MILK AND ITS PRODUCTS 161 



The water of ponds and stagnant streams is especially 

 dangerous. Not only is such water injurious to the health 

 of cows, but in wading into it, they become contaminated 

 with numerous undesirable bacteria, some of which may 

 later find their way into the milk. 



Strainers and Straining. Milk should be drawn so 

 clean as to make it almost unnecessary to strain it. This 

 operation is frequently done under the delusion that so 

 long as it 'removes all visible dirt the milk has been 

 entirely purified. The real harm, however, that comes 

 from hairs and dust particles dropping into the milk is 

 not so much in the hairs and dust particles themselves 

 as in the millions of bacteria which they carry with them. 

 These bacteria are so small that no method of straining 

 will remove them. Straining can not even remove all 

 of the dirt, because some of it will go in solution. 



A good strainer consists of two thicknesses of cheese 

 cloth with a layer of absorbent cotton between. The 

 strainer is to be placed on the can or vat into which the 

 milk is to be strained and not on the milk pail. While 

 a strainer like the above placed upon the milk pail, reduces 

 the bacterial content slightly in the hands of careful milk- 

 ers, it is believed that the slight advantage gained would 

 be more than off-set by greater carelessness in milking; 

 especially might this be true with ignorant milkers who 

 are apt to think that the strainer will make up for any 

 carelessness on their part. A cheese cloth strainer on 

 the milk pail is worse than useless with any kind of 

 milker. 



New sterilized cotton must be used at each milking 

 and the cloths must be thoroughly washed and sterilized. 

 Like the cotton, it is best to use the cloth but once. 



Dust=Free Air. Great precaution should be taken not 



