Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between animal care technicians and dog sitters can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-3 months to become both an animal care technician and a dog sitter. Additionally, an animal care technician has an average salary of $29,617, which is higher than the $25,532 average annual salary of a dog sitter.
The top three skills for an animal care technician include patients, animal husbandry and pigs. The most important skills for a dog sitter are PET, customer service, and dog care.
| Animal Care Technician | Dog Sitter | |
| Yearly salary | $29,617 | $25,532 |
| Hourly rate | $14.24 | $12.28 |
| Growth rate | 28% | 28% |
| Number of jobs | 96,973 | 67,682 |
| Job satisfaction | 4 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 45% | Bachelor's Degree, 38% |
| Average age | 32 | 32 |
| Years of experience | 3 | 3 |
An animal care technician is an animal medical professional who is responsible for providing care to animals in the clinical or research setting. Animal care technicians take blood or stool samples from animals and run laboratory tests to determine the cause of an ailment. They often take charge of bathing and grooming animals as well as administer anesthesia before procedures. Animal care technicians are also required to speak to the pet's owners to help them understand the diagnosis and administer medication.
A dog sitter is primarily responsible for taking care of dogs while their owners are away. Their tasks include feeding dogs, taking them to walks or daycares, bathing or cleaning their ears, and providing owners with regular updates. Most dog sitters typically meet with clients beforehand to learn about the dogs and their needs, as some of them may require medicine or particular care. Should there be any problems, a dog sitter must report to the owners right away.
Animal care technicians and dog sitters have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Animal Care Technician | Dog Sitter | |
| Average salary | $29,617 | $25,532 |
| Salary range | Between $21,000 And $40,000 | Between $10,000 And $64,000 |
| Highest paying City | South San Francisco, CA | Warwick, RI |
| Highest paying state | Oregon | Connecticut |
| Best paying company | Emory University | CARE |
| Best paying industry | Health Care | Professional |
There are a few differences between an animal care technician and a dog sitter in terms of educational background:
| Animal Care Technician | Dog Sitter | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 45% | Bachelor's Degree, 38% |
| Most common major | Biology | Psychology |
| Most common college | New York University | Texas A&M University - Commerce |
Here are the differences between animal care technicians' and dog sitters' demographics:
| Animal Care Technician | Dog Sitter | |
| Average age | 32 | 32 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 31.1% Female, 68.9% | Male, 22.0% Female, 78.0% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.3% Unknown, 6.3% Hispanic or Latino, 18.5% Asian, 2.7% White, 67.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 4.3% Unknown, 6.4% Hispanic or Latino, 18.1% Asian, 2.6% White, 68.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |