Need help in creating a phrase that utilise the term "cash cow"

[drenaldi]

Dear all,

This is a little bit sophisticated, but I hope some of you might be able to assist. I need a help in forming a phrase by taking a little spin off the term "cash cow" and put it into the context of farmer's life.

Sometime people use the term "cash cow" for any asset that produce lots of cash. But the cow itself could be the asset that produce the cash (through the milk production), so a cash cow in this context could literally mean a cow that produces cash.

So if I want to form a catchy phrase from the situation while maintaining the use of the word "literal" and "cash cow", the best I can come up with are:
1) "The farmers are living off his cash cows, literally"
2) "Those cows really put the word cash cows in its literal meaning"
3) "The farmers are living out the word cash cows literally"

However I still feel something is missing in the second and third phrase (for the second phrase, the word 'put' may be inappropriate?).
I would really appreciate any suggestion for a better way to phrase the situation.

Thanks all!

[BobK]

I've never known the term 'cash-cow' to be used in the context of dairy-farming. (That doesn't mean you can't do it of course; but you're wise to use the word 'literally'.)

1) "The farmers are living off his(? their?) cash cows, literally" OK, but 'the 'literally' feels to me as though it applies to the verb.
2) "Those cows really put give the word expression 'cash cows' in its literal meaning"
3) "The farmers are living out the word [the meaning of] the expression cash cows literally"

(Despite what I said about 'literally' I think you can do without it after you've said 'living out'.

Interesting example.

b