We have got three cows that we milk (although they are only all in milk during the summer). We have a BBX jersey, a BBx Friesan and a recently acquired Jersey.
In my experience the BBxJersey is the best house cow. You get the really high quality milk, docility, but a calf that is potentially more valuable that from pure jersey.
There are loads of ways to manage house cows and the calves and everyone finds a different way of doing things that suits them.
We milk the cows by machine (we were lucky to pick one up fairly cheaply) but all the cows are equally happy to be milked by hand - in case of power cuts! The calves are bucket reared and we also buy in extra calves to rear on the surplus milk. Any milk over and above what the calves have, goes to the pigs. Cows are at grass in the summer and housed over the winter.
We produce all our own milk, make butter, yoghurt, ice cream, cheese etc.
