After two years of very intense planning and construction, we finally have a Dexter dairy. Although there are a few Dexter dairies in the British Isles, Australia, and New Zealand, we are not aware of any at this time in the United States. Our hope is that Dexter cattle will be a solution for those who are interested in alternative ways to dairy, as we begin to trend back to local family-run operations and away from large corporate factory farming. People look for fresh wholesome milk products, and the local small-scale dairy can provide for these needs. Dexter cattle have a lot of work power, and we think it is time for them to show off a bit. Our dairy has grown out of a passion for "the little Irish mountain cow," and love for their rich, high butterfat milk. One Dexter cow can keep a family in milk for a good part of the year, two Dexter cows will give you milk all year round and then some milk to make cheese, kefir or yogurt with, and share some with your friends and neighbors. Three to five or more Dexters are enough to start a small dairy business!

After working with our N.Y. State Agriculture and Markets on rules and regulations for building a dairy, we received our legal producer status in November 2006. It has been a long haul! There is a very big learning curve to upstart a dairy for those of us with no previous experience. Each step of the way we consulted with the inspectors concerning our building plans. It is better to get it right the first time than to have to go back and do it again. We did not have a previous dairy building on our property so we had to start from scratch, from designing the ditching and waste control, to placement of the milk parlor, milk cool room, holding area for the cows, and the cheese making room. Once built, getting to know the correct sanitation procedures has been the biggest challenge. Clean has a new meaning! We call it “the art of cleaning.”

We originally started hand-milking one cow. Now there are five and soon we will milk six Dexters. We are milking by hand when needed, and love the relationship with our cows, but we also use a milking machine. Our plan is to milk a maximum of six cows. We purchased a 1940's Surge milking machine and assembled the entire unit from new and used parts we acquired from retired dairies in the area. The equipment we needed for the milk cooling room and the cheese room took an entire year to assemble because many of the things needed were just not readily available. With the help of some small dairy equipment dealers and finding items on eBay, we managed to put it all together under close scrutiny of the inspectors. We use a refrigerator for a bulk tank but that may have to be upgraded soon. In order to get our milk cooled down to 45 degrees within two hours, we currently put it in the freezer, and then move it down to the frig when it achieves the 45 degrees.

In the cheese room we are using three refrigerators to age the cheese, and are planning to add another larger reach in frig. We have two very old jacketed steam kettles that we use for warming the milk to start the kefir culture. The kettles have been converted to hot water. We were very blessed to have ingenious plumbers, who designed a system even though they had no clue as to how to go about it when they started. But they were inspired to plumb a tiny cheese factory, something they had never done before. And are we thankful!!

Here in pictures is our dairy from start to finish!