It was once common to keep a cow right outside the house

Can you imagine keeping a cow in your yard? It was once common to keep a cow right outside the house. People needed the cow to get fresh milk, cream, cheese, and butter. They milked the cow every day.

Cheese, butter, and ice cream are all made from the milk of cows. Today, you go to the supermarket when you need milk, butter, or ice cream. You buy these things in cartons or bottles. But the milk still comes from cows. The cows now live on big dairy farms rather than in the yard.

WHAT KIND OF ANIMAL IS A COW?

Cattle is another word for cows. Cows are female cattle. Male cattle are called bulls. Only cows can give milk.

Cattle are large mammals. They can weigh well over 1,000 pounds (500 kilograms). The bodies of cattle are covered with hair. The hair can be white, black, brown, or a mix of colors. Cattle have a tail and four legs with hooves on each foot. Some cows and bulls have two horns on their heads. Bulls have bigger horns than cows.

COW’S MILK

Like almost all mammal mothers, cows give birth to live babies. A young cow or bull is called a calf. The calves drink cow’s milk. Cows produce more milk than their calves need, however. People milk cows to get this extra milk.

To milk a cow by hand, you sit on a stool and squeeze milk from the cow’s udder. The udder hangs under the cow’s body. It is an organ that holds milk. You have to be careful the cow does not kick you!

Dairy farms raise cows for milk. One cow on a modern dairy farm can give more than 1,500 gallons (5,700 liters) of milk a year. Dairy farms can have thousands of cows. Special machines on dairy farms milk the cows. Big tanker trucks carry the milk away to be put in cartons.

DAIRY CATTLE AND BEEF CATTLE

Cows raised for milk, cheese, butter, and cream are called dairy cattle. Some cattle are raised for their meat instead of for milk. These cattle are called beef cattle. Beef is meat that comes from cattle.

Steaks and hamburgers are made from beef. Cows are an important food source for people.

WHAT DO COWS EAT?

Cows and other cattle eat plants. They have special stomachs that let them eat really tough grasses. Their stomachs have four parts.

Cows and other cattle chew their food twice. First, a cow takes a bite of grass. The cow only chews a little bit before swallowing. The food goes into the first part of the stomach. The first stomach part turns the food into a wad called a cud. The cud goes back to the cow’s mouth. The cow chews the cud before swallowing again. Then the cud goes through the other parts of the stomach.

Some dairy cows graze in fields called pastures. Dairy farmers also make special food for dairy cows. The food helps the cows give more milk. In addition to grasses, farmers feed beef cattle corn and other special food that makes them gain weight fast.