The Dairy Unit here at Cal Poly is home to around 400 hundred cows and functions around the clock 24/7. It is located north of campus and around twenty employees keep it running. One of which is Ariana Bellanti, a second year Cal Poly student. She has worked at the Dairy for almost a year. Her job as a milker is definitely challenging, but made her very knowledgeable of the dairy industry. Not only does she have to get up before dawn to milk these massive animals, she must be aware of her surroundings at all times.

Her day begins at 3 a.m. as she herds the cows into the milking parlor. As the cows align in the parallel parlor, the milking process begins. Ariana elaborates on the dangers of milking stating, “We have had incidents where people get their hands crushed between the cow and the parlor because they were distracted or the cow was startled.” Being a milker is no joke and Ariana takes every precaution to keep herself from getting injured.

The Dairy Unit is a massive part of the school and Ariana is proud to represent it in this podcast. I hope you enjoy as she speaks about her job as a milker!