What does an animal care technician do?
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.
Animal care technician responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real animal care technician resumes:
- Assist in managing shelter for animals and arranging for adoption or euthanasia of confiscate animals.
- Train in safety procedures for blood borne pathogens, GLP and GMP certification, and ISO standards.
- Familiarize with the strains of various animal species to include rats, mice, gerbils, guinea pigs.
- Interview prospective adopting families while counseling on animal welfare and responsibilities of pet owners.
- Maintain knowledge of CPR procedures and evacuation procedures.
- Assist with minor emergency procedures, perform CPR.
- Brush, bath and condition animals' coats.
- Participate in the VMSB AALAS technician training class.
- Assist in the successful completion of AAALAC accreditation process.
- Discontinue peripheral iv's, first aid, visual acuitys.
- Train and socialize rats, mice, turtles and snakes.
- Castrate cattle, sheep, and goats; ensure animal insemination.
- Conduct health screenings and collect sperm samples for artificial insemination in birds.
- Initiate process for feeding, bathing, and examination of the elephants.
- Feed animals, maintain water systems, maintain ventilation settings, and relate tasks.
Animal care technician skills and personality traits
We calculated that 10% of Animal Care Technicians are proficient in Patients, Animal Husbandry, and Pigs. They’re also known for soft skills such as Customer-service skills, Problem-solving skills, and Compassion.
We break down the percentage of Animal Care Technicians that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Patients, 10%
Assist veterinarian staff: administer prepared oral medication and restrain patients as needed.
- Animal Husbandry, 9%
General animal husbandry *Operating heavy equipment *Monitoring animal environments *Sterilize operating equipment using an autoclave *Documenting procedures *Removal/disposal of hazardous materials
- Pigs, 5%
Trained in oral dosing and restraining dogs and cats, IP and SQ injections for mice and guinea pigs.
- Patient Care, 5%
Perform patient care in a rehab facility setting under the supervision of registered nurses and/or licensed practical nurses.
- Animal Handling, 5%
Coordinated scheduling of procedure rooms for animal handling and research for Principal Investigators.
- GLP, 4%
Ensured GLP was adhered to for clean side and dirty side of all animal tech rooms in research facility.
Most animal care technicians use their skills in "patients," "animal husbandry," and "pigs" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential animal care technician responsibilities here:
Customer-service skills. One of the key soft skills for an animal care technician to have is customer-service skills. You can see how this relates to what animal care technicians do because "animal care and service workers should understand pet owners’ needs so they can provide excellent customer service." Additionally, an animal care technician resume shows how animal care technicians use customer-service skills: "breed lab mice and rats maintain cages health checks on the animals prepare orders for customers"
Problem-solving skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling animal care technician duties is problem-solving skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "animal trainers must be able to assess whether animals are responding to teaching methods and to identify which methods are successful." According to an animal care technician resume, here's how animal care technicians can utilize problem-solving skills in their job responsibilities: "helped with various research projects, made solutions, set up labs for classes. "
Compassion. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of animal care technicians is compassion. This skill is critical to many everyday animal care technician duties, as "animal care and service workers must be compassionate when dealing with animals and their owners." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "maintained sanitary, comfortable and compassionate medical environment for patients, boarders and permanent residents. "
Detail oriented. A big part of what animal care technicians do relies on "detail oriented." You can see how essential it is to animal care technician responsibilities because "animal care and service workers are often responsible for maintaining records and monitoring changes in animals’ behavior." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical animal care technician tasks: "perform and document detailed health observations on laboratory animals. "
The three companies that hire the most animal care technicians are:
- Christensen Farms134 animal care technicians jobs
- Charles River Center47 animal care technicians jobs
- Charles River Labs43 animal care technicians jobs
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Compare different animal care technicians
Animal care technician vs. Pet groomer
A pet groomer typically works with pets and other animals in pet grooming boutiques and pet stores. As a pet groomer, you will perform a few tasks that may include cleaning and taking care of pets such as dogs, maintaining the cleanliness of the work area for the next client, and working with the cash registers. In addition, you will groom dogs and cats using different tools and techniques, ensuring that pets stay safe and are well taken care of.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, animal care technician responsibilities require skills like "patients," "animal husbandry," "pigs," and "patient care." Meanwhile a typical pet groomer has skills in areas such as "dryers," "pet care," "salon services," and "customer service." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
The education levels that pet groomers earn slightly differ from animal care technicians. In particular, pet groomers are 0.5% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than an animal care technician. Additionally, they're 0.2% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Animal care technician vs. Dog groomer
A pet sitter is responsible for taking care of household pets while their owners are away. Pet sitters perform services for pet maintenance, including taking them to the veterinarian, monitoring their food, walk them in the park, and administer medications, if any. They also reach out to the pet owners for possible updates and emergencies, taking their instructions immediately. Apart from being highly communicative and organizational, a pet sitter should have an interest and passion in taking care of pets to ensure high-quality services.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real animal care technician resumes. While animal care technician responsibilities can utilize skills like "patients," "animal husbandry," "pigs," and "patient care," dog groomers use skills like "customer service," "scheduling appointments," "animal safety," and "dryers."
In general, dog groomers achieve similar levels of education than animal care technicians. They're 0.3% less likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 0.2% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Animal care technician vs. Pet sitter
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.
Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from animal care technician resumes include skills like "patients," "animal husbandry," "patient care," and "animal handling," whereas a pet sitter is more likely to list skills in "walkers," "clients homes," "topical medications," and "litter boxes. "
Pet sitters earn the highest salary when working in the non profits industry, where they receive an average salary of $27,770. Comparatively, animal care technicians have the highest earning potential in the health care industry, with an average salary of $32,797.pet sitters typically earn similar educational levels compared to animal care technicians. Specifically, they're 1.7% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Animal care technician vs. Dog sitter
Types of animal care technician
Updated January 8, 2025
