Raw milk sales are their bag
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BY PAT KAUFFMAN
HERSHEY Nestled acres here home. -And they
within sight of the Penn- and their herd -of mostly
sylvama Turnpike, Al-Har- registered Saanens are
La Goat Dairy struggles to doing what they enjoy most,
turn a dream into reality.- making milk.
Alda and Harry In a bam, which they have
Davidluzar along with their built themselves, Larry says
The converted Surge milker system features a 3
quart stainless steel pail the Oavidhizars custom
designed. The extra nipples are capped with
medicine dropper tops which they say are easy to
clean.
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son, Larry, call four level i
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Phone 215-683-7252
he has more things he’d like
to do. Meanwhile, 22 mature
goats and 16 kids contentedly
munch hay.
Arriving at milking time,
one finds a pot of hot coffee
on the milk cooler;, and all
three members of the family
pitching in to hurry the does
onto milking stands
measure feed, and proceed
with the business at hand.
The milking parlor is U
shaped and has space for 4
does at a time. In the center
of the U, scales, paper,
pencils and milking machine
are conveniently located.
Harry explains, “We
designed the milking parlor
so that we can reach
everything we needed with
only a step in either direc
tion. From here I can reach
both the in and out doors, as
well as any of the 4 does. ”
The Davidhizar’s ex
plained that while stan
chions for 2 does at a time
would have been acceptable,
they feed grain only when
milking and the does would
not have enough time to eat
their gram. For this reason,
they find the 4 doe system
works well for them.
Does are fed 4 to 10 lbs. of
grain per day depending on
production. The grain they
feed is a 15 per cent calf
ration purchased at a local
feed store. To this mix,
Harry adds crimped oats
because, “Oats put the body
on goats.”
When asked about any
special tricks to raising his
goats, he also mentions that
he mixes edible lime at the
rate of a scant half pound to
each 400 pound batch of
grain. This be mentions
hesitantly, though, like a
prize-winning cook giving
away his secret recipe. Alda
and Harry are retired,
although Alda still works in a
nursing home part-time.
Larry is a long-distance
trucker. Their common
dream is to build a raw milk
trade capable of turning a.
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Mixed Alfalfa hay is fed free choice to the kids
from the age of ten days.
profit. They admit the going
will be rough for awhile.
“Right now,” Larry says,
“I’m trucking to support us
and the goats. We worked
out an agreement where Dad
tends the goats when I’m on
the road and helps to build
the business. I’ve been self
employed before, and once
you’ve been self-employed
March 1,1980
r aw *cj., *•■»-. * j*-**.
you think there’s no other
way. I’m anxious for the day
when I can make a living
from the herd.” Meanwhile,
Larry takes goat milk with
him to drink on his long
hauls.
The Davidhizar’s are
facing the challenge before
them. The lack of milk
marketing structures in the
state, and the costs of ad
vertising they counter with a
modestly priced product.
Harry says, “Lots of people
buy goat milk to drink or use
for someone in the family
with medical problems.
What we are trying to do is
price it as competitively
with cow’s milk as we can so
they will use it in all their
cooking. We feel that this is
the way to sell more milk
and keep the customers
coming back. —-
To keep their prices low,
the family has adopted an
aggressive culling policy.
Any animal which cannot
adapt to the freestall living
arrangement and herd
routine is sold.
One of the things that
troubles them with the herd
is their output. They are
quick to point out that while
they paid good prices for
their stock, they found too
late that some were other
people’s culls. One of the
problems they see to
someone starting out is the
lack of quality breeding
stock in the area.
Presently, their average
production per goat is 5
pounds per day. And while
some animals are at the end
of long lactations, Harry
feels this should be higher.
Their present goal is 2000
pounds of milk per year
averaged per goat. Their
butterfat test on herd
a respectable 3.5.
The Davidhizar’s em
phasize 'That while they
received their raw milk
permitnffily eight months
ago, they owned goats m the
early 1950’s and had a raw
milk permit then. Perhaps
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