Rural studies has made considerable theoretical and empirical progress on gender and agriculture, yet almost none of this work focuses specifically on women involved in livestock production in the Global North. To address this gap, we explored the experiences of women involved in extensive livestock farming in Spain, including their motivations, identities, challenges, and sources of learning and support. Using a life-history approach, we interviewed 29 women across four regions of Spain and conducted follow-up participatory workshops in three regions. We investigated how women enter the extensive livestock sector, learn the occupation and business of livestock husbandry, and their experiences of power relations and discrimination, then interpreted our findings through the lens of Feminist Agrifood Systems Theory (FAST). Women's narratives reveal three primary pathways into livestock management: via family, via a partner/spouse, and from zero. Although interviewees shared common experiences and struggles, each pathway is associated with distinct motivations, challenges, and sources of learning. This variety of goals and experiences disrupts stereotypes about women's roles in extensive pastoralism and points to the need for outreach and policy grounded in the diverse realities of women's lived experiences. Our results underscore the obstacles pastoralist women face in gaining and maintaining economic and decision-making autonomy. Our findings partially support all FAST propositions, yet highlight continuing challenges for Spanish women entering a historically male-dominated sector. In the Spanish context, we found strongest support for FAST propositions 5 and 6, which posit that women must carefully navigate agricultural institutions, often encountering exclusion and discrimination, and that women create their own networks to address their specific needs and advance agroecology and rural sustainability. Increased training for officials overseeing new enterprise incorporations, and investment in women's networks could reduce institutional bias and increase support for women operators.

农村研究在性别和农业方面取得了相当大的理论和实证进展，但几乎没有一项工作专门关注全球北方参与畜牧生产的妇女。为了弥补这一差距，我们探讨了西班牙女性参与粗放畜牧业的经历，包括她们的动机、身份、挑战以及学习和支持的来源。我们使用生活史方法采访了西班牙四个地区的 29 名女性，并在三个地区开展了后续参与式研讨会。我们调查了女性如何进入粗放的畜牧业，了解畜牧业的职业和业务，以及她们在权力关系和歧视方面的经历，然后通过女权主义农业食品系统理论 (FAST) 的视角来解释我们的发现。女子 的叙述揭示了牲畜管理的三个主要途径：通过家庭、通过合作伙伴/配偶和从零开始。尽管受访者分享了共同的经历和挣扎，但每条途径都与不同的动机、挑战和学习来源相关联。这种多样化的目标和经历打破了关于妇女在广泛的畜牧业中的角色的陈规定型观念，并指出需要基于妇女生活经历的不同现实进行外展和政策。我们的结果强调了牧民妇女在获得和保持经济和决策自主权方面面临的障碍。我们的研究结果部分支持所有 FAST 命题，但强调了西班牙女性进入历史上男性主导的行业面临的持续挑战。在西班牙语境中，我们发现对 FAST 命题 5 和 6 的支持最强，它假定妇女必须谨慎地驾驭农业机构，经常遇到排斥和歧视，并且妇女建立自己的网络来满足其特定需求并促进农业生态学和农村可持续性。加强对监管新企业注册的官员的培训，以及对女性网络的投资，可以减少体制偏见并增加对女性经营者的支持。