A Virtual Tour



It was suggested that I do a "virtual tour" of the dairy here. I am not sure what all you will want to see, so if there are any suggestions, please let me know. I haven't got around to changing my email addresses so I will try and check the one here if you email to it, instead of make a comment.


I'll just start with the quick story of the beginnings. Dear husband began this dairy back in the mid-late 80s (when I was still in highschool, or just getting out) from scratch. He bought up some land next door to his folks, about 5 acres, and he and his dad built the barn. (The one you see on this main page here...whatever you call it.) Then he got 4 cows and started milking. He rented fields around the area until he could buy more land as it became available. From there, over the years, he bought more cows and made more improvements as he could. All of it he paid cash for, and still does, so he owes no one anything.
Most of the equipment is quite old dated as he bought it all at yard sales or auctions where other dairies were going out of business. But really, much of it is better quality than what you'd find today and it is all still going strong.
Here's the inside of the barn, the milking parlor:

This is a candid of hubby, I didn't really want him in the pic. I was standing on the steps down into the parlor. As you can see, it is a herring bone construction, on the left the blue panels are where the cows butts back up against and the black things below them are actually semi truck mud flaps to help prevent ummm...splatters. There are 4 milkers, though 5 cows can fit in here.

Overhead there you can see the glass pipes where the milk is sucked up and then it goes out into the tank room and goes into the glass milk jar where it is then pumped up into the tank. Here's the jar:

This is where I fill milk bottles, at this valve, and get our own milk.

I will have to get a picture of the tank. I don't have one of those on hand. These pics were actually taken on my first visit here pre-marriage, back in the summer of '04.

Any questions...or suggestions...let me know. I'll do more pics of other things as I get a chance.

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