Overview
Responsibilities
T-A-S-K
Education
Income & Employability
Video Resources
Related Careers

Description

Attend 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. Attend 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. Includes workers who shear wool from sheep and collect eggs in hatcheries.

Interests

Work Values

  • Support
  • Relationships
  • Independence

Learn More about Work Values

Work Styles

  • Dependability
  • Independence
  • Adaptability/Flexibility
  • Attention to Detail
  • Integrity

Learn More about Work Styles

Tasks

  • Feed and water livestock and monitor food and water supplies.
  • Herd livestock to pastures for grazing or to scales, trucks, or other enclosures.
  • Examine animals to detect illness, injury, or disease, and to check physical characteristics, such as rate of weight gain.
  • Provide medical treatment, such as administering medications and vaccinations, or arrange for veterinarians to provide more extensive treatment.
  • Mark livestock to identify ownership and grade, using brands, tags, paint, or tattoos.

Work Activities

  • Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings
  • Performing General Physical Activities
  • Making Decisions and Solving Problems
  • Operating Vehicles, Mechanized Devices, or Equipment
  • Handling and Moving Objects

Detailed Work Activities

  • Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings - Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems.
  • Performing General Physical Activities - Performing general physical activities includes doing activities that require considerable use of your arms and legs and moving your whole body, such as climbing, lifting, balancing, walking, stooping, and handling materials.
  • Making Decisions and Solving Problems - Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
  • Operating Vehicles, Mechanized Devices, or Equipment - Running, maneuvering, navigating, or driving vehicles or mechanized equipment, such as forklifts, passenger vehicles, aircraft, or watercraft.
  • Handling and Moving Objects - Using hands and arms in handling, installing, positioning, and moving materials, and manipulating things.
  • Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates - Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
  • Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events - Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.
  • Judging the Qualities of Objects, Services, or People - Assessing the value, importance, or quality of things or people.
  • Documenting/Recording Information - Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form.
  • Getting Information - Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.

Technology Skills

  • Spreadsheet software
  • Data base user interface and query software
  • Office suite software
  • Word processing software
  • Internet browser software

Skills

  • Critical Thinking
  • Monitoring
  • Active Listening
  • Judgment and Decision Making
  • Operation and Control

Knowledge

  • Production and Processing
  • Administration and Management
  • Biology
  • English Language
  • Mechanical

Most Common Education Level

The “Most Common Education Level” refers to the level of education held by the majority of workers in a given occupation. For example, if the highest percentage of workers in a role have an Associate’s Degree, that suggests this is the typical educational requirement. Knowing this helps you plan how many years of education you may need to pursue that career.

Certificates

Certifying Organization

Certified Horsemanship Association

Type

Advanced

Income Percentile

The income percentiles show how earnings are distributed within a profession. The 10th percentile means that 10% of workers earned less than that amount. The median (50th percentile) indicates that half of workers earned more, and half earned less. The 90th percentile reflects what the top 10% of earners in the field make.

Income PercentileIncome
Low (10%)$NaN
Median (50%)$NaN
High (90%)$NaN

Income by Experience

This table shows how income typically grows with experience—from entry level (0–2 years), to mid-level (3–7 years), to senior level (8+ years).

ExperienceIncome
Entry Level$50,000
Mid Level$100,000
Senior Level$150,000

Employability

There are currently 204,700 jobs in this career path. Over the next 10 years, that number is expected to decrease to 194,100 positions, reflecting a projected decline of -5%.

The Projected Job Growth figure refers to the expected increase or decrease in employment within a specific career field over a certain period of time.

Projected Job Growth of -5%

The career information and data on this site incorporates information from O*NET Web Services by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), with ONET® being a registered trademark of USDOL/ETA. Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA; CareerOneStop, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (DOLETA) and the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED); and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

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