About our Dairy Cows

We currently milk 10 cows, twice daily, 365 days a year. Cows are milked at approximately two years old, after their first calf. Our milking herd includes:  Jerseys, Guernseys, an Ayrshire, a Lineback, a Brown Swiss and a Holstein . 

All our cows graze in pastures on a mixture of natural alfalfa, rye, rye grass and clover during the summer months and eat hay and grain during the winter months.

Jersey cows are from the English Channel Island of Jersey, near France. They are one of the oldest dairy breeds, and produce milk that has a very high protein and butterfat composition. They also produce more milk per body weight than any other breed. Pictured here are Princess in the red collar and Molly in the blue.

Guernsey’s are from another Channel Island 
(guess which!), and are known for their high quality milk – especially its high concentration of beta-carotene. Our milking Guernseys are Miranda (tan with large white spots), her daughter, Jessica,  and her daughter April, pictured on the right. 

Ayrshire’s are from Ayr, a region of southwestern Scotland, and are a relatively rare cow in the US. Not surprisingly, being Scottish, they are known for their hardiness. Our Ayrshire is Sateen, and she is the only dark brown and white spotted cow in the paddock. 

Randall - Randall cattle are a rare breed of purebred cattle developed in Sunderland, VT by the late Everett Randall. They have been used historically for dairy but can also be raised for meat and draft. Noreen, our one Randall comes from the breeding herd at Howland Homestead Farm in South Kent, CT  run by Phil and Dianne Lang. She has already given us one beautiful calf, Nelly. To learn more about Randall cattle, visit www.randallcattleregistry.org 

Holstein's - The Holstein cow originated in Europe.  They are recognized by their bold color patterns of black and white or red and white. They are large animals, weighing at least 90 pounds at birth. A full grown cow can weight up to 1500 pounds and stand 58 inches at her shoulder. They are the most common diary breed in the US, owing to the fact they are they can produce the highest volume of milk. Trixie, our Holstein, is one of the largest animals in the herd, looked down on only by Starr, our Brown Swiss.

Brown Swiss - The Brown Swiss is a large, gentle animal and is solid in color, ranging from gray to various shades of brown. They have black noses, switches and hooves. These cows are desired for their hardiness, foraging ability, quality of milk, longevity and gentle temperament. Originating in Switzerland,  it may be one of the oldest breeds of cattle. At maturity a Brown Swiss cow weighs about 1,500 pounds and is comparable in size to the Holstein. 

Our Sheep
We have a flock of Romney sheep that spend the summer months grazing on the hillside. We have about twenty ewes who lamb each spring, and two rams. If you visit the farm in May and June, stop by the barn to check on the new spring lambs with their mothers. 

After they have spend a few weeks under the farmer's watchful eye, they will all head out to the pasture to graze. Lambs will nurse from their mothers for several months, and eventually the ewes will encourage their lambs to eat grass and grain. 

Our sheep are shorn every spring at our Annual May Fair (see Event Calendar for date) and the fleece is sent up to Maine for processing. Several weeks later, it will return to New Pond Farm as beautiful 100% wool knitting yarn in a variety of colors. Stop by the office to see what we have for sale!

Our Chickens
We have a wide variety of chickens in our flock. We have several stock breeds (Rhode Island Red, Barred Rock, Wyandotte) but also several "fancy" breeds which boast beautiful feathers. Each spring the farmers buy new chicks, so come on by the barn in May and check the box stall for the peeping delivery!