This book includes the best ever explanation of house cow nutrition and digestion processes that I have ever read. She writes that you can't buy poor hay and expect to make up for it by feeding more grain, your cow will just get fat. She also explains hand milking and how to stop a cow from kicking. The advantages of raw milk for humans are also explained and I really enjoyed the discussion on why commercial milk is pastuerised. There is a huge amount of detail in nearly 300 pages.
I was surprised by how much space was devoted to milk fever. Its good to know about it and be prepared to treat it if your cow suffers from milk fever after calving. I really like the way Joann explains the biological processes that can cause problems with cows.
This book is written for the north eastern US climate, and as I always say about US books, there are a few things that are not relevant to Australian house cows because we don't have to deal with snow. We have different pastures, different fencing techniques and different pests. But in general, this is a great start for any cow owner.
Of course, I would recommend my house cow ebook as a supplementary guide for Australians.
