This is our journal of what we pray is our sojourn of life (Hebrews 11:8-10) along the narrow way (Matthew 7:14), even the old paths (Jeremiah 6:16), submitting to the Bible as a light unto both (Psalms 119:105). It is our prayer that these documented moments in our earthly time benefit whom God might choose to edify, but ultimately that God glorifies Himself through them.

Goat Milk?

The background music came from fiddle champion Tony Ludiker’s free mp3s page. The recordings have Terry Ludiker and Darin Meeks on guitar.

This was fun to do. Here’s a bit of raw footage, some of which hit the cutting room floor.

In this first one, I held out as long as I could, until the end:


I almost didn’t get the part after this take. Also, based on the last few seconds, it appears that for some reason eating cookies makes me think I’m playing Hannibal Lecter:


Here, finishing up after getting the last goat back into the pen didn’t work out quite as expected:


And just for the record, the milk I drank was from a previous day’s milking that had been kept very cold. Apparently, it’s better tasting and lasts longer when the goat milk is chilled well right away.

There is a lesson in the main video, in case it wasn’t evident: most people go to the store for their provisions; agrarians go straight to the source, which is provided by God directly in accordance with His will, without the need for the world and its government approval, degrading pasteurization, shipping companies, grocery stores, and all of the other in-between means the industrial system requires for sustenance to go from where it’s produced to where it is used or consumed.

Which way is the proper way for a Christian to live?

We are thankful to the Lord for the provisions of our goats and the milk He is allowing us to have.

— David

P.S. In case you weren’t aware of the TV commercials, etc., our video is a take off of the California Milk Processing Board (and then licensed by others) ad campaign, “got milk?”

 

17 Comments

  1. Unknown

    LOL! I'm glad you had fun making it. It was fun watching it. LOL! And, yes, it is a good lesson. 😀

  2. Shannon

    That is really great. When we first started getting milk from a local farmer it was goat milk. Sometimes it tasted just like cow's milk and other times had that "goaty" taste to it. Do you find that because yours is very fresh it doesn't have that goaty taste?

    We go through at least 3 gallons of raw milk in our home between us and the boys and are thinking that, Lord willing, goats will be one of the first animals we attempt to keep. Besides chickens of course :).

    Thank you for sharing that. Stewart used to work a bit as a videographer and film editor (back in our college days) and will love this when I show it to him later :).

    We are continually blessed by your blog and example of separation.

    We continue to pray for y'all.
    ~Shannon~

  3. Anonymous

    Man! That video (and the associated outtakes) are great to watch. Doing it in a silent movie style was a nice touch.

    As a kid, we visited friends in Montana who milked goats and I remember really not liking the taste. My dad put chocolate syrup in it and it was smooth sailing after that.

    I guess you would say that I am still colonized in my thinking about food. I know pasteurization is bad, and fresh from the animal is good, but I like the idea of a completely homogenized, sanitized product. I will have to butcher our chickens at some point and I know that I would prefer my meat boneless, bloodless, and lifeless.

    -Todd

  4. David and Susan Sifford

    Thank ya'll for your comments! We had a lot of fun making it.

    I can really relate to disliking the "goaty" taste of goat milk and cheese. All the goat cheese I had ever tasted was disgusting to me, and I had never tried goat milk before we lived here. A couple years ago Dave brought home some fresh goat milk and cheese from friends who had a herd of dairy goats. I didn't want to try it at first but felt obligated because the friends were nice enough to give some to us. I couldn't believe the milk tasted even better than cow's milk, and the cheese tasted just like cream cheese and was delicious on a cracker. That opened my willingness to having goats of our own someday. I haven't tried making cheese yet; but I have made yogurt, which is extremely easy. The thing that I have found that makes the biggest difference is to get the fresh milk as cold as possible as quickly as possible. I believe this inhibits any bacteria growth making the milk longer lasting and fresher tasting. As soon as I can after milking, I filter it and shove it in our little propane freezer. It gets a little more "goaty" tasting the warmer it is, in my opinion. I usually pull out a couple pints from the freezer to defrost before our morning chores, and then we have ice cold milk with breakfast. Store-bought goat milk may automatically taste more "goaty" because of all the processing and handling. And the local raw milk may taste more "goaty" sometimes due to many factors (ie: the goat's diet, filter processing, length of time before chilling milk, etc.)

    And I'm sure you're aware but raw goat milk is so nutritious for you. It is the closest to mother's milk and is much, much more beneficial to your body than cow's milk. I tested very allergic to some "casein" component of cow's milk, but goat's milk doesn't seem to bother me, thank God. I'm totally sold on it. I'm trying to drink some everyday to improve the good bacteria in my gut as well as my digestion.

    Thanks again for your comments!

    Susan

  5. Shannon

    Susan – So glad I came back to read the comments on this one. That's a great point on goat milk being as close to mothers milk as you can get. When I wasn't making enough milk for our first baby we gave him raw goat milk and he thrived, thank the Lord, when I added extra fats like coconut oil and cod liver oil.

    I also read somewhere that goat milk can taste goaty when their is a male goat nearby, though I can't say if it is true or not.

    I bet a spring box would be excellent for quickly chilling the milk.

    Also, I have some raw milk yogurt starters that you can make on your counter instead of in a yogurt maker, crock pot or warm place. If you're interested in them let me know and I'll send them off. I haven't tried them yet, but they come from a great company and I like the idea of keeping my raw milk raw.

    ~Shannon~

  6. Anonymous

    You two come up with the cutest ideas! I loved watching this. Hilarious! My old farm pet "Billy" behaved much like your roudy girls and was a stubborn 'ol coot! Never had milking goats, but now buy organic goat cheese for crackers, or to put on homemade pizza, etc.; it's delicious. Hope to have my own someday, Lord Willing!

    Loved watching you hand milk them Susan….squirt, squirt, squirt…I could just hear it; was a bit worried with that last goat that all your effort was going to get kicked over, though! Ha! Great editing and music background! Great "munching" and then "moaning and groaning" footage "playing" David! Loved the raw clips and giggles as well.

    Beth

  7. Unknown

    I showed the video to my girls last night and they thought it was pretty cotton-pickin' funny! Now they want more videos, so no pressure or anything….

    – Todd

  8. David and Susan Sifford

    Shannon,

    I would be very interested in making my own raw milk yogurt starters. Please forward the info. at your convenience – thanks very much!!

    Beth,

    Thanks for your comment. We're glad you really enjoyed the video. Yes, that last goat in the video is a handful but so far I haven't lost a bowl of milk. Although, I know God differentiates the behavior of goats and sheep in the Bible for a reason. Goats will be goats!

    Todd,

    HaHa, we're glad your girls enjoyed the video. We'll have to leave any future videos to "Director Dave's" creative juices. But you never know! Thanks so much for taking the time to follow our blog.

    Susan

  9. Anonymous

    David:

    My girls now call you Captain Cookie.

    They would also like to know how many chickens you have.

    Thanks so much

    -Todd

  10. David and Susan Sifford

    Ah, defender of truth, justice and the chocolate morsel way! 😀

    I believe we have 11 or so hens and 4 roosters, although that is too many roosters for the amount of hens we have.

    Glad the children are enjoying the blog post.

    — David

  11. debbieo

    I loved the video, looks like you had so much fun. I milked my goats just like you do until I had to sell a few months ago. I have a tip I used: I put a piece of clean sheet over my jar and used a rubber band to hold it and pushed it down and milked right thru the cloth into the jar. Then in the house I filtered it again. We live in western oklahoma and its windy and I dont like stuff in my milk.

  12. David and Susan Sifford

    Hi debbieo,

    Thanks for the comment, and thanks much for the tip!

    — David

  13. Unknown

    Awsome video!
    Any chance you would put it on YouTube?

    My husband and I grew up on goat il, and I have never enjoyed it all that well.
    But, as an adult, now tha tI understand all the science behind raw milk, and dead milk,a nd about proper handling and cooling, I hope we can get goats sometime soon.
    We are blessed right now, to have a raw cow dairy near here, and I run one of the co-ops for it.
    Our milk is only $5 per gallon with heavy cream at $5 per quart.
    As coordinater, ours is free.

    Right now, we are building up the laying chickens, and will be saving the gg money for further adventures towards "free" living.

    I also teach Traditional Food classes, (Weston A Price), and love to share with fellow believers that God intended real food for our good, and his children, we have no business buying, eating, or processing food the way our government requires.
    No canning goes on in our home!!
    Blessings to you both,
    Paula

  14. David and Susan Sifford

    Hi Paula,

    Thank you. Hopefully the video will actually get some folks to think a little too. We'll see about YouTube.

    Glad you're able to get some raw milk and your own eggs. May God guide you in your endeavors.

    Thanks again,

    — David

  15. Al

    Hi Siffords,

    Great videos. Thanks for taking the time to make them. The first thing that struck me when I was watching was the fact that Susan so cheerfully went to all that trouble to get her husband some milk. Sadly, most wives in the world would say "too bad" or "get your own milk". A great lesson in being a true helpmeet Susan.

    Also, I had a thought about your milking trap. Perhaps you could cut a hole in the platform that is the same size as your bowl and slip the bowl into the hole and let the lip rest on the edge. That would stabilize it a little and prevent it from being knocked over. Or maybe slip a piece of PVC pipe or a bucket into the hole and then set your bowl in to raise it up a little so that it can't get stepped in. You could have a circlular piece of steel or wood that would fit over the hole when loading the goat so she doesn't step in the hole… Just some ideas that hit me when I saw your rig. I like to engineer things like that. Usually I over do it. YOu know, if one screw is good 3 is better! but I'm rambling. Good work on the video and the lessons they teach.

    Love your blog.

    Alc

  16. Unknown

    Hey, do you guys use your fat lamps regularly? Can you give us an update on how they are working out and some things you have learned about them? 😀

    Also, have you tried powdering dried zucchini? I had an idea today, after I put it in the blender and powdered it (I keep forgetting to try pounding it in a bag). After pounding it in a bag, maybe it will go through a hand-crank grain mill. If I can remember it the next time I do a batch of dried zucchini, I will try doing just that.

    I also had another question, but forgot what it was… Or maybe it was an idea to share… I don't remember. LOL!

  17. David and Susan Sifford

    Thanks Al, and thanks for the ideas for the milking stand.

    Ginny, we don't use the fat lamps really right now as we are still in our camper, which has electricity from our solar trailer. However, Lord willing when we move into our house, we're planning on doing things more the old way, like using fire lamps.

    Haven't tried grinding the zucchini. Interesting idea though.

    — David

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