Animal Care and Service Workers

Animal care and service workers attend to or train animals. Working with pets and other nonfarm animals, these caretakers and trainers feed, groom, and exercise the animals or teach them to respond to human commands.

Duties

Animal care and service workers typically do the following:

• Give food and water to animals
• Clean equipment and the living spaces of animals
• Monitor animals and record details of their diet, physical condition, and behavior
• Examine animals for signs of illness or injury
• Exercise animals
• Bathe animals, trim nails, clip hair, and attend to other grooming needs
• Train animals to obey or to behave in a specific manner

The following are types of animal care and service workers:

Animal trainers teach animals a variety of skills, such as obedience, performance, riding, security, and assisting people with disabilities. They familiarize animals with human voices and contact, and they teach animals to respond to commands. Most animal trainers work with dogs and horses, but some work with marine mammals, such as dolphins. Trainers teach a variety of skills. For example, some train dogs to guide people with disabilities, or they may train animals for a competition.

Groomers specialize in maintaining a pet’s appearance. They typically groom dogs and cats, which may include cutting, trimming, shampooing, and styling fur; clipping nails; and cleaning ears. Groomers also schedule appointments, sell products to pet owners, and identify problems that may require veterinary attention.

Groomers may work in or operate a grooming salon, kennel, veterinary clinic, pet supply store, or mobile grooming service, a self-contained business that travels to clients’ homes.

Grooms work at stables, caring for horses and maintaining equipment. Responsibilities include feeding, grooming, and exercising horses; cleaning stalls; polishing saddles; and organizing the tack room, which stores harnesses, saddles, and bridles. Experienced grooms sometimes help train horses.

Kennel attendants care for pets, often overnight, in place of owners. They clean cages and dog runs and feed, exercise, and play with animals. Experienced attendants also may provide basic healthcare, bathe animals, and attend to other basic grooming needs.

Animal shelter attendants typically work with cats and dogs in animal shelters or rescue leagues. These attendants take care of the animals’ basic needs and may have administrative duties, such as keeping records, answering questions from the public, educating visitors about pet health, and screening people who want to adopt an animal. Experienced attendants may have more responsibilities, such as helping to vaccinate or euthanize animals alongside a veterinarian.

Pet sitters look after animals while the pet owner is away. Most pet sitters feed, walk, and play with pets daily. They go to the pet owner’s home, allowing the pet to stay in its familiar surroundings and follow its routine. Experienced pet sitters also may bathe, groom, or train pets. Pet sitters typically watch over dogs, but some also take care of cats and other pets.

Zookeepers care for animals in zoos. They plan diets, feed animals, and monitor the animals’ eating patterns. They also clean the animals’ enclosures and monitor behavior for signs of illness or injury. Depending on the size of the zoo, they may work with one species or multiple species of animals. Zookeepers may help raise young animals, and they often spend time answering questions from the public.

For information about workers who care for animals in clinics, animal hospitals, and research laboratories, see the veterinary assistants and laboratory animal caretakers profile. For information about those who attend to farm animals, see the agricultural workers profile.

Animal caretakers held about 392,100 jobs in 2024. The largest employers of animal caretakers were as follows:

Animal trainers held about 47,300 jobs in 2024. The largest employers of animal trainers were as follows:

Animal care and service workers are employed in a variety of settings. Many work at kennels; others work at zoos, stables, animal shelters, pet stores, veterinary clinics, and aquariums. Their work may involve travel.

Although animal care and service workers may consider their work enjoyable and rewarding, they face unpleasant and emotionally distressing situations at times. For example, those who work in shelters may observe abused, injured, or sick animals. Some caretakers may have to help veterinarians euthanize injured or unwanted animals.

In addition, a lot the work involves physical tasks, such as moving and cleaning cages, lifting bags of food, and exercising animals.

Injuries and Illnesses

Animal caretakers have one of the highest rates of injuries and illnesses of all occupations. Animal care and service workers may be bitten, scratched, or kicked when working with scared or aggressive animals. Injuries may also happen while the caretaker is holding, cleaning, or restraining an animal.

Work Schedules

Although most animal trainers work full time, part-time work is common for both trainers and animal caretakers. Work schedules may vary to include evenings, weekends, and holidays. In facilities that operate 24 hours a day, such as kennels, animal shelters, and stables, animals may need care around the clock.

Animal care and service workers typically have a high school diploma or equivalent and learn the occupation on the job. Many employers prefer to hire candidates who have experience working with animals.

The median annual wage for animal caretakers was $33,470 in May 2024.

The median annual wage for animal trainers was $38,750 in May 2024.

Overall employment of animal care and service workers is projected to grow 11 percent from 2024 to 2034, much faster than the average for all occupations.

About 81,700 openings for animal care and service workers are projected each year, on average, over the decade. Many of those openings are expected to result from the need to replace workers who transfer to different occupations or exit the labor force, such as to retire.