How to hire a kennel technician

How to hire a kennel technician, step by step

Here's a step-by-step kennel technician hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a kennel technician job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new kennel technician
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a kennel technician do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   The kennel technician hiring process starts by determining what type of worker you actually need. Certain roles might require a full-time employee, whereas part-time workers or contractors can do others.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A kennel technician's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, kennel technicians from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   Here's a comparison of kennel technician salaries for various roles:

   Type of Kennel Technician	Description	Hourly rate
   Kennel Technician	Veterinary assistants and laboratory animal caretakers look after animals in laboratories, animal hospitals, and clinics. They care for the animals by performing routine tasks under the supervision of scientists, veterinarians, and veterinary technologists and technicians.	$9-16
   Laboratory Animal Caretaker	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... Show more	$9-17
   Animal Care Technician	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... Show more	$10-19

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • PET
   • Facility Laundry
   • Administer Medications
   • Scheduling Appointments
   • Animal Handling
   • Front Desk
   • Animal Hospital
   • Exam Rooms
   • Healthy Environment
   • Medical Care
   • General Care
   • Clean Environment
   • Clean Cages
   • Food Intake

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage, and safely operate the MWD explosive program.
   • Place iv catheters in dogs and cats.
   • Maintain and update website and FaceBook page.
   • Restrain animals for various procedures such as blood draws and catheter placement.
   • Operate autoclaves for the sterilization of clean supplies as well as potentially infectious waste for disposal.
   • Perform animal grooming duties such as washing, and brushing coats, trimming nails, and cleaning ears.

   More kennel technician duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your kennel technician job description is one of the best ways to attract top talent. A kennel technician can vary based on:

   • Location. For example, kennel technicians' average salary in louisiana is 41% less than in north dakota.
   • Seniority. Entry-level kennel technicians 43% less than senior-level kennel technicians.
   • Certifications. A kennel technician with certifications usually earns a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for an established firm or a new start-up company can make a big difference in a kennel technician's salary.

   Average kennel technician salary

   $12.82hourly

   $26,664 yearly

   ---

   Entry-level kennel technician salary

   $20,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 19, 2026

   Average kennel technician salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Alaska	$33,447	$16
   2	Utah	$30,221	$15
   3	Illinois	$30,092	$14
   4	Colorado	$29,646	$14
   5	Virginia	$28,114	$14
   6	Maryland	$26,397	$13
   7	North Carolina	$25,894	$12
   8	Michigan	$25,134	$12
   9	Tennessee	$23,991	$12
   10	Florida	$23,816	$11
   11	Texas	$23,318	$11
   12	Oklahoma	$23,063	$11
   13	New Mexico	$22,899	$11
   14	Georgia	$22,892	$11
   15	South Carolina	$21,130	$10

   Average kennel technician salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	VetCor	$31,117	$14.96	125
   2	Clyde Companies	$30,149	$14.49
   3	City of Brenham	$29,624	$14.24
   4	Forsyth County	$29,056	$13.97	1
   5	The Reserves Network	$28,877	$13.88	1
   6	Lake County	$28,122	$13.52
   7	Redstone Highlands	$28,064	$13.49
   8	VCA Animal Hospitals	$27,629	$13.28	636
   9	City Of Siloam Springs	$26,911	$12.94
   10	Keystone Human Services	$26,772	$12.87
   11	Kalamazoo County Government	$26,645	$12.81
   12	Camp Bow Wow	$26,399	$12.69	6
   13	City of Renton	$26,137	$12.57
   14	The Country Club	$24,911	$11.98
   15	Edmond Oklahoma	$24,847	$11.95
   16	City of Farmington	$24,476	$11.77	4
   17	Denali	$24,282	$11.67
   18	City Of Tulare	$24,006	$11.54

4. Writing a kennel technician job description

   A kennel technician job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. Below, you can find an example of a kennel technician job description:

   Kennel technician job description example

   The purpose of this classification is to perform manual and semi-skilled work involving the care for animals and maintenance of the shelter facility in support of the County's animal shelter operations. This class is distinguished from the Veterinary Technician in that incumbents provide more direct and intensive care of the animals in addition to maintaining the shelter.
   
   Maintains the welfare of the animals by performing daily cleaning and disinfection of all animal areas and related animal equipment in accordance with the shelter's standard operating procedures.
   
   Observes all animals for signs of illness or injury and reports any changes to the Veterinary Technician, the Veterinarian or the Shelter Manager.
   
   Provides fresh food daily to all animals housed at the facility and according to feeding schedule and dietary needs.
   
   Provides general care to animals by vaccinating, bathing, groom, exercising, treating for fleas/ticks as needed; assists with more intensive care by supporting the Veterinarian, the Veterinary Technician during examinations.
   
   Assists with the euthanasia of animals and handles proper disposal; transports live animals as needed.
   
   Makes minor repairs to equipment and facility and reports any problems to the Veterinary Technician or Shelter Manager.
   
   Assists with animal adoptions; supervises introduction of potential adoptions, enters animal records into the assigned computer system, takes pictures for animal records and updates the computer system as necessary; prepares and/or processes a variety of documentation such as microchip forms and animal cage cards.
   
   Interacts and communicates comfortably with various groups and individuals such as Veterinary Technician, Animal Shelter Manager and the general public; coordinates work activities with other team members to ensure smooth operation of the facility.
   ADDITIONAL FUNCTIONS
   
   This classification is designated as a safety sensitive position which is subject to random drug and alcohol testing and any other drug testing methods as stated in policies adopted by Forsyth County concerning drug and alcohol.
   
   Performs other related duties as required.
   
   Minimum Qualifications
   
   High School Diploma or GED; supplemented by one (1) year of experience in a Veterinary Hospital, animal shelter, kennel or similar environment; or any combination of education and experience which provides the skills and abilities for this job. Required to possess and maintain a valid Georgia driver's license.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right kennel technician for your business:

   • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your kennel technician job on Zippia to find and recruit kennel technician candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites such as healthcarejobsite, health jobs nationwide, hospitalcareers, medreps.com.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit kennel technicians, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match your ideal candidate profile. If you think a candidate is good enough for the next step, you can move on to the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new kennel technician

   Once you've selected the best kennel technician candidate for the job, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, this letter should include details about the benefits and perks you offer the candidate. Ensuring that your offer is competitive is essential, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and you should be open to discussion. After you reach an agreement, the final step is formalizing the agreement with a contract.

   It's also important to follow up with applicants who do not get the job with an email letting them know that the position is filled.

   To prepare for the new employee's start date, you can create an onboarding schedule and complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9 forms, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Human Resources should also ensure that a new employee file is created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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How much does it cost to hire a kennel technician?