Animal technician vs veterinary laboratory technician

The differences between animal technicians and veterinary laboratory technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both an animal technician and a veterinary laboratory technician. Additionally, a veterinary laboratory technician has an average salary of $34,460, which is higher than the $31,378 average annual salary of an animal technician.

The top three skills for an animal technician include animal handling, autoclaves and euthanasia. The most important skills for a veterinary laboratory technician are animal handling, laboratory procedures, and diagnostic tests.

Animal technician vs veterinary laboratory technician overview

	Animal Technician	Veterinary Laboratory Technician
Yearly salary	$31,378	$34,460
Hourly rate	$15.09	$16.57
Growth rate	20%	20%
Number of jobs	39,917	90,066
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 52%	Bachelor's Degree, 42%
Average age	32	32
Years of experience	12	12

Animal technician vs veterinary laboratory technician salary

Animal technicians and veterinary laboratory technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Animal Technician	Veterinary Laboratory Technician
Average salary	$31,378	$34,460
Salary range	Between $19,000 And $51,000	Between $27,000 And $43,000
Highest paying City	New York, NY	-
Highest paying state	New York	-
Best paying company	Harvard University	-
Best paying industry	Health Care	-

Differences between animal technician and veterinary laboratory technician education

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

	Animal Technician	Veterinary Laboratory Technician
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 52%	Bachelor's Degree, 42%
Most common major	Biology	Medical Assisting Services
Most common college	Ohio State University	Ohio State University

Animal technician vs veterinary laboratory technician demographics

Here are the differences between animal technicians' and veterinary laboratory technicians' demographics:

	Animal Technician	Veterinary Laboratory Technician
Average age	32	32
Gender ratio	Male, 44.8% Female, 55.2%	Male, 21.3% Female, 78.7%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 2.7% Unknown, 6.8% Hispanic or Latino, 10.9% Asian, 2.1% White, 77.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%	Black or African American, 2.7% Unknown, 6.8% Hispanic or Latino, 10.9% Asian, 2.1% White, 77.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage	9%	9%

Differences between animal technician and veterinary laboratory technician duties and responsibilities

Animal technician example responsibilities.

Maintain all necessary paperwork for specific species as required by the USDA, IACUC, as well as other agencies.
Maintain the cleanliness and organization of all animal facility locations.
Stock shelves with personal protection equipment (PPE).
Learned all PPE policies for different areas of the vivarium.
Train and supervise fellow animal technicians in GLP, vivarium policy, husbandry and sterilization methods.
Perform oral gavage, im, iv and ip injections and retro orbital collections in mice.

Veterinary laboratory technician example responsibilities.

Manage operational and administrative functions such as training/supervising new employees, issuing prescriptions, and documenting pet insurance applications and transactions.
Perform all animal technician functions for surgical and radiology procedures in compliance with pertinent regulations and guidelines as required by protocol.
Work closely with clients, other staff and Dr. Faulkner.

Animal technician vs veterinary laboratory technician skills

Common animal technician skills

Animal Handling, 7%
Autoclaves, 7%
Euthanasia, 6%
Laboratory Animal Care, 4%
Technical Procedures, 4%
AALAS, 4%

Common veterinary laboratory technician skills

Animal Handling, 13%
Laboratory Procedures, 12%
Diagnostic Tests, 11%
Biomedical, 7%
Catheter, 7%
Laboratory Animals, 7%

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Animal Technician vs Veterinary Laboratory Technician

Updated January 8, 2025

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