Farmworkers, Farm, Ranch, and Aquacultural Animals
Agriculture, Food and Natural ResourcesO*NET 45-2093.00United States
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.
- Median annual earnings
- $31,863
- Projected change
- +0.9%
- Typical education
- High school diploma or less
- Employment
- 173.54K jobs
50th percentile, United States
2025 to 2035
43% of the workforce
Growing to 175.08K by 2035
Explore this career by location
Compare nationwide estimates with state or county job-market data.
Showing United States
Loading available locations…
Build the skills
ASU learning related to this career
These courses and certificates are connected through catalog career relationships and Lightcast skill tags.
Loading related ASU learning
The work
What farmworkers, farm, ranch, and aquacultural animals do
Tasks reported for this occupation, ordered by how often they come up in the role.
- 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.
- Drive trucks, tractors, and other equipment to distribute feed to animals.
- Inspect, maintain, and repair equipment, machinery, buildings, pens, yards, and fences.
- Segregate animals according to weight, age, color, and physical condition.
- Move equipment, poultry, or livestock from one location to another, manually or using trucks or carts.
- Clean stalls, pens, and equipment, using disinfectant solutions, brushes, shovels, water hoses, or pumps.
Pay and outlook
What the job pays and where it is heading
Annual earnings range
Reported earnings by percentile, United States
- 10th percentile
- $14,164
- 25th percentile
- $23,196
- 50th percentile
- $31,863
- 75th percentile
- $43,943
- 90th percentile
- $63,048
The gold marker shows the median. Half earn more than $31,863 and half earn less.
Employment outlook
2025 to 2035 projection
+0.9%average or slower
2025173,537 jobs
2035 projected175,082 jobs
1,545 more positions over the decade, before replacement hiring.
Preparation
Education levels
What people currently working in the career hold. These are not entry requirements.
- High school diploma or less
- 43%
- Some college
- 39.4%
- Associate degree
- 8.9%
- Certificate
- 8.5%
- Bachelor's degree
- 0.2%
Skills
Skills employers ask for
Technical skills appearing most often in job postings for this occupation.
How the work gets done
Core competencies
Broad capabilities associated with strong performance in this occupation.
- Critical Thinking
- Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
- Monitoring
- Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
- Active Listening
- Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
- Operations Monitoring
- Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.
- Operation and Control
- Controlling operations of equipment or systems.
- Judgment and Decision Making
- Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
- Coordination
- Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
- Speaking
- Talking to others to convey information effectively.
- Reading Comprehension
- Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
- Troubleshooting
- Determining causes of operating errors and deciding what to do about it.
- Complex Problem Solving
- Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
- Time Management
- Managing one's own time and the time of others.
- Quality Control Analysis
- Conducting tests and inspections of products, services, or processes to evaluate quality or performance.
- Active Learning
- Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
- Equipment Selection
- Determining the kind of tools and equipment needed to do a job.
- Repairing
- Repairing machines or systems using the needed tools.
- Equipment Maintenance
- Performing routine maintenance on equipment and determining when and what kind of maintenance is needed.
- Writing
- Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
- Social Perceptiveness
- Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
- Management of Personnel Resources
- Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.
In the market
Job titles and employers
Recent job postings in United StatesCommon job titles
- 01Conservation Technicians787 postings
- 02Harvest Managers396 postings
- 03Ranch Hands299 postings
- 04Technicians242 postings
- 05Activation Associates239 postings
- 06Horticulture Managers187 postings
- 07Herdsmen169 postings
- 08Trimmers168 postings
- 09Activation Managers112 postings
- 10Activation Specialists104 postings
- 11Horticulture Instructors104 postings
- 12Elevator Operators102 postings
- 13Horticulture Specialists101 postings
- 14Motivators97 postings
- 15Harvesters90 postings
- 16Agricultural Workers82 postings
- 17Horticulture Interns74 postings
- 18Beekeepers73 postings
- 19Production Technicians73 postings
- 20Custom Applicators71 postings
Top employers
- 01Verano B.V.155 postings
- 02Trulieve113 postings
- 03Curaleaf109 postings
- 04GPAC108 postings
- 05Foster Farms81 postings
- 06Hansen Agri-PLACEMENT71 postings
- 07Green Thumb65 postings
- 08Smithfield Foods63 postings
- 09Green Thumb Industries58 postings
- 10University of Florida52 postings
- 11Cobb International44 postings
- 12Rose Acre Farms39 postings
- 13Vangst38 postings
- 14Tyson Foods36 postings
- 15Ascend Wellness33 postings
- 16Good Day Farm Colorado32 postings
- 17Cresco Labs31 postings
- 18Vireo Health31 postings
- 19Acreage Holdings27 postings
- 20Ianthus Capital Holdings24 postings
Keep looking