What is a dairy farming job?

• working with animals, machinery, technology and in the office
• working outside
• working in a team
• varied work - no two days are the same
• growing things
• the opportunity for continual learning
• rewarding work
• a great lifestyle
• milking cows
• feeding the world
• sometimes long days

What does a normal work day look like?

A 'normal day' will change depending on the season. As you progress your career the jobs and every day activities will change. But for someone starting in the industry as a farm assistant or herd manager, you might expect:

• Spring

  The weather can be wet and cold but you also get some magnificent spring days. Your team is likely to be larger than usual as extra people are brought in to help with calving.

  A spring day might be:

  5am	Get the cows in
  5.30am	Milking
  8.30am	Home for breakfast
  9.30am	Team meeting and allocate jobs for the day. You might end up: Helping to feed the milking cows – putting up temporary fences in the paddock or feeding silage. Collecting the newly calved cows and calves Feeding calves Feeding cows which haven’t yet calved
  12.30pm	Home for lunch
  2pm	Get cows in for afternoon milking
  3pm	Afternoon milking
  5pm	Finish and home

• Summer

  Summer generally means managing the extra grass. You might be making silage or spraying weeds.

  A summer day might be:

  5am	Get the cows in
  5.30am	Milking
  8.30am	Home for breakfast
  9.30am	Team meeting and allocate jobs for the day. You might end up: Feeding cows – putting up break fences Spraying weeds Shifting irrigation perhaps effluent and fresh water irrigation depending on the farm type Fixing machinery
  12pm	Home for lunch
  2pm	Get cows in for afternoon milking
  3pm	Afternoon milking
  5pm	Finish and home

• Autumn

  In autumn things can start to settle down on farm. However, there can still be lots to do.

  An autumn day might be:

  5am	Get the cows in
  5.30am	Milking
  8.30am	Home for breakfast
  9.30am	Team meeting and allocate jobs for the day. You might end up: Feeding cows – putting up break fences Shifting effluent irrigation Fixing machinery Preparing cows to finish milking for the year
  12pm	Home for lunch
  2pm	Get cows in for afternoon milking
  3pm	Afternoon milking
  5pm	Finish and home

• Winter

  In winter the cows are not milking and it’s generally a more relaxed time of year. You might do fewer hours and find indoor jobs if the weather is bad.

  A winter day might be:

  8am	Checking or feeding the cows on crop or grass
  9am	Feeding supplement the cows might require with the tractor
  10am	Cup of tea time
  10.30am	Decide on what needs doing for the day. Depending on the weather, you might be: Setting up things for calving, checking motorbikes, tractors and getting people trained on feeding calves processes Checking the milking shed – making sure all maintenance is taken care of before calving and the shed is clean for the new season
  12.30pm	Lunchtime
  1.30pm	Carry on with jobs started before lunch
  3pm	Check cows and feed again if required
  4pm	Finish and home

Farm accommodation

On most farms when working fulltime you will live on farm in accommodation which is often provided for you. Farm accommodation can vary immensely. Find out what you can expect and need to consider when talking about accommodation with a prospective, future or current employer here.