How Delicate?

A big thing I have noticed in goat books is how delicate the milk is. Every one says that it is so delicate and how you need to be extremely careful with it, etc. Although it is best to take care of it right away, is not as delicate as most people think it is (in my big O :). If you accidentally leave it out for 15 minutes or so on the counter in your kitchen it should be fine. But that is not to say that you can leave it sitting for hours upon hours in your barn and expect it to be OK. Milk is delicate, just not so much that a little dust particle from the air could spoil it. Another "big" thing is "Do I leave it covered or uncovered in the fridge?" This is just a matter of preference. If you think that it tastes better with the lid set ajar when it is cooling then, do it that way. And vise versa.


From what I have seen this is the "best" and "safest" way to care for your milk. I'm careful with my milk but, I don't necessarily follow these instructions like they are sacred.


1. Cool milk immediately after milking to 38 degrees F.

2. Never mix old milk with new milk as is makes it taste funny (Note: I have mixed old milk with new and have never tasted a difference. But, most of my “old milk” hasn’t been that old either. Maybe at the most four days)


3. Never expose milk to sunlight or fluorescent light. (Note: I have had milk exposed to sunlight before and I could not tasted a difference. But, the milk wasn’t exposed any longer than the time it takes to milk a goat.)


4. Don’t leave milk out after meals.


Probably the biggest thing here is common sense. If the milk happens to be out in one of the “bad” places mentioned above for a short amount of time it should be fine. But if it does taste bad trying to identifying it is important in determining what is the problem.


Here are some general examples of what the taste is and then the possible meaning of that taste:


Bitter- Doe could have eaten a strong weed or a doe in late lactation.


Coarse or High-acid- May be a bacterial growth.


Barny- Milk may have been left out in the barn for too long or the doe might be drinking bad water or breathing bad air.


Disinfectant- Points towards badly rinsed equipment.


Feed- Can be caused by plants like wild onion, too much garlic, turnips, silage, and
maybe even green grass. To curb this problem cease feeding these types of feed 2 to 4 hours before milking.


Foreign- The foreign flavor is caused by things like fresh paint, petroleum products, and bug sprays.


Malty- Most likely caused by not cooling the milk properly.


Metallic- May be caused by the milk coming in contact with metals like copper and rust.


Musty- Most likely comes from moldy hay and stale water.


Salty- Indicates Mastitis.


Rancid- Caused by the enzyme lipase which usually happens when the milk is old.


Utensils- Indicates poor milking habits. I.E. Not being clean enough. But, can be
caused by the doe drinking dirty water.

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Holly hasn't had her babies yet. I think that when you think that they are going to have them just wait another two weeks before getting excited about it because, that is usually how long it is around here. Hurry up Holly!:-)

Milk is coming I know it!

It looks like Holly is going to have her babies soon! That means milk!!!! Yippee!!! I'll put some pictures up of the babies when they come.

I got some pictures of outside today. They really don't do justice at all. It was beautiful out.