Livestock and dairy producers

Livestock and dairy producers plan, organize and perform farming operations to breed and raise domesticated animals (excluding poultry), such as cattle, sheep, pigs, goats, horses and camels, for the production of meat, milk and other dairy products, skins, and wool or for use as working, sporting or recreational animals for sale or delivery to wholesale buyers, marketing organizations or at markets.

Duties and tasks

• Monitoring market activity and conditions, determining kinds and amounts of stock to produce, and planning and coordinating production accordingly
• Cultivating pastures and providing and monitoring fodder and water supplies to maintain appropriate nutritional levels and condition of livestock
• Monitoring and examining animals to detect illness, injury, or disease, and to check physical condition such as rate of weight gain
• Grooming, marking, clipping, trimming, drenching and/or castrating animals and shearing coats to collect hair or wool
• Herding livestock to pastures for grazing or to scales, sheds, vehicles, or other enclosures
• Milking animals by hand or using milking machines
• Mixing feed, additives, and medicines in prescribed portions and distributing or hand-feeding to animals for consumption
• Performing duties related to livestock reproduction, such as breeding, artificial insemination, and helping with animal births
• Maintaining and cleaning farm buildings, machinery, equipment, and structures
• Slaughtering and skinning animals and preparing them for market
• Storing and carrying out some processing of animal and dairy produce
• Promoting and marketing products, arranging the sale, purchase and transportation of livestock, produce and supplies and maintaining and evaluating records of farm activities and transactions
• Training and supervising workers in animal care procedures, maintenance duties, and health and safety precautions and hiring and discharging workers and contractors