milch cow

[Elizabeth Gregory]

Winburne's _Dictionary of Agricultural and Allied Terminology_ (1962) defines

"Milk cow" as: "A cow bred and used for milk production, in contrast to one bred for beef production. Also called _milch cow_."

"Milking cow" is "a cow in milk; a lactating cow. Also called _milch cow_."

However, under "milch," it says only "See _milk cow_."

FWIW, "dairy cow" is defined as "a milk-producing cow which shows predominant characteristics of one of the dairy breeds."

Elizabeth Gregory
Agricultural Communications
Texas A&M University
e-gregory at tamu.edu