Milking about 1,000 cows every day and housing over 1,500 puts this farm in the top 10 producers in Vermont. 
Our host for the day was Trevor Gray, Lindsey's friend from UNH. If you caught on to the last name, you will guess that he is in it for the long haul.
Okay, now on to the cows. The farm milks Holsteins with a smattering of other breeds mixed in.
Mingling with the cows were a few of these big boys. They do their job well. He tried to demonstrate for us, birds and bees in real life.
My mother was sweet talking the cow. I am sure she will give more milk today.
Liquid gold. Captured in a pond and spread on the fields.
Which are vast with thousands of acres in grass and corn.
Silage waiting to be fed. I feel so knowledgeable all of the sudden. Plenty of use for old tires that we pay to get rid of.
If you are one of those that thinks your milk comes from the store, then you may want to skip the next picture. Don't want you to be queasy or anything. Gray farm ships a whole tanker truck of product to Boston every day.
A barn for ladies-in-waiting. 2-10 calves are born every day on average.
Sorry, baby bulls. No room for you on a dairy farm. After birth in a tub and getting licked clean by their mama, newborns move into a very nice heifer barn.
Well, there are several bulls being raised. Jack is one of the lucky few. If all your meat comes from the grocery store, don't think about it, at all.
Raised in sand because it does not harbor bacteria like sawdust.
Heifers grow and move to bigger barns.
Does she look happy or what? She loves the smell, the action, the cows! It's in her blood and I have absolutely no idea where that came from.
At this point, we are standing around talking to Trevor and his father. The camera is out of my possession.
Boys must play in dirt.
Every farm has kittens.
Trevor's father is a very intelligent man who owns and runs multiple businesses.
Like I said, I'm not taking the pictures. Erika found flies on the farm, who knew. Note to self: ALWAYS leave your windows up on a dairy farm else you will be batting flies in your car for about a week.
Snails?
Thank you to the Gray family for the tour, education, and future opportunities for our daughter.We headed South to visit Cabot Creamery.
Like I said, must love cows.
The tour took us through the plant and the free cheese tasted delicious. I cannot vouch for how much cheese our group consumed.
Never too young to practice milking.
Thank you, Lindsey for sharing your passion with us. You are a wonderful farmer. I hope all your dreams come true.
For posterity:Note to self, because husband wants to keep us safe in a moving vehicle, I was unable to get the following photographs:
-Canada customs and border with flag flying.
-Sign denoting midpoint in latitude between equator and the north pole.
Sigh.
Sorry you missed your Rock Island crossing picture. Glad you got to see the whole dairy operation-pretty impressive. I was waiting for a picture of you milking a cow! My grandfather told my mother never to learn how or she would be stuck with the job, and she listened to him; she only raised beef. (I, on the other hand, learned how) Looks like your daughter was, indeed, in heaven.
ReplyDeleteRuby
Too funny. We went to the milking program at the small farm where my daughter works a few weeks ago and all the kids got to try it. OK, I tried too except that it grossed me out. Too much like breastfeeding.
ReplyDeleteYou were close enough to spit in Canada, but did you?
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