Animal scientists conduct research. They try to develop better animal products and healthier animals.

Animal scientists study animals. Most of their work concerns livestock, such as pigs, cows, and chickens. Some study cats and dogs.

Animal scientists may specialize in:

• Animal diets
• Animal production
• Animal management practices

Regardless of their specialization, animal scientists have many tasks in common.They advise farmers how to upgrade animal housing and increase the quality of livestock.

Animal scientists determine research questions and design experiments to study those questions. Depending on the type of animal they study, scientists conduct experiments in a lab or at a farm. They may work with the animals themselves, or have research assistants do much of the work for them. If they have assistants, scientists train them to conduct the research and keep records.