Animal attendant vs laboratory animal caretaker

The differences between animal attendants and laboratory animal caretakers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a laboratory animal caretaker has an average salary of $26,564, which is higher than the $26,394 average annual salary of an animal attendant.

The top three skills for an animal attendant include PET, patients and animal handling. The most important skills for a laboratory animal caretaker are ventilation, safety procedures, and pigs.

Animal attendant vs laboratory animal caretaker overview

	Animal Attendant	Laboratory Animal Caretaker
Yearly salary	$26,394	$26,564
Hourly rate	$12.69	$12.77
Growth rate	28%	19%
Number of jobs	53,000	45,979
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 40%	Bachelor's Degree, 42%
Average age	32	29
Years of experience	3	-

What does an animal attendant do?

An animal attendant is responsible for administering high-quality care for the animals in a shelter, clinic, or wildlife preserve. Animal attendants monitor the health conditions of the animals, manage their food intake and medications, maintain the adequacy of animal stock inventories, and report any critical findings and unusual observations to the veterinarians. They also ensure the cleanliness and orderliness of all the facilities and cages, as well as the efficiency of tools and equipment to support daily animal operations.

What does a laboratory animal caretaker do?

A laboratory animal caretaker is in charge of monitoring and taking care of animals in a research facility or similar setting, ensuring to handle them properly and humanely. Their responsibilities include feeding the animals, examining them for any diseases or injuries, gathering and preparing samples, and maintaining the cleanliness of work areas. Furthermore, as a laboratory animal caretaker, it is essential to provide research and clerical assistance to staff, all while upholding the laboratory's safety policies and regulations.

Animal attendant vs laboratory animal caretaker salary

Animal attendants and laboratory animal caretakers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Animal Attendant	Laboratory Animal Caretaker
Average salary	$26,394	$26,564
Salary range	Between $20,000 And $34,000	Between $19,000 And $36,000
Highest paying City	Ithaca, NY	Baltimore, MD
Highest paying state	New York	North Dakota
Best paying company	Baylor College of Medicine	Charles River Center
Best paying industry	Education	Government

Differences between animal attendant and laboratory animal caretaker education

There are a few differences between an animal attendant and a laboratory animal caretaker in terms of educational background:

	Animal Attendant	Laboratory Animal Caretaker
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 40%	Bachelor's Degree, 42%
Most common major	Biology	Biology
Most common college	Ohio State University	Cornell University

Animal attendant vs laboratory animal caretaker demographics

Here are the differences between animal attendants' and laboratory animal caretakers' demographics:

	Animal Attendant	Laboratory Animal Caretaker
Average age	32	29
Gender ratio	Male, 29.2% Female, 70.8%	Male, 28.3% Female, 71.7%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 4.2% Unknown, 6.3% Hispanic or Latino, 17.9% Asian, 2.6% White, 68.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%	Black or African American, 2.7% Unknown, 6.9% Hispanic or Latino, 18.2% Asian, 3.2% White, 68.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.1%
LGBT Percentage	11%	10%

Differences between animal attendant and laboratory animal caretaker duties and responsibilities

Animal attendant example responsibilities.

Assist in managing shelter for animals and arranging for adoption or euthanasia of confiscate animals.
Skil at handling, restraining, husbandry and veterinary procedures with reptiles, mammals, raptors, amphibians, and songbirds.
Clean goat and pig yards, train goats and pigs, keep records.
Serve as midwife for birthing dogs, cats and goats.
Care for goats by providing them with feed every week.
Maintain cleanliness of the shelter and medicate animals direct by supervisor as needed.

Laboratory animal caretaker example responsibilities.

Manage pigs, sheep, chickens, horses, etc.-fed/groom animals-Assisted with animal theme events-Assured customers' safe positive interactions with animals
Assist in managing shelter for animals and arranging for adoption or euthanasia of confiscate animals.
Care for animals involve in laboratory research such as rats, mice, pigs, rabbits, toads, and squirrels.
Perform grooming duties such as; washing, brushing, clipping, and trimming coats, cutting nails and cleaning ears.
Complete physical checks and monitor patients to detect unusual or harmful behavior and report observations to professional staff.
Keep animals account update through Avimark.

Animal attendant vs laboratory animal caretaker skills

Common animal attendant skills

PET, 59%
Patients, 6%
Animal Handling, 6%
Cleanliness, 3%
Euthanasia, 3%
Autoclaves, 2%

Common laboratory animal caretaker skills

Ventilation, 19%
Safety Procedures, 15%
Pigs, 12%
Animal Species, 6%
Insemination, 6%
Research Animals, 5%

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Animal Attendant
Animal Attendant vs Laboratory Animal Caretaker

Updated January 8, 2025

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