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The differences between veterinary technician assistants and animal health technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both a veterinary technician assistant and an animal health technician. Additionally, a veterinary technician assistant has an average salary of $39,025, which is higher than the $37,267 average annual salary of an animal health technician.
The top three skills for a veterinary technician assistant include patients, PET and patient care. The most important skills for an animal health technician are animal handling, IM, and laboratory animals.
| Veterinary Technician Assistant | Animal Health Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $39,025 | $37,267 |
| Hourly rate | $18.76 | $17.92 |
| Growth rate | 20% | 20% |
| Number of jobs | 35,338 | 89,376 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 41% | Bachelor's Degree, 50% |
| Average age | 32 | 32 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 12 |
A veterinary technician assistant is primarily in charge of performing support tasks in a veterinary hospital or clinic. Their responsibilities include administering medication to animals in adherence to the veterinarian's directives and performing basic care tasks such as feeding, bathing, and walking animals. They may also clean cages, sterilize equipment, prepare and process documents, and answer calls and inquiries. Furthermore, as a veterinary technician assistant, it is essential to monitor the behavior of animals, reporting to the veterinarian or technician should there be any problems.
Animal health technicians work primarily in an animal diagnostics laboratory, where they test specimens according to a veterinarian's requests. The animal health technician must be capable of operating all of the necessary diagnostics equipment for animal care. The animal health technician must provide accurate results on diagnostic requests coming from a veterinarian. Added responsibilities of an animal health technician are educating owners on taking care of their pets, ensuring that all equipment is working correctly, and providing accurate results for better diagnosis.
Veterinary technician assistants and animal health technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Veterinary Technician Assistant | Animal Health Technician | |
| Average salary | $39,025 | $37,267 |
| Salary range | Between $30,000 And $49,000 | Between $23,000 And $58,000 |
| Highest paying City | Bakersfield, CA | - |
| Highest paying state | California | - |
| Best paying company | University of Wisconsin System | - |
| Best paying industry | Health Care | - |
There are a few differences between a veterinary technician assistant and an animal health technician in terms of educational background:
| Veterinary Technician Assistant | Animal Health Technician | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 41% | Bachelor's Degree, 50% |
| Most common major | Medical Assisting Services | Animal Science |
| Most common college | Ohio State University | Ohio State University |
Here are the differences between veterinary technician assistants' and animal health technicians' demographics:
| Veterinary Technician Assistant | Animal Health Technician | |
| Average age | 32 | 32 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 16.8% Female, 83.2% | Male, 29.6% Female, 70.4% |
| 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% |