Sunitha Cattle Rearing

Our place is in New Seethya Thanda, which is part of the Vayillapally area. It is a quiet spot where we spend most of our time looking after the cattle. Like most people doing this kind of work, our schedule is dictated by the animals. We are up at four or five in the morning to start the first round of milking. After that, there is the feeding and the cleaning of the area where they stay. It is honest work but it can be very tiring on the back and shoulders. We don't use any fancy marketing or have a big business plan; we just raise the cows and sell what they produce. The kids sometimes help out after school, especially when it’s time to move the herd to a different patch of grass. The weather plays a big role in our lives—if the rain doesn't come, the grass doesn't grow, and we have to spend more on fodder. We have a few sheds built with basic materials to keep the animals out of the sun and rain. It’s a very local way of living, and everyone in the Thanda pretty much knows what everyone else is doing. We don't have a website or anything like that, just our hands and the animals. We just try to keep the cows healthy so they keep producing and that’s about all there is to it. Every day is pretty much the same routine.