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The differences between animal care specialists and doctors of veterinary medicine can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both an animal care specialist and a doctor of veterinary medicine. Additionally, a doctor of veterinary medicine has an average salary of $136,242, which is higher than the $59,197 average annual salary of an animal care specialist.
The top three skills for an animal care specialist include PET, animal handling and quality customer service. The most important skills for a doctor of veterinary medicine are patient care, veterinary medicine, and patients.
| Animal Care Specialist | Doctor Of Veterinary Medicine | |
| Yearly salary | $59,197 | $136,242 |
| Hourly rate | $28.46 | $65.50 |
| Growth rate | 19% | 19% |
| Number of jobs | 78,339 | 27,902 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 46% | Doctoral Degree, 59% |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
Animal Care Specialists are responsible for caring for an animal's health and safety. Their duties include grooming and feeding animals, cleaning and disinfecting living quarters, perform a physical examination, administer medication and vaccinations, and deliver post-operative assistance. They also arrange for adoptions as well as participate in animal rescues. An animal care specialist working in laboratories may collect blood samples, conduct lab tests, and record results. They help answer phone calls and administer individual queries.
A Veterinary Medicine Doctor is responsible for studying animal nature, diagnosing animal illnesses, and developing treatment plans and medications. They analyze an extensive scope of animal conditions to identify care programs that would keep them healthy. They also supervise laboratory procedures and conduct tests by acquiring specimens for investigation. A veterinary medicine doctor must have excellent communication and organizational skills, especially in coordinating with animal owners, responding to their inquiries and concerns, and resolving their issues.
Animal care specialists and doctors of veterinary medicine have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Animal Care Specialist | Doctor Of Veterinary Medicine | |
| Average salary | $59,197 | $136,242 |
| Salary range | Between $22,000 And $155,000 | Between $66,000 And $277,000 |
| Highest paying City | Baltimore, MD | Burlington, VT |
| Highest paying state | Maryland | Maine |
| Best paying company | SPCA of Wake County | Columbus Zoo and Aquarium |
| Best paying industry | - | Health Care |
There are a few differences between an animal care specialist and a doctor of veterinary medicine in terms of educational background:
| Animal Care Specialist | Doctor Of Veterinary Medicine | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 46% | Doctoral Degree, 59% |
| Most common major | Biology | Medicine |
| Most common college | Cornell University | Texas A&M University |
Here are the differences between animal care specialists' and doctors of veterinary medicine' demographics:
| Animal Care Specialist | Doctor Of Veterinary Medicine | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 29.7% Female, 70.3% | Male, 50.7% Female, 49.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 1.4% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 6.1% Asian, 4.8% White, 83.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% | Black or African American, 1.4% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 6.2% Asian, 4.9% White, 82.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% |
| LGBT Percentage | 15% | 15% |