Union Land and Grazing Company’s
Fort Union Ranch
P.O. Box 116
Watrous, NM 87753
Position Description
Effective April 10, 2021
(posted at the request of Western Landowners Alliance)
Job Title: Livestock Foreman
Location: The Fort Union Ranch, Watrous, NM
Reports to: President, Ranch Advisory Partners, Inc.
FSLA Status: Exempt/Full-Time/Salary
Contact: Todd Graham, Ranch Advisory Partners
Office Phone: 406-282-7005
Ranch Description
The Fort Union Ranch is a 95,000-acre expanse in the short-grass prairie and Turkey Mountains of northeast New Mexico. Neighboring the Fort Union National Monument and containing many miles of the Santa Fe Trail, the ranch celebrates its heritage in the Old West while stewarding its resources with a forward-looking vision. The ranch runs 700 mother cows and has converted from a set-stocking program to more intensive management practices. Encroaching
pinyon/juniper trees are being strategically removed to improve habitat for large numbers of migratory wildlife. The ranch also hosts a successful guest operation focused on a terrific guest experience.
Position Summary
The Livestock Foreman oversees Fort Union Ranch’s livestock operations, including herd health, genetics, culling, marketing, calving, pregnancy checking, shipping, and pasture movements. The role also includes maintaining and improving livestock handling infrastructure, including stock water infrastructure and fences. Supervision of livestock operations staff is required, along with collaboration with additional ranch departments and enterprises.
Essential Duties and Responsibilities
Livestock
• Oversees wellbeing of the herd, including herd health (vaccinations, parasiticides, mineral, and protein supplements).
• Oversees genetics programs and herd development. Development of replacement heifers and first-calf heifers is an especially important facet.
• Oversees herd growth and stock flow in relation to forage availability and number of pasture cattle.
• Ensures desired livestock certifications, including, but not limited to source and age verified, verified natural, and non-hormone treated.
• Oversees major herd operations, including calving, brandings, breeding window, weaning, shipping of calves, processing and pregnancy checking of cows, and marketing of calves.
• Oversees acquisition and sale of bulls, ensuring heifer bulls are used for heifers and herd bulls are utilized for the rest of the herd.
• Practices low-stress livestock handling practices to optimize herd performance and minimize stress on the herd.
• Oversees marketing of all classes of cattle, including calves, cull cows, and bulls.
Grazing management
• Creates growing season and dormant season grazing plans and oversees their implementation. Communicates anticipated changes well in advance to avoid problems and forage shortages.
• Accurately records livestock moves by herd and pasture.
• Uses good grazing management to continually improve rangeland health, riparian condition, and wildlife habitat with a focus on short grazing durations, lengthy plant recovery periods, higher stock densities, and altered season of use.
• Oversees spring and autumn forage inventory process, including tabulating and compiling available forage by pasture.
Infrastructure
• Oversees maintenance of existing stock water infrastructure, including windmills, solar arrays, wells, pumps, exclosures, storage tanks, pipelines, valves, and drinking troughs.
• Hauls water to livestock when existing infrastructure is insufficient to meet herd water demands.
• Oversees design and installation of new stock water infrastructure.
• Maintains accurate records of infrastructure maintenance in provided cloud-based system.
• Digitizes locations of any new stock water and fencing infrastructure for future records.
• Oversees maintenance of existing fencing, including barbed wire, high-tensile electric, poly-wire, gates, and fences connecting to cattle guards.
• Oversees design and installation of new fencing infrastructure.
Equipment
• Oversees maintenance of livestock operations equipment, including pickups, ATVs, tractor, and backhoe. Keeps an accurate and updated maintenance log.
Housing
• Oversees maintenance of ranch housing, inside and out, as well as the yard around the housing.
Collaboration and Ranch Representation
• Ensures good lines of communication and support are provided to other ranch departments, including Natural Resources Program, Marshall House Program, family visitors and guests, and hunting operations.
• Ensures open lines of communications are maintained with neighboring ranches and organizations, such as the High Plains Grasslands Alliance, Highlands University, New Mexico Game and Fish, and New Mexico Lands Conservancy.
• Ensures good lines of communication are maintained with ranch veterinarian and brand inspector.
• Ensures good lines of communication are maintained with Ranch Advisory Partners personnel and Union Land & Grazing Board of Directors.
Administrative
• Oversees compilation of quarterly feed inventory and feed usage reports for importing into ranch financials.
• Collaborates in annual budget preparation, including income and expense projections, and capital expenses.
• Helps author monthly progress updates.
• Collaborates in annual year-in-review document for Board of Directors.
• Collaborates in annual and on-ranch meetings with Board.
• Collaborates in annual performance metrics document creation.
• Provides requested financial documentation to auditor and bookkeeper as part of annual audit process.
Qualifications
Minimum education: Bachelor’s degree in agricultural sciences or business administration
• Must be proficient in software tools, including but not limited to Word, Excel, Outlook, and the Internet.
• Must possess strong written and verbal communications skills.
• Identifies and solves issues in a timely manner.
• Must be a team player and willing to help others in their department whenever necessary.
• Must be extremely organized and be able to multi-task.
• Conscientious with respect to work completion, deadlines, time management and attendance.
• Takes initiative in face of obstacles and identifies what needs to be done and takes action.
• Develops professional relationships and builds rapport with others.
• Overall good work ethic and willingness to adapt to change.
Reasoning Ability
Must be able to solve practical problems and deal with a variety of variables in situations where only limited standardization exists. Ability to interpret a variety of instructions furnished in written, oral, diagram or schedule form. Ability to think quickly and adapt to changing situations.
Certificates, Licenses, Registrations
Successful applicants must possess a valid New Mexico Driver’s license or be able to obtain one within 30 days of employment. Employee will be required to sign a confidentiality statement within the Employee Handbook.
Physical Demands
The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to stand; walk; use hands to finger, handle, or feel; reach with hands and arms; stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl; saddle and ride horses; handle cattle; and talk and hear. The employee must frequently lift and/ move up to 45 pounds.
Compensation
Union Land and Grazing Company offers a competitive salary, housing, Group Medical, Dental Insurance, and Vision Insurance.
Union Land and Grazing Company is an Equal Opportunity Employer and a Drug-Free Work Place.
For immediate consideration please email resume with cover letter to:
Todd Graham: [email protected]
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