Dairy for Pets

Brenneman Farms Herd Share Program

In Indiana today, we are not permitted to sell raw milk or any raw dairy products. Our customers receive raw milk by taking part in our herd share program. We know herd shares can be a muddy creek to wade through. We choose to think of it as sharing a cow with your neighbor. What is a herd share? A herd share is a contractual arrangement between a farmer and an owner of livestock through which the shareholder is able to obtain raw milk of the cow herd proportionate to the shareholder's paid interest in the herd. The original one-time cost of a herd share will be $12.00 per share. This will grant you 1 gallon of milk, ½ lb butter, or 1 pint cream. What is the maintenance fee? The consumer does not buy milk from the farmer; rather, they pay the farmer for the service of keeping the animals and their labor for milking. Your cost for us to care for your share of the herd will be as follows: A2A2 Raw Milk (glass jars) $7.00/½ gal + $2.50 deposit on jarA2A2 Raw Milk $10.50/gal • $6.50/½ galRaw Butter $14.00/lb • $8.50/½ lbRaw Cream $9.50/pint How do I get milk? This is the easy part! After you've signed the herd share agreement, you're all set to head over to our dairy page to purchase your herd share and your first Brenneman Farms fresh raw milk!Sign Brenneman Farms Herd Share Still have questions? We want to make accessing the foods you thrive on easier! We're happy to clarify any questions.

Double the Sunshine!

Good things come in pairs! Who doesn't love that golden yolk oozing onto your toast, potatoes, bacon and face?😉 Why are you settling for anything less than the best when eggs are something you eat every day? These are truly pastured eggs from our happy hens and if you're a yolk fan, you'll be delighted with our double yolk eggs! Do you know why Double Yolks happen? Double yolk eggs are a natural phenomenon occurring when a chicken releases two yolks into the same shell. This happens most often with younger hens whose bodies are still just learning how to lay, and older birds who are experiencing the natural course of reproductive changes as they age. Eggs with two yolks are fairly rare: statistically speaking, you might find them in just 1 of every 1,000 eggs. Like humans, hens' bodies tend to go through their most significant changes during "adolescence" and late into adulthood, so it's during these two periods of time in a flock's life that we tend to see a higher rate of unique and irregular eggs. This egg-cellent option won't be available long! Chickens mature rapidly and in a few weeks they'll be back to giving their predictable yolk to white ratio and the eggs will have become quite uniform in size. Of course they'll be just as nutritious and delicious, but we think cracking a double yolker into the pan is just especially satisfying!

What is A2A2 Milk?

There’s a lot of great information out there about the benefits of drinking A2A2 milk. Unfortunately there’s a good deal of confusion too. We’ve had our farm family ask for particulars on exactly what is different about A2A2 milk, and we’re happy to share this knowledge! The short answer: A2A2 milk comes from cows that produce only the A2 protein and no A1 protein. The long answer: Every mammal on the planet makes milk which contains fats, carbs, and proteins. These milk proteins consist of two types: 1) Whey and 2) Casein.Casein makes up around 80% of the protein in cow’s milk.There are also Casein sub-types. One of these sub-types, called Beta-Casein, makes up about 30% of the protein in cow’s milk.All mammals - humans, sheep, goats, dogs, camels, mice, whales, lions, platypuses, etc - produce milk that contains 100% A2 beta-casein protein. As mammals, it’s what we’re born to digest. It’s natural.With the exception of cows.Cows can have THREE forms of Beta-Casein: A1, A2, and a combo A1/A2.This is quite strange.How can it be that only domesticated cattle of all the mammals on the planet have more than one Casein genetic factor? A few thousand years ago, there was a genetic mutation in cows in Europe (this was probably due to the stress of farming becoming industrialized). This mutation made cows produce a new type of beta-casein protein - A1. Those European cows made their way to the United States. Now, most milk you buy in an American supermarket will be A1/A2. What We Do Know: A1 milk is a byproduct of a genetic mutation.A1 cows give this A1 gene to their offspring and A2 cows give this A2 gene to their offspring.We test the Beta-Casein in cows and determine if it is A1, A2, or A1/A2.The molecular structure of A2A2 milk more closely resembles that of most all other mammals on the planet including human breast milk, which explains why our bodies find it easier to digest. What about lactose sensitivities? Raw milk naturally has beneficial microbes that kickstart your body to produce lactase, so that may be the perfect solution for folks whose bodies are simply sensitive to dairy. A2A2 Milk and You If your body is sensitive to the foreign A1 protein, you may have encountered a host of chronic issues. Inflammation, Type 1 diabetes, and heart disease are just a few health troubles that research has shown were helped by switching to A2A2 milk. Will drinking A1 milk hurt you? Maybe, maybe not. Every body is different. It seems that some bodies can handle the A1 beta-casein protein, some cannot tolerate it at all, and some don’t have obvious allergy-like symptoms but A1 is the underlying cause of chronic issues. At the end of the day, it's about you. Drink whatever milk your body is most comfortable with. It's important to remember that whether milk is A2A2 or not is just one factor among a host of important things to check when purchasing raw milk. At Brenneman Farms, our dairy products are 100% raw. Our cows live outdoors with sunshine, cool breezes, fresh water, and exercise. They eat grass never sprayed with glyphosates, herbicides, or pesticides. What do you think about A2A2 Milk? Share your experiences with consuming A2A2 milk!

Dairy for Pets

So, you're wondering what's going on with the dairy for pets.

Our milk for pets is held to the same rigorous standard we uphold for all our dairy products.

Frequently Asked Questions:

Do you have more questions or are curious about our practices?

More from the blog

Brenneman Farms Herd Share Program

Double the Sunshine!

What is A2A2 Milk?

Discover more of what's important to us!

Brenneman Farms