320 ILLINOIS STATE DAIRYMEN'S ASSOCIATION 



dairyman's work of caring for the cream on the farm, where he 

 needs to give special attention to cleanhness. 



1. Condition of cows and stable while milking. 



2. Manner of milking. 



3. Kind of milk pail used. 



4. Method of cleaning pails and utensils. 



5. Method and frequency of cleaning the hand separator. 



6. Condition of cream cans and surroundings where creani 

 is kept. 



Condition of Cows and Stable During Milking. If bedding is 

 distributed or hay thrown down from a loft just before milking, 

 the air will be full of fine dust and bacteria which fall into the 

 milk while the cows are milked. The handling of hay or bedding 

 should either be done after milking or an hour before, so that the 

 dust will have time to settle before milking begins. Cows should 

 be kept sufficiently bedded so as to save time in keeping them 

 reasonably clean. When the cows' flanks and sides are covered 

 with manure it is impossible to produce clean milk or cream. 

 With a proper arrangement of stalls and the use of sufficient bed- 

 cfing the cows will keep fairly clean. It will then take but a few 

 minutes to rub over the flanks and udders with a damp cloth just 

 before milking which will help to prevent dust and dirt from 

 getting into the milk pail. 



Manner of Milking. If clean milk or cream is to be secur- 

 ed the milking must be done with dry hands. The habit of wet- 

 ting the fingers with milk is filthy, to say the least, and should 

 never be practiced. It is only a matter of habit and dry-hand 

 milkers are as a rule able to milk more rapidly than milkers who 

 resort to the abominable practice of dipping the fingers in t^ie 

 milk. 



Kind of Milk Pails Used. Dairymen would find it a great 

 help in producing clean milk or cream to use a milk pail with the 

 greater portion of the top covered. This type of pail keeps out 

 a great deal of dust and particles of dirt, that with the common 

 open pail would fall into the milk. It should be remembered 

 that straining the milk does not remove the dirt that is in solu- 

 tion. Much of the dirt that gets into the milk is dissolved and 



