fishing poles are dug...
deepblueneptuneFeb 271 min readSheep Milk in AbundanceWe’ve been milking sheep for almost 5 years and for the first time—we have a lot of sheep milk!! It’s fun and a little overwhelming....
deepblueneptuneFeb 61 min readMaking Animal Rennet 2/6/2025Rennet notes January 2025 Harvested abosunum from a Brahma bull calf 10 days old. Washed, salted, treated like a casing. Dried by the...
deepblueneptuneDec 27, 20242 min readMozzarella!!Simple Fast Meltable Stretchy Delicious Recipe below ⬇️ ⬇️⬇️ I began making Gouda 17 years ago, hard cheese has always been fairly...
deepblueneptuneAug 27, 20243 min readTell me again why Grassfed Genetics are necessary?Tell me again why I need grassfed genetics to make my dairy cows perform without grain?? Dairy cows need calories. They honestly don’t...
deepblueneptuneAug 11, 20245 min readFolks, Learn to use a halter.This is at least as important as learning to milk. Buy a simple rope halter, or two, they’re cheap, usually under $10 at any TSC or feed...
deepblueneptuneJul 26, 20242 min readDairy Sheep. Sheep Dairy. Lamb, lamb, lamb.Molly bought her first dairy sheep 4 years ago. Mollarella was an amazing, no history, Craigslist find, productive ewe! She’d lamb...
deepblueneptuneJul 13, 20241 min readSecond summer of a Grassfed Dairy—much improved!We’ve celebrated the 4th of July and are officially plunk in the middle of Ozark summer. Days in the 90-100, nights 70-80. Blah!!! But!...
deepblueneptuneJun 17, 20241 min readA misfit postWe made 30lbs of cheese, 30 pounds of butter, as I’m carrying our 13th child. I am neither a martyr or a saint, I am not oppressed, I am...
deepblueneptuneMay 17, 20242 min readRaising Kids and HeifersHeifers are an open slate, no past of kicking, no history of mastitis, no calving difficulties, no known production. What I love about...
deepblueneptuneMar 24, 20243 min readReflections of a Grain Free DairyIt’s been over a year now since we switched the milking herd to no grain. Overall I can’t complain. The cows have stayed fat enough...
deepblueneptuneMar 9, 20242 min readTips for Bottle Calf SuccessCalf Raising Wether you’re starting you’re entire herd from bottle calves or just raising the occasional calf, there’s a few things we’ve...
deepblueneptuneJan 29, 20242 min readBrown Cheese, Mysost, BrunostIs it really a cheese? Or do we just call it that because Carmelized Whey With Cream takes too long to say? If you’ve ever made cheese,...
deepblueneptuneJan 15, 20242 min readJanuary 15Day 2 of A Very Cold January. The snow stopped early this morning leaving us with 5-6" of un-meltable powder. The warmest temp today was...
deepblueneptuneDec 28, 20233 min readWalnut Syrup Making!!So, several years ago a new friend introduced us into Black Walnut Syrup. It was AMAZING!! They had made several gallons on their farm in...
deepblueneptuneNov 27, 20232 min readGrassfed Dairy…is still fedIt’s math—calories eaten need to be equal or greater than calories burned to maintain condition. Environment is 60% of performance....
deepblueneptuneSep 27, 20234 min read3 Days…how to train your cow.That’s the average of how long it takes to teach an adult dairy cow to walk on the halter. Walk well enough that I, at eight months...
deepblueneptuneJul 14, 20233 min readAre you ready for a milk cow?Are you? Will you ever be truly “ready”? Do you enjoy cows? What are your resources? Infrastructure? Children? Spouse? Beef cattle?...
