Hi, my name is Nellie, the Jersey Cow. I love my life here in Sonoma County, California, USA.
This area is rich in Native American, Mexican, Russian, Chinese, Swiss, Italian, German histories, and even richer in flora and faunal life. Probably more if I listened to the conversations in the barn better.
If you ever see any of us stampeding, it may be we can hear the whales calling from Bodega Bay. The sound travels quite well with the winds and can sound kind of weird to us. Or, it may be fly season and the heel flies are on our heels.
The train era built a lot of communities out here, which now are just houses. There used to be a Bloomfield fair, AND a Valley Ford fair, but not anymore.
Life for me is pretty much the same as it has been for generations. Our location to the coast offers moderate temperatures for most of the year. The coastal fog, with natural fertilization, allows the clover grasses to grow all year around, which helps my milk components to be of higher quality.
25 years ago there was over 400 dairies in Marin and Sonoma Counties, today there are less than 100 dairies remaining. The dairies that do remain, work hard everyday to make sure we all don’t go away completely! It would be really sad if there couldn’t be any more dairies here in Sonoma and Marin counties.
My friends and I produce an average of 3-8 gallons of milk a day, depending on how old we are. The younger we are, the less milk we have. The older, the better. My Holstein friends, (black and white cows) produce 7-11gallons of milk a day.
Here on my dairy, the average life for us cows is 13-17 years. Sometimes 20-22! Sometimes, less--but it’s a great life. We really are ‘Happy Cows’.
A majority of the milk produced here goes towards making different grades of milk, yogurt, cheese, and butter. Made locally, sold locally, and consumed locally, employing locally. Most of the dairies here operate on a twice a day milking. We get to lay down in pasture whenever we feel like it, sharing the land with all of our native wildlife. Nature in balance.
The families that take care of us work an average of 17 hours a day, 7 days a week. No holidays, ever! Dairy animals are very docile, but we can get spooked pretty bad when strangers trespass over our fences. We can cut ourselves with our hooves when we try to get up too fast. Your shoes can be carrying a virus that is new to us and can get us sick. Your garbage thrown on the side of the road ends up in our pastures and streams and can make us choke or very sick, so please do not litter.
I carry my baby for 9 months and my dairy farmer takes really good care of me. Once I get close to the birth of my calf I get 2 month maternity leave so I can have lots of rest, and plenty of prenatal natural vitamins to ensure I have an easy delivery and healthy baby. I don’t want to be exposed to anything foreign on the property. I want my baby to be born healthy.
One of the saddest things I see all the time is how misinformed the general public is, to us and my farmers way of life. Most of the information out there is media driven. If you have opinions or questions, take the time to ask my dairy farmer, and please take the time to ask permission before you take any pictures.
Our dairy farmer is looking out for us, the same way you protect your home and family. Remember your manners. If you don’t have any, go get some.
If you want to experience more of Sonoma/Marin counties agriculture and history look up ‘Farm Trails’ map, ‘Artisan Cheeses’, Farm Bureau agencies, a county library, tourist spot, or one of my favorite books, “Dirt Roads and Dusty Tales-a Bicentennial History of Bloomfield, Sonoma County California by Hannah M. Clayborn.
This county is one of the best ever to live in. There is so much to see and do! Each little agricultural business has so much more going on than meets the eye.