About This Career

Attends to live farm, ranch, open range or aquacultural animals that may include cattle, sheep, swine, goats, horses and other equines, poultry, rabbits, finfish, shellfish, and bees. Attends to animals produced for animal products, such as meat, fur, skins, feathers, eggs, milk, and honey. Duties may include feeding, watering, herding, grazing, milking, castrating, branding, de-beaking, weighing, catching, and loading animals. May maintain records on animals; examine animals to detect diseases and injuries; assist in birth deliveries; and administer medications, vaccinations, or insecticides as appropriate. May clean and maintain animal housing areas.

This career is part of the Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources cluster Animal Systems pathway.

A person in this career:

• Feeds and waters livestock and monitors food and water supplies.
• Herds livestock to pastures for grazing or to scales, trucks, or other enclosures.
• Examines animals to detect illness, injury, or disease, and to check physical characteristics, such as rate of weight gain.
• Provides medical treatment, such as administering medications and vaccinations, or arranges for veterinarians to provide more extensive treatment.
• Marks livestock to identify ownership and grade, using brands, tags, paint, or tattoos.
• Inspects, maintains, and repairs equipment, machinery, buildings, pens, yards, and fences.
• Drives trucks, tractors, and other equipment to distribute feed to animals.
• Segregates animals according to weight, age, color, and physical condition.
• Moves equipment, poultry, or livestock from one location to another, manually or using trucks or carts.
• Cleans stalls, pens, and equipment, using disinfectant solutions, brushes, shovels, water hoses, or pumps.

Working Conditions and Physical Demands

People who do this job report that:

• You would often handle loads up to 20 lbs., sometimes up to 50 lbs. You might do a lot of lifting, carrying, pushing or pulling.
• Exposure to pollutants, gases, dust, fumes, odors, poor ventilation, etc.
• Conditions are very hot (above 90 F) or very cold (under 32 F)
• Work in this occupation requires being outside most of the time
• Work in this occupation involves standing more than one-third of the time
• Work in this occupation involves walking or running more than one-third of the time

Working in this career involves (physical activities):

• Seeing clearly at a distance
• Seeing clearly up close
• Speaking clearly enough to be able to be understood by others
• Identifying and understanding the speech of another person
• Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying objects
• Using abdominal and lower back muscles repeatedly or over time without tiring

Work Hours and Travel

• Irregular hours
• Weekend work