Did you know - Fun Dairy Facts

We love sharing our dairy story! Sometimes, it's easy to forget that not everyone grew up on a farm and knows all these cool facts, so here you go... 15 facts to impress your friends with!

1. A dairy cow gives birth to her first calf when she is around 2 years old.

2. An average cow weighs around 1200 pounds (Holstein's can weigh up to 1500!)

3. A Holstein calf weighs around 90 pounds at birth.

4. Dairy cows will eat 120 pounds of feed a day while producing milk.

5. A cow spends 8 hours a day chewing, somewhere around 50 times a minute!

6. It's thought that dairy cows can see 360° panoramas. It's almost impossible to sneak up on them.

7. Cows are very social! They have best friends, favorite humans and quite often you will see a mom and daughter hanging together around the water tank.

8. A lactating dairy cow will drink 50 gallons of water a day (that's a bathtub full)!

9. Dairy cows have 32 teeth.

10. A cow can produce 125 gallons of saliva a day.

11. Cows have an excellent sense of smell and can smell something up to 6 miles away.

12. The Holstein is the most common dairy breed found in the USA.

13. Dairy cows are very good at utilizing foods that are not consumable by humans; pulp, seeds and other fibrous materials.

14. Cows have one stomach with four separate compartments - the reticulum, rumen, omasum, abomasum. Each one has a different job to do and is part of the reason cows are so good at eating all those things we can't!

15. Cows prefer temperatures between 45-60°. This is because of their thick skin, hair and extra insulation. During the winter as long as they can stay out of the wind, they are happy to keep chewing their cud. In the summer months we use fans and water misters to keep them cool.

There you have it. 15 fun facts about dairy cows!