VETERINARY HEALTH MANAGER

Farm Manager SA; South Africa; On-site; ZAR 1,200,000 - 1,800,000; Full time

Job summary

Farm Manager SA is seeking a highly experienced veterinary professional to lead herd health across extensive cattle operations. The role demands accountability for health outcomes on multiple ranches and the ability to coordinate disease surveillance, breeding, biosecurity and data reporting in challenging environments.

The position emphasizes hands-on management, travel between sites, and leadership of para-veterinary staff, with a focus on practical field work in remote locations and a strong

Qualifications

• Must have full herd health accountability at scale across multiple sites.
• Seven years post-qualification experience with cattle; three in commercial beef.
• Experience with tick-borne and clostridial disease management in Africa.
• Breeding soundness evaluation and pregnancy diagnosis experience.
• Willingness to register with the Ordre National des Médecins Vétérinaires in DRC; company will assist.

Responsibilities

• Herd health programme across multiple ranches.
• Disease surveillance, diagnosis and outbreak response.
• Breeding and reproductive health management.
• Movement control, biosecurity and quarantine.
• Veterinary supplies, cold chain and budget management.
• Data and reporting.
• People management and standards.

Skills

Herd health management

Beef cattle operations

Data recording & analytics

French (working)

Swahili

Leadership & supervision

Driving four-wheel drive

Record keeping in spreadsheets

Education

Veterinary degree (BVSc, BVM, DVM) or equivalent

Tools

Herd management software

Laboratory sampling & post-mortem basics

Spreadsheet software

Job description

MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS

• A veterinary degree (BVSc, BVM, DVM or equivalent), or a senior animal health or herd health qualification backed by substantial commercial responsibility. Candidates without a veterinary degree must demonstrate that they have carried full herd health accountability at scale rather than worked under supervision.
• At least seven years post-qualification experience with cattle, of which a minimum of three in a commercial beef operation. Experience confined to government extension, smallholder advisory work or companion animal practice will not meet this requirement.
• Demonstrable ownership of a herd health calendar across a herd of several thousand head on more than one site, with responsibility for coverage and outcome rather than for treatment on request.
• Practical competence in post-mortem examination, sampling and laboratory submission, and in the tick-borne and clostridial disease complex of central and southern Africa.
• Practical competence in breeding soundness evaluation and pregnancy diagnosis.
• Numeracy and record discipline: the ability to build, defend and report a dataset on mortality, coverage and cost, and to work in spreadsheets and digital systems rather than field notebooks.
• Willingness and eligibility to register with the Ordre National des Médecins Vétérinaires of the Democratic Republic of Congo, where the qualification requires it. The company will support the registration and work permit process.
• Fluent English, and either working French or a firm commitment to acquire it within the first year. Almost all official, procurement and staff-facing business in the Democratic Republic of Congo is conducted in French.
• Willingness to be based on site in a remote location, to travel constantly between ranches on poor roads, and to work to a rotation rather than to office hours.
• A valid driving licence and genuine competence driving four wheel drive vehicles in difficult conditions.
• Experience in commercial extensive ranching in southern or eastern Africa - Zimbabwe, Zambia, Namibia, Botswana, South Africa, Kenya or Tanzania.
• Exposure to feedlot health, including intake health, acidosis and respiratory disease management.
• French at a working professional level, and Swahili.
• Experience sourcing veterinary inputs into a landlocked or import-constrained environment, with cold chain responsibility.
• Experience training and supervising para-veterinary and lay animal health staff.
• Familiarity with herd management software, or with building records systems where none existed.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES INCLUDE BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO

• Herd health programme
• Disease surveillance, diagnosis and outbreak response
• Breeding and reproductive health
• Movement control, biosecurity and quarantine
• Veterinary supplies, cold chain and budget
• Data and reporting
• People and standards