Cow
Four stomach compartments and about eight hours a day spent chewing cud. Cows form real friendships and get stressed when they are separated from them.
Overview
A cow is a herd animal in a stronger sense than most people mean by the phrase. Cattle form lasting preferences for particular individuals, spend more time close to those animals, and show measurable stress when isolated: vocalising, higher heart rate, and the rest of it. Research on loose housed dairy cattle has found milk yield drops after the loss of a familiar herd mate.
The practical version is simple. One cow on its own is a welfare problem, whatever the field looks like. They run 1,000 to 2,200 pounds by breed, need one to two acres each on pasture, and live 15 to 20 years, which is a long way past the point where they are producing anything.
Temperament
Calm, curious and heavy, which is a combination that requires respect rather than fear. A friendly cow leaning on you is still half a ton, and most injuries around cattle happen with animals that were not being aggressive at all.
Bulls are a separate matter entirely and are not a smallholding animal for a beginner. Cows with calves are protective in a way the same animal is not at any other time of year.
Care and grooming
Pasture and hay with a mineral supplement, and a great deal of water: a dairy cow drinks in tens of gallons a day rather than buckets.
Feet and teeth are the routine work, and the rumen is what you are really feeding. Sudden changes to the diet upset it, so introductions to rich grass are made gradually. This is an animal that needs a large animal vet on the phone before you need one.
Living and exercise
One to two acres each, rotated so the grass recovers and the worm burden drops, plus shelter and a water source that does not freeze.
Fencing has to hold against something that pushes rather than jumps. Handling facilities matter more than people expect: a race and a crush turn routine treatment from a dangerous wrestle into a two minute job, and the day you need them is not the day to build them.
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