I don't know about you but I cannot believe how fast this year has flown by! Our children keep growing like weeds and are keeping us more than busy with all of their activities. Just this week we had our first 4-H meeting for our girls and are excited to venture into market lambs this next year. We had lots of baby goats this spring and plan on enjoying fresh milk all winter long thanks to their mamas.
We are so blessed to be able to keep providing milking solutions and so appreciative of everyone’s patience as our lead times have been much longer than desirable as globally we are still dealing with supply chain issues. We are hopeful that we can place parts orders far enough in advance this fall to be well prepared for next Spring.
We are excited to announce that we are bringing back our calendar contest! The last couple of years have seen its fair share of challenges for many of us and we believe that everyone could use a little bit of joy in their lives. We think that a calendar full of cute farm pictures can do just that! Calendar Contest - One grand prize winner will receive a $500 gift card to our website and have their entry featured on the cover of the calendar. The other winning submissions will receive a $100 gift card to our website and all winners will receive a copy of the finished calendar. After the contest, the calendars will be available for sale in time for Christmas presents!
Entries can be photographs or art. Adults and children are both welcome to enter! Submission ideas: farm life, baby animals, milking, milk creations (food, soap, etc). We ask that you limit entries to items related to goats, sheep or cows. You can enter 2 entries total (photograph or art) per person. For example you could enter 2 photos, 2 pieces of artwork or 1 of each.
What NOT to include: 1. No farm names or product names other than simple PULSE 2. No photos of people Open: Now!
Close Date: November 11, 11:59 pm
IMPORTANT NOTES: 1. All winners will be chosen at the subjective discretion of the owners and employees of simple PULSE.
2. All entries must be the property of the person entering them and you give simple PULSE permission to use them in any marketing materials, this applies to text, photos and/or artwork.
How to Enter: Email your entry to: sales@simplepulse.com along with your Name, Farm name, brief description of your entry, address and telephone number. Entries missing that information are subject to disqualification. Good luck!
Jesse and Cristen
]]>We hope that everyone had a great holiday season with their families! We got to spend several days playing in the snow which was very fun for our children. We travelled to the snow for Christmas and then it snowed at our house!
We want to thank everyone who submitted a video, we had some great submissions! Our grand prize winner is Tom and Natalie Epler from Carpenter Creek Ranch in Oregon. They nominated Bitsy Zimmer and she will be the lucky recipient of a new simple PULSE milking system!
There were five other videos that we want to recognize as runner-ups. Those folks will each get a $100 gift certificate to our website. Those winners are:
- Michelle Bravo, Monkey Hill Farm
- Gordon Dean, Living Dreams Nigerians
- Heather Edwards, Edwards Family Homestead
- Melissa Holahan, Chubb E. Acres Farm
- Amanda Willis-Frier, Reston Ridge Nubians
Nine years ago we created the simple PULSE to make milking simpler for small homesteaders. We are delighted that we have customers who keep coming back to us as we design and create new solutions. These videos highlight this and will be great for prospective new customers to watch.
Look for all of these videos at some point in the future on our website.
Thank you and happy milking!
Jesse and Cristen Sullivan
]]>The contest will run until end of day Friday, 12/17/2021.
We want you to nominate someone you think should win one of our milking systems and if your video is chosen as the winning video, you will receive either a cart upgrade or a $400 gift certificate and your nominee will win a complete milking system.
Any videos that are not the winning video that we use on our website for marketing purposes will also win a $100 gift certificate to our website.
This contest is open to anyone who uses any version of our system. Submit your video to: sales@simplepulse.com
Video can be emailed or uploaded to Youtube and then a link emailed to us.
In your email, please also include: Name, Farm Name, Address and Phone Number as well as who you are nominating.
The winning system will be our 6 CFM basic milking system with one set of Transflow lines, and winners choice of inflations (Nigerian or Standard). Winner can upgrade to silicone or add extras before we ship and pay the difference if desired.
Shipping within the continental US will be free, if the winner is from another country, they will be responsible for shipping charges. Any questions, just let us know, thank you!
Happy Milking,
Jesse and Cristen Sullivan
]]>Did you know, when it comes to the kind of milk Americans put in their glasses, the preference leans toward cow’s milk and plant-based milk substitutes? According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the average consumer drinks an estimated 18 gallons of cow’s milk per year. Just because cow’s milk currently holds influence with consumers does not mean it is the best option available.
Goat milk is a healthy alternative to traditional cow’s milk. Americans tend to treat goat milk and goat milk products like an exotic luxury in their diets rather than a staple. Or as a foreign substance that shouldn’t be consumed at all! So many people have tried our goat’s milk and been shocked that it tastes just like the milk they are used to drinking. There are many reasons why goat’s milk should be your go-to dairy product if your overall health and well-being are top priorities. Here are five of the most surprising health benefits associated with consuming goat’s milk.
Roughly 36 percent of Americans suffer from lactose intolerance, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Lactose is the natural sugar in cow’s milk. While goat’s milk is not lactose-free, it is lower in overall lactose. It also has another advantage over cow’s milk. The fat globules in goat’s milk are smaller than those in cow’s milk. When exposed to stomach acid, these globules form a soft curd, making it easier to digest. For these two reasons, goat milk may be a better choice for individuals who are lactose intolerant.
When it comes to goat milk, the good news just keeps coming. Chock full of fatty acids, goat milk does wonders for your skin. Fatty acids are an essential part of your skin barrier. Goat milk also contains ample levels of lactic acid, which are handy for ridding your face of dead skin cells that can make it look dull and lifeless. The even better news is the fact that goat milk’s pH level is like the human pH level. This means it is more easily absorbed by the skin without unpleasant irritation.
Did you know that goat’s milk is high in zinc and selenium? Not to mention it contains 33 percent of your recommended daily allowance for calcium. When we consume goat milk, our bodies also are better able to absorb iron, magnesium, and phosphorous. That is not the case with cow milk. As if that was not the most amazing news, there is more. Research supports the notion that goat milk carries some of the same healing properties as olive oil and can even boost the regeneration of hemoglobin to protect against osteoporosis.
Goat milk is quite the superfood. In addition to its amazing healing properties, it also has high concentrations of medium-chain fatty acids. If you are wondering why this is exciting, it is because medium-chain fatty acids are not stored in our bodies as fat. As a bonus, they provide a bit of an energy boost. Additional perks include their link to heart disease prevention and their ability to lower cholesterol.
Cow milk is known to contain up to 20 different allergens. Milk allergy is one of the most common allergies in children. It sometimes carries over into adulthood. Abdominal cramping, inflammation, hives, and other intestinal issues crop up whenever someone is allergic to cow milk. Goat milk is missing many of the proteins that cause lactose intolerance. Cow milk contains A1 Beta-Casein, which is the protein to which most people are allergic. Goat milk, like Jersey cow milk, is an A2 casein. It is most similar to human breast milk, which is why most people can drink it without issue. I went off all cow milk dairy for 14 months while nursing our 4th child but could still enjoy our goat’s milk without issue, what a blessing that was!
Goat milk is worth adding to your diet, but it can be difficult to find in mainstream stores. Most people who consume goat milk buy it from local farms or have their own goat for milking. If you want to take the plunge into milking your own goats, I suggest finding a breeder nearby that can mentor you as you get started. You will always want more than one goat as they get lonely by themselves. You will have to decide if you want to buy kids and raise and breed them or buy a pregnant doe or buy a doe in milk. A doe must have babies in order to produce milk. There are also many options as to different breeds. We will share what works best for our home milk production in future blogs.
Goat milking is not difficult when you use a goat milking machine like our Simple Pulse Basic Milking System. It makes goat milking at home a breeze. We have instructional videos available to help guide you on the proper way to use a goat milking machine.
Goat milk may not be your top choice, but it should get serious consideration. The abundance of nutrients coupled with its other benefits makes consuming goat milk a no-brainer. Now I’m going to go enjoy a glass of ice-cold goats milk!
]]>We offer two types of milk hose and another common question we get is, what is the difference between the two types of hoses? We use the silicone material because of its flexibility in the winter months but we like the Transflow hose as well and offer it as a less expensive, quality option. Below are the descriptions of both hose materials.
Transflow
FDA approved, Transflow is specifically designed for raw milk applications. It is specially formulated to reduce the risks that can occur with the use of rubber tubing. It is made to not dry out or crack which allows it to last longer than rubber tubing.
Transflow tubing has a smooth, non-porous bore that reduces the occurrence of buildup of butterfat or milk solids and it is not affected by strong cleaners. It is clear which permits immediate visual inspection of your milk and the cleanliness of your lines. Contains no BPA or phthalates.
Silicone
FDA approved, silicone is unaffected by temperature meaning it will perform the same at 90 degrees or -20 degrees maintaining the same flexibility and ease of use. This is the main difference between it and the Transflow tubing, it’s flexibility.
Silicone will not dry out or crack. Milk, fat, bacteria and cleaning solutions will not react with the silicone thus not allowing deterioration of the milk line. It is perfectly hygienic with a longer life span than other types of milk tubing. Silicone tubing will not discolor from its original translucent color. Silicone is said to last longer than any other hose material.
]]>I am going to start a blog series about the components that make a great milk room. Originally, I milked in our open barn next to the goat stalls until we could upgrade and create an area dedicated to the milking process. Every year we made little upgrades and now I have what I consider to be an ideal milk room and often get asked about it and what should be included in a milk room. My milk room now promotes efficiency and cleanliness and we made strategic decisions to ensure this. The more efficient your milking area is, the easier it is to stay consistent in your routine. And staying consistent in your routine is very important to not taking shortcuts when it comes to your milking and cleaning procedures.
One note to make is that our milk room is ideal for us but may not be ideal for you. Use what infrastructure and resources you have paired with your needs. We milk 3-9 goats and process no more than 3 gallons of milk per day at peak. Your milk room may need to process 20 gallons of milk and a lot more goats. Parts of what I share can be applied to your setup but you will need to adjust it to your needs as well.
Before I talk about the components that make up the milk room, I am going to start with what your milking area should be no matter what kind of infrastructure you have.
This is a picture from 2008 after we just bought our property and converted a 2 sided carport into a barn. We built stalls and then made a makeshift milking area that worked to start. We were not selling milk, only drinking for our own personal consumption and kept it as clean as we could
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