242 THE CREAMERY PATRON'S HANDBOOK. 



as great importance are efficient digestive organs; large and well formed 

 milk organs; strong heart and good blood circulation; large, strong lungs; 

 and a highly developed nerve system. For convenience in the present 

 discussion these are called the essential organs, and are considered here 

 with some remarks concerning their uses or functions. 



Digestive organs. Milk is a manufactured article, produced by the 

 cow from the food which she consumes. The capacity of a cow for produc- 

 ing milk depends largely upon her capacity for digesting food and assimilating 

 it into her tissues. For the accommodation of a large and efficient digestive 

 apparatus a good dairy cow should have a long, deep and wide barrel with 

 well sprung ribs. This form of middle piece gives ample room for the storage 

 of food, and for an apparatus capable of disposing of large quantities of 

 the coarse, bulky fodder which the cow consumes. 



Milk organs. The milk organs are quite intimately concerned in the 

 productive capacity of the cow, as it is in these that the milk and butterfat 

 are finally elaborated from the food. It is not altogether cleaily under- 

 stood how the milk is made in the gland, but it seems quite probable that 

 it is produced by the epithelial cells within the udder. So far as is known, 

 the quantity of milk that can be produced depends in a large part upon 

 the number and activity of these cells. The number of such cells is limited 

 by the size of the udder and the amount of fatty tissue it contains. The 

 dairy cow should therefore have a large udder capacity, the larger the 

 better, but the size of the udder should not be due to any large amount 

 of fat or flesh. There should be an elasticity of the tissue with a shrinkage 

 of the udder when empty. The udder should have considerable surface 

 extending far forward and well up behind. It should be well balanced and 

 symmetrical in shape, indicating good development in all quarters; for the 

 more perfectly developed the organ is, the larger the amount of milk it will be 

 likely to yield. It should be spread considerably from side to side also, 

 while the teats should be even and squarely placed. To make room for 

 such a capacious, well developed udder, the hind legs of the cow should 

 be wide apart, the thighs should be thin, and the flanks high arched. 



The activity of the udder, or the amount of work done in it, is indicated 

 to some extent by the quantity of blood that passes through it, which depends 

 quite largely upon the capacity of the blood vessels which are connected 

 therewith. It is important, therefore, that there should be a strong and 

 full development of the arteries and veins of the udder and abdomen. The 

 milk veins should be large and elastic, should extend well to the front, and 

 should enter the abdomen through large or numerous orifices, thus permitting 

 a strong flow of blood through them with a minimum of resistance as it 

 returns to the heart. Besides these veins, there is a network of them in 

 the forequarters of the udder, and still others pass upward behind, which, 

 when large, indicate considerable productive capacity. 



Pelvic organs. Dairying is based upon the maternity of the cow. It 

 is the mother function that arouses the milk organs into activity for the 



