Cattle Unit Manager – Norias – King Ranch, Inc.

Qualifications

• Education: Prefer a minimum of a bachelor’s degree in animal science or a comparable field of study.
• Skills: Prefer prior cattle and/or ranch management experience. Communicates upper management decisions in a positive and professional manner. Must be pregnancy test certified. Must be horse trainer certified. Requires the ability to read, write, understand, and follow instructions in English and/or Spanish. Must be able to perform mathematical equations in the calculation and estimation of various position responsibilities. Must have working knowledge of cattle management and care. Must be proficient in use of a personal computer and applications such as Microsoft Word and Excel. Must be able to safely operate equipment in the management of cattle and fence repair such as tractors, augers, cube buggies, forklifts, etc. Must be able to handle, saddle, ride horses, often in difficult work situations without danger to self or others.
• Licenses: Must have a valid driver’s license in good standing, the ability to be an approved driver for the company, and to safely operate vehicles.
• Physical Requirements: Must be able to lift and carry 50 lbs. bags of feed and supplement mineral tubs. Must be physically mobile enough to climb/jump fences/corrals and evade cattle when working them. Must be able to ride horseback during workday, and consecutive days if needed. Requires exposure to all temperature and weather extremes (i.e., heat, rain, wind, cold and dusty conditions), moving equipment, loud noises, wetness, dust, smoke fumes, requires horseback riding and exposure to animal dander and fluids, walking on soft muck and hard and uneven surfaces.

Key Responsibilities

• Create schedules to always ensure adequate and efficient staffing.
• Recruit, interview, hire, and train employees as required.
• Advise Asst. Area Manager on staffing needs and personnel issues.
• Aid in the execution of action plans that meet operational and organization objectives.
• Understand and adhere to all supplemental feeding and mineral programs, herd culling criteria, herd health protocols, etc. for all classes of cattle and quarter horses in the unit’s care.
• Understand and abide by King Ranch “Cattle Calendar” for supplementation, vaccination, weaning, breeding season, marking/branding, and all other cattle activities. Inform supervisor beforehand of any variation from this schedule. Abide by sanitary measures as outlined in the herd health protocols.
• Schedule workings and shipments in an efficient and timely manner that allows Units to help each other when needed.
• Understand and abide by King Ranch “value added” programs such as BQA, age and source verification, etc. and abides by the requirements and record keeping.
• Understand and abide by budgeting process and spending policies of King Ranch. Has working understanding of monthly financial statements.
• Oversee and implement horse care, vaccinations and treatment as assigned in the Horse care guidelines.
• Report promptly any theft, inventory shortages, breach of security, environment or safety concerns (contractor activities, unauthorized persons on ranch, poaching/game violations, etc.), factors affecting moral or employee job satisfaction, or other issues which might affect King Ranches ranching operations. Gives supervisor adequate warning if there is the potential loss of an employee.
• Takes primary responsibility for the safety and actions of cowboys who are his/her direct reports, as well as ensures that all policies of King Ranch are obeyed and followed.
• Monitors and evaluates both cattle body condition score and range condition on an ongoing basis. Informs supervisor of any potential problems in this area so that pro-active steps can be taken and proposes corrective actions.
• Understands and abides by the King Ranch Grazing Management system, including willingness to maximize AUs on his/her unit as are feasible under current conditions. Understands and can explain the concept of fixed cost allocation and how it affects profitability based on actual animal units on his/her unit.
• Assist Wildlife or other Departments when requested through your Area Manager.
• Ability and willingness to conduct prescribed burns. Maintains Private Burn certification under Texas Department of Agriculture

To Apply

To apply, please visit: https://king-ranch.com/careers/

Job Description

Norias_Cattle_Unit_Manager_2026