The livestock unit technician will usually only work with one species. The role will include the safe use and maintenance of farm vehicles, including the equipment used for transporting or producing feed. They will be required to understand, record and meet the business key performance indicators that are set out by the employer.
In this occupation a livestock unit technician will be responsible for:
- Making decisions about daily management of livestock, eg diet based on nutritional values in feed
- Managing livestock before, during and after parturition
- Providing accommodation that meets the animals needs for optimal health and performance
- Select and prepare livestock for sale or transfer
- Completing daily records and reporting to senior management
- Assisting with overall strategic decisions to help drive productivity
- Livestock welfare and farm health and safety in line with industry standards
A livestock technicians daily roles will:
- Interact with internal team members that include line managers, business owner/manager and other department on the farm
- May have the opportunity to manage people internally and manage external relationships
- Will work alongside allied industry, to make formative decisions to assist the productivity of the livestock including breeding, nutrition and health plan. In addition to this, they will provide factual data to third parties involved in the farm such as assurance auditors and vets.
Typical working hours will depend on farm type and labour structure (for example, dairy farms require early start due to milking).