Jerseys.
The breed every homestead is looking for. Jerseygive tons of cream, are all a2/a2, and are amazing thrifty grassfed only cream machines. That’s the popular conception of Jersey cattle anyway.
Jerseys do have a higher fat yield than the other breeds, but on your jar of milk, there’s rarely a difference between the breeds. There’s more variation within a breed or time of lactation than there is between the breeds. We frequently have Jerseys test a1/a2, at least 50% of them, sometimes 80%. They are amazing grazing machines, but don’t neglect them in the field. They still need top quality forages and likely supplements in addition to their forage. Jerseys are mostly sweet curious cattle. Some girls are all business. Now and then there’s a crazy one. They’re the most dramatic of the dairy breeds by far. They frequently calve well before 2yrs old, but watch the udder suspension, too often the udders get too low for comfortable milking by 7. If your girl has a well suspended udder, she could easily hit 13 yrs old. A benefit of the Jerseys is they are common, it’s easy to find bulls, replacement heifers, and semen for any style cow your looking for.
Jude’s Jersey is the sweetest brat on the farm. Her first show however, she limped, hung her head, and I think even coughed in the show ring. It took multiple attempts to get her pregnant via AI. She calved in at 2.4 with the best Jersey heifer calf we’ve ever bred. Then promptly had a short bout of mastitis. Recovering from that she bred back and is due 10 months after her first calving. She insists on grazing ALL the time and will never get fat. Cass is a2/a2, but 4 of her half sisters are a1/a2.
Cass is a standard Jersey, if she ever hits 5 gallons a day or 900 lbs, I’ll be super surprised! Most of our Jerseys will peak at 4-5 gallons and level off at 3 gallons for most of their lactation.
Pictured below are Cass's heifer--Crescent, and Jude's other Jersey, Fawn
