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Farmworkers, Farm, Ranch, and Aquacultural Animals

SOC 45-2093.00Job Zone 2 · Some Preparation

Attend to live farm, ranch, open range or aquacultural animals that may include cattle, sheep, swine, goats, horses, poultry, 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.

Context coveredDairy and beef cattle, swine, sheep, poultry, horses, aquaculture, apiaries; daily care, biosecurity, equipment, and recordkeeping in commercial production.

Sources:O*NET v30.2O*NET Resource Center — Occupational Information Network, v30.2 (Sept 2025). Opens in new tab.SkillsCrosswalkSkillsCrosswalk — O*NET enrichment + adjacency index. Opens in new tab.
Emerging
Entry / Apprentice
  1. Daily feeding and watering routines — perform reliably under a herdsperson's direction on a commercial farm.
  2. Animal handling basics (sorting, restraint, low-stress handling) — apply consistently on assigned species.
  3. Personal protective equipment and biosecurity (boot baths, dedicated clothing) — follow without prompting.
  4. Routine pen and barn cleaning — perform on schedule with documented results.
  5. Standard equipment (milking units, automated feeders, scales) — operate safely with training.
  6. Animal-observation rounds (lameness, off-feed, distress) — conduct and report to the herd manager.
  7. Treatment-record entries — log accurately under a supervisor's verification.
  8. Routine vaccinations and injections — administer per the veterinarian's protocol with supervision.
  9. Hot- and cold-weather animal-care procedures — apply consistently on the farm.
  10. Daily-task logs and shift hand-offs — maintain to the operation's standards.
Developing
Mid-level / Established
  1. Routine herd or flock health programs — execute under the veterinarian's standing orders.
  2. Calving, farrowing, lambing, or hatching support — provide independently in routine cases.
  3. Routine repairs (gates, fences, water systems, ventilation) — perform with documented checklists.
  4. Milking-parlor operations (or aquaculture harvest, or poultry catching) — lead a shift in production.
  5. Animal-welfare standards (industry program, FARM, NCC, GAA-BAP) — apply per the operation's certifications.
  6. Junior workers and new hires — train on safety, biosecurity, and animal handling.
  7. Routine inventory (semen, vaccines, feed additives) — manage at task level under a herd manager.
  8. Standard records (DHIA, PigCHAMP, individual ID systems) — maintain accurately.
  9. Cross-task flexibility (calving, processing, equipment maintenance) — adapt with rapid retraining.
  10. Crew safety and near-miss reporting — own at the field level.
Proficient
Senior / Expert IC
  1. Herdsperson or farm-floor leadership — own across feeding, breeding, health, and production records.
  2. Production records and benchmarking — analyze for milk, growth, hatch, or feed-conversion improvements.
  3. Vaccination, treatment, and biosecurity programs — execute per the veterinarian's plan at scale.
  4. Major repairs and equipment overhauls — schedule and oversee with vendors and operators.
  5. Continuous-improvement projects (heat stress, mastitis, lameness, mortality) — lead with measurable outcomes.
  6. Cross-shift coordination — own across day and night crews with clear documentation.
  7. Routine audits (welfare, sustainability, certification) — host with documentation and prepared responses.
  8. Junior herdspersons and lead workers — supervise across a small team.
  9. Vendor and milk-/processor-buyer relationships — manage at routine level.
  10. Operating budgets (feed, supplies, labor) — manage at unit scale under the owner.
Advanced
Lead / Principal / Executive
  1. Production-operations leadership for a dairy, ranch, or aquaculture site — set direction across staff and animal welfare.
  2. Capital decisions (parlor upgrades, ventilation, automation) — author and defend with the owner.
  3. Major audits and certifications (welfare, sustainability, food-safety) — lead at executive level.
  4. Workforce development — own across training, certifications, and retention with HR partners.
  5. Industry forums (commodity boards, breed associations) — represent the operation.
  6. Disaster response (disease incursion, weather, equipment failure) — command across staff and vendors.
  7. Vertical-integration partnerships (processor, retailer, cooperative) — own at operational and strategic levels.
  8. Long-term reproductive and genetics programs — set across years and generations in collaboration with breeders.
  9. Safety culture and welfare ethics — institutionalize across crews.
  10. Legacy mentorship of herdspersons and farm-floor leads — institutionalize through training.

AI-at-Work Competency Framework

Sources:Anthropic Economic IndexAnthropic Economic Index — release_2026_03_24. Opens in new tab.Jadhav & Danve, 2026Skill Automation Feasibility Index — Jadhav & Danve, 2026 (arXiv:2604.06906). Opens in new tab.WEF Skills TaxonomyWEF Skills Taxonomy 2021 — Building a Common Language for Skills at Work. Opens in new tab.

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  1. Emerging
  2. Developing
  3. Proficient
  4. Advanced
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Pathsmith™ Durable Skills Framework

Sources:Pathsmith™ Durable SkillsPathsmith™ Durable Skills Framework — America Succeeds + CompTIA. Opens in new tab.O*NET v30.2O*NET Resource Center — Occupational Information Network, v30.2 (Sept 2025). Opens in new tab.
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Show O*NET source anchors47 anchors · skillscrosswalk.com

O*NET enrichment · skillscrosswalk.com

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Source anchors that ground each statement

Related titles
Agricultural Worker · Animal Care Taker · Animal Feeder · Animal Herder · Animal Husbandry Worker · Animal Keeper · Aquaculture Worker · Aquatic Laborer · Aquatic Life Laborer · Bait Digger · Barn Hand · Barn Worker
RAPIDS apprenticeships
—
O*NET skills
Critical ThinkingMonitoringJudgment and Decision MakingOperations MonitoringOperation and ControlActive ListeningTroubleshootingReading ComprehensionSpeakingCoordinationComplex Problem Solving
Knowledge domains
Production and ProcessingBiologyAdministration and ManagementEnglish LanguageMechanicalFood ProductionMathematics
Abilities
Problem SensitivityControl PrecisionArm-Hand SteadinessOral ComprehensionDeductive ReasoningTrunk StrengthNear VisionMultilimb CoordinationStatic StrengthFar Vision
Work styles
DependabilityStress TolerancePerseveranceAttention to DetailIntegrityCautiousness
Technology
Data base user interface and query softwareSpreadsheet softwareOffice suite softwareWord processing softwareInternet browser software
Tasks · seed anchors for statements
  1. Feed and water livestock and monitor food and water supplies.
  2. Herd livestock to pastures for grazing or to scales, trucks, or other enclosures.
  3. Examine animals to detect illness, injury, or disease, and to check physical characteristics, such as rate of weight gain.
  4. Provide medical treatment, such as administering medications and vaccinations, or arrange for veterinarians to provide more extensive treatment.
  5. Mark livestock to identify ownership and grade, using brands, tags, paint, or tattoos.
  6. Drive trucks, tractors, and other equipment to distribute feed to animals.
  7. Segregate animals according to weight, age, color, and physical condition.
  8. Inspect, maintain, and repair equipment, machinery, buildings, pens, yards, and fences.
CIP education codes
01.0310

Sources: O*NET v30.2 (CC BY 4.0), SkillsCrosswalk.com, LER.me®, Anthropic Economic Index, SAFI (Jadhav & Danve, 2026), WEF Skills Taxonomy 2021, Pathsmith™ Durable Skills Framework. © 2026 EBSCOed.