Sheep Farmer
What the work is
Plans, organises, controls, coordinates and performs farming operations to breed and raise sheep for wool, meat and breeding stock.
Would you enjoy the work?
These are the main tasks in the official description. Mark how each one sounds to you.
- Plans and coordinates the breeding and raising of sheep for the production of wool, meat, milk and breeding stock
- Organises sheep farming operations and routines, such as feeding, herding and drenching, and administration of nutrition programs, vaccinations and medications
- Selects and purchases breeding stock, and manages sheep breeding programs
- Organises sheep farming activities such as shearing, milking, and sterilising and maintaining shearing equipment
- Monitors and maintains the health, welfare and condition of sheep, including by developing and overseeing strategies to manage biosecurity and other risks
- Directs and oversees general sheep farming activities, including the provision and maintenance of infrastructure such as pens and sheds, and the preparation of pasture and fodder
- Organises the sale, purchase and transportation of sheep for meat and breeding purposes, and the sale of wool or other sheep products
- Maintains and evaluates records of sheep farming activities, monitors market activity, and plans production accordingly
- Manages sheep farm business capital, including budgeting, taxation, debt and loan management
- May select, train and supervise sheep farm staff and contractors
Try it
A simulation and a case study from this kind of work, set in a fictional wool-growing property with a woolshed, in the week the shearing team arrives. They are fictional.
The kind of days you could have
Good days
- The shed is humming, the wool is bright and clean, and the classer smiles at the first bale
- A good lambing rain falls at exactly the right time
- You open a wool sale report and it is better than you hoped
Hard days
- Wet sheep on shearing day, with a team waiting and nothing you can do about it
- A dog attack or a flood that costs you animals you cared for
- Weeks of dry weather and a flock that is thinner than you want to see
Written by Career Calling as a general guide. Real roles vary by employer and place.
Work a mission
Step into a simulated workplace in this field, with a brief from your manager.
Description and tasks: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Occupation Standard Classification for Australia, 2024, Version 1.0 (opens another site), occupation 152431, used under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence. The skill guide above is our plain English summary.