Farming, Fishing, and Forestry · Holland code RCI

Farmworkers, Farm, Ranch, and Aquacultural Animals

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.

Also called: Cowboy, Herdsman, Livestock Handler, Ranch Hand, Farm Hand, Farrowing Worker, Milking Worker, Rancher.

O*NET 45-2093.00

At a glance

US median annual pay: $36,670; Middle half earn $31,020 to $45,700. BLS OEWS, May 2025.
Most common education: Some College Courses; 39% of workers surveyed by O*NET report this level.
Preparation needed: Job Zone 2 of 5; Some preparation. Zone 1 is little or none; zone 5 is graduate-level.

What the work involves

The tasks workers in this occupation rate as most important, from the O*NET survey.

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.
Mix feed, additives, and medicines in prescribed portions.
Shift animals between grazing areas to ensure that they have sufficient access to food.
Mark livestock to identify ownership and grade, using brands, tags, paint, or tattoos.
Protect herds from predators, using trained dogs.

Skills and knowledge it leans on

Skills

Critical Thinking3.4 / 5
Monitoring3.3 / 5
Active Listening3.1 / 5
Reading Comprehension3.0 / 5
Speaking3.0 / 5
Active Learning2.9 / 5

Knowledge areas

Production and Processing3.2 / 5
Biology3.2 / 5
Administration and Management3.1 / 5
English Language3.1 / 5
Mechanical3.1 / 5
Food Production3.0 / 5

Importance ratings on O*NET’s 1 to 5 scale. Higher means the occupation depends on it more.

Who tends to enjoy it

How strongly this occupation draws on each of the six Holland interest types, which is the same profile the career interests test compares you against.

Realistic96
Investigative28
Artistic7
Social25
Enterprising15
Conventional33

The same work abroad

Other countries classify jobs differently, so these are the closest matches through the international ISCO-08 standard, not exact equivalents.

European occupation titles (ESCO)

cattle pedicure · DE Klauenpfleger/Klauenpflegerin · FR pédicure pour bovins
pig breeder · DE Schweinezüchter/Schweinezüchterin · FR éleveur de porcs/éleveuse de porcs
poultry breeder · DE Geflügelzüchter/Geflügelzüchterin · FR aviculteur/avicultrice
aquaculture hatchery worker · DE Zuchtassistent Aquakultur/Zuchtassistentin Aquakultur · FR ouvrier aquacole en écloserie/ouvrière aquacole en écloserie
aquaculture husbandry worker · DE Aquakulturarbeiter/Aquakulturarbeiterin · FR ouvrier d’élevage en aquaculture/ouvrière d’élevage en aquaculture
water-based aquaculture worker · DE Hilfskraft für Aquakulturanlagen in Gewässern · FR ouvrier d'aquaculture en milieu aquatique/ouvrière d'aquaculture en milieu aquatique

Closest UK occupation groups (SOC 2020)

Animal care services occupations n.e.c. (6129)102,200 employed
Farmers (5111)99,700 employed
Fishing and other elementary agriculture occupations n.e.c. (9119)23,800 employed

Employment is the UK Annual Population Survey for April 2025 to March 2026, all workers in the group, which can be broader than this one occupation.

Pay across Europe, for the whole group

Median annual earnings of all employees in “Skilled agricultural, forestry and fishery workers”. This is the broad ISCO group this occupation falls in, not the occupation itself, so treat it as context for the wage level, not as a salary for this job.

Median annual earnings, Skilled agricultural, forestry and fishery workers, by country
Country	Median pay
Germany	€31,000
Sweden	€30,144
Italy	€27,723
Netherlands	€26,642
Ireland	€25,686
France	€22,942
Spain	€20,465
Portugal	€9,509
Poland	€8,061

Eurostat Structure of Earnings Survey, businesses with ten or more employees outside public administration, in euro and not adjusted for the cost of living. Reference years differ between sources: the US, Japan and Europe figures on this page come from different survey years, so compare them as rough levels, not to the euro or yen.

Exposure to AI

This occupation sits in the lower third of the 774 occupations scored, with an exposure score of -1.11. The scores are standardized across those occupations, so 0 is the average and a score of 1 is about one standard deviation above it.

Our note on reading it: the dataset links AI applications to the abilities that occupations require, so the score reflects overlap between the two. It is a comparison between occupations, not a forecast about jobs. It does not say whether exposure means tasks are replaced or workers get more done with the tools, and it says little about one employer or one role.

Source: Felten, E., Raj, M., & Seamans, R. (2021). Occupational, industry, and geographic exposure to artificial intelligence: A novel dataset and its potential uses. Strategic Management Journal, 42(12), 2195-2217. Matched to this page by 6-digit SOC code (45-2093).

Is it a fit for you?

Interest is one input, alongside ability, pay and what is hiring near you. The career interests test takes about thirteen minutes and ranks occupations by how closely their profile matches yours.

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