Animal Caretaker Salary (2026), outlook and how to become one

Animal Caretakers earn a median of $35,360 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025), 31% below the $50,980 median for all US occupations. That works out at $17.00/hr. The middle half earn between $29,820 and $40,050. The top 10% earn $50,060 or more.

The median hourly wage for animal caretakers is $17.00 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). On a full-year basis the $35,360 annual median works out to about $2,950 a month before tax.

BLS does not publish a starting salary. The nearest measure is the low end of the pay range: the lowest-paid 10% of animal caretakers earn less than $27,250 a year and the bottom quarter less than $29,820 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). New workers often start near that end, but where a particular job starts depends on the employer, the state and the credentials you bring, so read these as the bottom of the range rather than a guaranteed entry wage.

The highest state medians for Animal Caretakers are District of Columbia ($44,210), Washington ($40,570), Hawaii ($40,130) (BLS OEWS, May 2025).

BLS does not split animal caretakers' pay by specialty or employer, but its range shows how far the top end runs: the highest-paid 10% earn more than $50,060, against a median of $35,360 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). Location moves pay the most in the published data: the best-paying states are District of Columbia ($44,210), Washington ($40,570), Hawaii ($40,130). BLS also counts 4 specialty careers inside this occupation (equine dental technician, equine massage therapist, farrier, wildlife rehabilitator), which share its federal pay figures.

No. A bachelor's degree is not the norm: BLS reports a high school diploma or equivalent as the typical entry-level education for Animal Caretakers. BLS also lists short-term on-the-job training as typical on-the-job training. In O*NET's survey of people already doing the job, 63.6% hold high school diploma or the equivalent (such as a ged).

BLS does not publish a fixed length; it depends on the route. What it does publish: the typical way in for animal caretakers is a high school diploma or equivalent. Once hired, BLS lists short-term on-the-job training as typical. O*NET classes the work as needing some preparation.

Yes, strongly. Employment is projected to grow 12.1% over 2025–2035, more than double the 3.5% projected for all occupations (BLS EP, 2025–2035). BLS still projects about 62,800 openings a year, mostly from workers retiring or moving to other work.

Animal care and service workers attend to or train animals. A core O*NET task: respond to questions from patrons, and provide information about animals, such as behavior, habitat, breeding habits, or facility activities. Employers most often ask for Data base user interface and query software, Electronic mail software, Office suite software.

Yes, for most. In O*NET's survey of people in the job, 7% of animal caretakers usually work more than 40 hours a week, 56% work exactly 40 and 37% work fewer. 98% say their schedule is regular and 2% irregular. Source: O*NET 31.0 Database, Work Context.

O*NET scores Animal Caretakers highest on the Realistic, Social and Conventional interest areas, so the work mixes hands-on, practical work with tools, machines or the outdoors with teaching, helping and working directly with other people. On NueCareer's MBTI-to-interest mapping the closest types are ISTJ, ISFJ. Personality is a fit signal, not a gate. The free NueCareer quiz scores your own profile against all 1,731 careers in the bank.

Women make up 77.8% of animal caretakers, against 47.1% of all employed people: a female-dominated occupation. Only 14.6% are 55 or older (23.2% across all jobs): a young workforce, with 28.0% under 25. The median worker is 31.9 years old (all workers: 42.1). Source: BLS Current Population Survey, 2025 annual averages.