This group includes occupations concerned with breeding, raising, gathering, and caring for domestic fowl and domesticated wild fowl, such as chickens, turkeys, ducks, parrots, and pea fowl, and collecting their products, such as eggs and feathers.

411.131-010 SUPERVISOR, POULTRY FARM (agric.)

Supervises and coordinates activities of workers engaged in raising poultry, collecting eggs, crating fryers, and maintaining equipment and facilities on poultry farm: Confers with farm manager to ascertain production requirements and to discuss condition of equipment and status of supplies. Assigns workers to duties, such as collecting and candling eggs, feeding and vaccinating poultry, crating and shipping fryers, and cleaning and fumigating chicken houses. Directs maintenance and repair of facilities and equipment, such as chicken houses, automatic feeders, and layer nests. Trains new workers. Participates in work activities to expedite workload. Prepares worker attendance, egg production, feed consumption and poultry mortality reports. Performs other duties as described under SUPERVISOR (any ind.). May be designated according to type of farm as SUPERVISOR, BROODER FARM (agric.); SUPERVISOR, EGG-PRODUCING FARM (agric.); SUPERVISOR, FRYER FARM (agric.); SUPERVISOR, PULLET FARM (agric.); SUPERVISOR, TURKEY FARM (agric.)

411.137-010 SUPERVISOR, POULTRY HATCHERY (agric.)

Supervises and coordinates activities of workers engaged in receiving and preparing eggs for incubation; grading, preparing, and shipping checks in poultry hatchery: Confers with hatchery manager to discuss equipment and supply needs, production and research requirements, and work schedules. Assigns workers to duties, such as egg candling, sorting and traying, incubating eggs, and grading and beak trimming of chicks. Monitors thermometers, gages, and chart recorders to detect equipment malfunctions and to verify compliance with incubator temperature and ventilation standards. Adjusts controls to maintain specified incubating conditions. Periodically inspects eggs in incubator trays to ascertain hatching progress, and orders removal of chicks. Observes packing of chicks to verify adherence to customer's orders and shipping instructions. Prepares production reports, and requisitions equipment, materials, and supplies. Performs other duties as described under SUPERVISOR (any ind.). May be designated according to type of hatchery as SUPERVISOR, CHICKEN HATCHERY (agric.) and SUPERVISOR, TURKEY HATCHERY (agric.).

411.161-014 POULTRY BREEDER (agric.) chicken fancier.

Breeds and raises poultry and fowl to improve strain and develop show stock: Selects and pairs birds for breeding or breeds birds by artificial insemination. Incubates eggs to induce hatching. Feeds and waters poultry. Cleans and disinfects poultry houses, cages, and nests. Places vaccines in drinking water, injects vaccines into poultry, or dusts air with vaccine powder to vaccinate poultry against diseases. Maintains growth, feed, and production records. Arranges with buyers for sale of pedigreed eggs, chicks, and birds. May hire and supervise workers.

411.161-018 POULTRY FARMER (agric.)

Raises poultry to produce eggs and meat: Selects and purchases poultry stock. Feeds and waters poultry. Cleans and disinfects poultry houses, cages, and nests. Places vaccines in drinking water, injects vaccines into poultry, or dusts air with vaccine powder to vaccinate poultry against diseases. Inspects and disposes of or segregates infected poultry. Collects, inspects, and packs eggs and selects and crates pullets and fryers for shipment. Maintains growth, feed, and production records. Arranges with wholesalers for sale of poultry and eggs. May hire and supervise workers. May incubate fertile eggs. May be designated according to kind of poultry raised as DUCK FARMER (agric.); POULTRY FARMER, EGG (agric.); POULTRY FARMER, MEAT (agric.); TURKEY FARMER (agric.).

411.267-010 FIELD SERVICE TECHNICIAN, POULTRY (agric.)

Inspects farms for compliance with contract and cooperative agreement standards and advises farmers regarding development programs to aid in producing quality poultry products: Tours farms to inspect facilities and equipment for adequacy, sanitation and efficiency of operations. Examines chickens for evidence of disease and growth rate (according to weight and age) to determine effectiveness of medication and feeding programs. Recommends changes in facilities, equipment, and medication to improve production, based on knowledge of poultry farming, hatchery operations and processing. Informs farmers of new procedures and techniques, government regulations and company and association production standards to enable them to upgrade farms and meet requirements. Recommends laboratory testing of diseased chickens, feeds, and supplements or gathers samples and takes them to plant laboratory for analysis. Reports findings of farm conditions, laboratory tests, recommendations and farmers' reactions to keep superior apprised of farmers' efforts to furnish quality products.

411.364-010 BLOOD TESTER, FOWL (agric.)

Tests blood of poultry to ascertain presence of pullorum disease: Picks vein in bird's wing, using needle. Collects blood on wire loop and drops blood into pullorum reactor. Examines blood for specks that indicate presence of pullorum disease. Removes diseased birds from flock.

411.364-014 POULTRY TENDER (agric.)

Attends to poultry used in experimental tests that determine effects of various feeds and quantities of feed on growth and production of poultry: Segregates poultry into groups according to weight, age, and sex. Selects, weighs, and mixes feeds, according to specific instructions, and fills feeders for each group of poultry with specified feeds. Regulates controls to maintain required temperatures in poultry houses. Maintains records of poultry weights, weights and kinds of feed consumed, eggs produced, deaths, and occurrence of poultry diseases, providing information about effects of various feeds. Places vaccines in drinking water, injects vaccines into poultry, or dusts air with vaccine powder to vaccinate poultry for diseases, such as fowl pox and bronchitis. Ascertains sex of chicks. May attach identification bands to legs or wings of poultry. May clip wings of fowl to prevent flying, wash and clean poultry houses and equipment, and beak trimming poultry.

411.384-010 POULTRY INSEMINATOR (agric.) artificial-insemination technician.

Collects semen from roosters and fertilizes hens and eggs: Pinions bird, and collects semen in vial. Examines semen, using microscope, and records density and motility of gametes. Measures specified amount of semen into calibrated syringe and inserts syringe into inseminating gun. Injects semen into oviduct of hen or through hole in egg shell. Records dates of insemination of hens.

411.584.010 FARM WORKER, POULTRY (agric.) helper, chicken farm; poultry helper.

Performs any combinations of following duties concerned with raising poultry for eggs and meat: Removes chicks from shipping cartons and places them in brooder houses. Cleans and fills feeders and water containers. Sprays poultry houses with disinfectants and vaccines. Inspects poultry for diseases and removes weak, ill, and dead poultry from flock. Collects eggs from trap nests, releases hens from nests, and records number of eggs laid by each hen. Packs eggs in cases or cartons; selects, weighs, and crates fryers and pullets; and records totals packed or crated on shipping or storage document. Maintains feeding and breeding reports. Monitors feed, water, illumination, and ventilation systems; and cleans, adjusts, lubricates, and replaces systems parts, using hand tools. May cut off tips of beaks. May be designated according to type of farm or product, as FARM WORKER, BROODER FARM (agric.); FARM WORKER, CHICKEN FARM (agric.); FARM WORKER, EGG-PRODUCING FARM (agric.); FARM WORKER, FRYER FARM (agric.); FARM WORKER, PULLET FARM (agric.); FARM WORKER, TURKEY FARM (agric.).

411.684-010 CAPONIZER (agric.)

Castrates cockerels to prevent development of sexual characteristics: Ascertains that cockerels have not been fed or watered for specified period of time. Binds legs and wings or pinions birds with weights and makes incision between cockerel's last two ribs or beneath and behind wings, using surgical knife or heated knife that cauterizes cut. Removes testicles, using forceps and heated knife or heated forceps.

411.684-014 POULTRY VACCINATOR (agric.)

Vaccinates poultry for diseases, such as pox and bronchitis, by placing vaccine in drinking water, dusting air with vaccine powder, injecting vaccine in eye, leg, vent, wing web, or nostril of bird, using medicine dropper or hypodermic needle. May be designated according to poultry vaccinated as CHICKEN VACCINATOR (agric.).

411.687-010 CHICK GRADER (agric.) poultry culler.

Grades baby chicks according to appearance and separates healthy from deformed or diseased chicks: Examines baby chicks for curled toes, blindness, misshapen beaks, discolored downs, and abdominal rigidity. Examines chicks for symptoms of diseases, such as bronchitis and navel infection. Segregates healthy from diseased or deformed chicks. Places diseased chicks in incinerator. May press beak of chicks against hot wire to remove tip of beak. May pack chicks in cartons.

411.687-014 CHICK SEXER (agric.)

Examines chick genitalia to determine their sex: Turns back skin fold of external cloacal opening or inserts illuminating viewer into cloaca to observe genitals. Places chicks into boxes according to sex. May mark content data on boxes of segregated chicks.

411.687-018 LABORER, POULTRY FARM (agric.)

Performs any combination of following duties on poultry farm: Catches chickens and places them in crates and poultry houses. Sprays disinfectants or vaccines on chickens or in poultry houses. Spreads wood shavings over floor, using shovel. Cleans droppings and waste from floor, using broom and shovel, back hoe, or manure-cleaning machine. Dumps sacks of feed on conveyors and in feeders in brood houses. Fills water containers. Repairs farm buildings, fences, and shipping crates, using hand tools. Lengthens and shortens ropes to adjust level of feed cans and water troughs. Moves equipment, using wheelbarrow, truck, and cart; or carries equipment from one area to another. Shovels manure onto truck. May stack and move crated eggs and poultry. May drive truck to move and deliver materials. May be designated according to type of farm or product as LABORER, BROODER FARM (agric.); LABORER, CHICKEN FARM (agric.); LABORER, EGG-PRODUCING FARM (agric.); LABORER, FRYER FARM (agric.); LABORER, PULLET FARM (agric.); LABORER, TURKEY FARM (agric.).

411.687-022 LABORER, POULTRY HATCHERY (agric.) hatchery helper; incubator helper.

Performs any combination of the following duties in a poultry hatchery: Places eggs in incubator trays, wads paper between eggs to secure them, and clips trays to incubator racks. Transfers trays from incubator to hatchery and removes paper wads from between eggs to make room for hatching chicks. Transfers hatched chicks from trays to chick boxes and counts out prescribed number of chicks to each box section. Supplies baby chicks to other workers for sexing, grading, and beak trimming. May deliver cartons of chicks to designated farms or commercial growing establishments, using truck.

411.687-026 POULTRY BEAK TRIMMER (agric.) beak trimmer.

Trims and sears beaks, toes, and wings of baby chicks to prevent injury and flight: Inserts chick's beak in guide hole of heated trimmer and depresses pedal to cut off and sear tip of beak or trims and sears chick's beak, using heated hand shears. Trims and sears chick's toes and wings by pressing them against hot wire.

Adapted from US Department of Labor DOT for Dictionary of Agricultural Occupations

15 November 2004