PRIMARY DUTIES:
Workers will perform duties associated with operating a commercial cattle ranch and horse operation in Shiner, Texas. The ranch maintains stocker cattle, a cow-calf herd, and trains roping horses. Employees will assist with livestock care, horse care, equipment operation, facility maintenance, and general ranch operations. Essential job duties include:
Cattle Ranch Operations
- Feeding and watering: Distribute feed, mix rations, place mineral blocks, and ensure automatic water troughs or natural sources are accessible.
- Health monitoring: Check herds daily for signs of injury, illness, or disease, and administer required medications or vaccinations.
- Calving and breeding support: Assist with birthing, care for newborn calves, and monitor cows during calving season.
- Processing and branding: Handle branding, tagging, ear-notching, castrating, and weaning calves at designated times.
- Herding and moving: Move cattle between pastures using horses, ATVs, or trucks to prevent overgrazing
Horse Care and Barn Duties
- Feed and water horses according to established schedules
- Turn horses out and bring them in safely
- Clean stalls, remove manure, strip bedding, and rebed stalls
- Clean and refill water buckets and troughs
- Handle large horses confidently and safely, including draft horses
- Halter, lead, tie, groom, and prepare horses for riding or ranch activities
- Pick hooves and observe horses for stones, cracks, heat, swelling, or tenderness
- Maintain clean aisles, tack areas, feed rooms, wash racks, and storage spaces
- Clean and organize saddles, bridles, grooming equipment, blankets, and other tack
- Assist with saddling and unsaddling horses
- Help load and unload horses when necessary
- Monitor horses for changes in appetite, attitude, movement, manure, hydration, or general condition
- Immediately report signs of illness, injury, lameness, colic, damaged fencing, or unsafe behavior
- Follow feeding, turnout, medication, veterinary, and farrier instructions exactly
- Assist with holding horses for veterinarians, farriers, and other equine professionals
- Help maintain safe and professional horse experiences
Grounds and Property Maintenance
- Mow, shred, weed-eat, edge, and maintain ranch grounds
- Keep barns, roads, trails, entrances, fence lines, and guest areas clean and presentable
- Remove brush, limbs, rocks, trash, manure, and other debris
- Assist with pasture maintenance, weed control, seeding, fertilizing, and erosion prevention
- Monitor and maintain water troughs, hoses, irrigation systems, and drainage areas
- Inspect fences, gates, latches, signs, and livestock enclosures
- Make routine fence, gate, barn, and property repairs
- Maintain the covered arena, including dragging, leveling, watering, and monitoring footing
- Assist with seasonal projects, storm cleanup, freeze preparation, and fire prevention
- Safely operate and maintain tractors, mowers, utility vehicles, trailers, skid steers, chainsaws, and other ranch equipment
- Complete routine equipment inspections, lubrication, cleaning, and minor maintenance
- Report larger equipment, fencing, water, or facility problems before they become expensive repairs
General Ranch Support
- Engage in equipment operation and maintenance using 75 and 100 horsepower tractors and skid steers. Assist with animal chores and ranch projects outside the horse operation when needed
- Check gates, water systems, roads, fences, feeders, and ranch facilities
- Help receive feed, hay, bedding, fencing materials, and other supplies
- Maintain clean and organized shops, storage containers, barns, and work areas
- Document completed work and report maintenance needs to ranch management
- Follow ranch safety procedures and equipment operating requirements
- Work cooperatively with management, other employees, and contractors