October Checklist — Getting the Kashmir Dairy Shed Ready Before the Cold

October in the valley is the last comfortable month. The apples are in, the paddy is cut, and the shed still smells of summer. By mid-November the first frost is on the trough and anything not done now gets done in the cold, badly, or not at all. This is our list.

Fodder and feed

• Count the stack. Walk around the dry fodder and estimate honestly: an adult cow eats around 8-10 kg of dry fodder a day, so 120 days of winter for three cows is close to 3,500 kg. If the stack is short, buy now while the price is low.
• Dry the tree leaves. Willow, mulberry and poplar branches cut now and dried in the shade are the best winter feed a goat can get.
• Order the compound feed before the roads get difficult. A bag of feed on the scooter in October is easier than the same bag in January. Our godown at Nanil Akura Road is open through winter, but your own trip is simpler before the snow.

The building

• Roof and gutters. Fix the loose sheet and clear the gutter now; snow finds every gap.
• Drains. A shed that drains dry in October stays dry in February. Dig out the channel.
• Draughts at animal level, air above. Board up the holes at knee height; leave the ridge open. A sealed shed breeds pneumonia.
• Bedding store. Dry straw or leaves for bedding under cover, enough for the season.

The animals

• Deworm on the vet's schedule before the cold, when animals are still in condition.
• Dry cows and transition. Any cow due in December or January should be dried off on time and moved to a dry-cow ration now; the last three weeks before calving are for GOKA Transition −21.
• Lice and ticks. Treat in October and repeat in two weeks; a clean coat going into winter saves a lot of rubbing in January.
• Hoof check. Trim overgrown hooves while the ground is dry.

Water

• Plan the lukewarm water. A big pot on the kitchen stove, a kettle, a small immersion heater — decide now how two warm drinks a day will happen for every animal, every day.

Ten quiet days in October buy a calm winter. The farmers who do this are the ones whose milk does not drop in December.