Kennel Assistant
Impact: Animal welfare, Public health
Provide daily care, feeding, and exercise for animals in a kennel or animal shelter environment.
What the day looks like
- People interaction
- Moderate
- Team vs solo
- 60% Team / 40% Solo
- Client facing
- Sometimes
- Impact visibility
- Moderate
- Travel
- Minimal
- Schedule flexibility
- Structured
- Remote work
- On-site Only
- Typical work hours
- 40 hours/week
- Stress level
- Moderate
At a glance
- Median salary
- $32,000
- Entry-level
- $25,000 - $30,000
- Senior
- $38,000+
- Growth by 2033
- 5% (average)
- Demand
- Stable
- Freelance potential
- Low
- Salary growth potential
- Low to 20-30% growth from entry to senior
- Typical student debt
- Minimal
Skills you'll use
Hard skills
- Animal Handling
- Cleaning and Sanitation
- Basic First Aid
- Record Keeping
- Feeding Protocols
Soft skills
- Compassion
- Patience
- Communication
- Attention to Detail
- Problem-Solving
Technical complexity: Low
How to get there
- Minimum education
- High School Diploma
- Licensing
- No
- Years to mid-career
- 2-4 years
- Years to senior
- 5-7 years
- Career switching
- Easy
Where this career leads
How people arrive here
Where you can go from here
Typical progression
- Kennel Assistant
- Lead Kennel Assistant
- Animal Care Supervisor
Future outlook
- Automation probability
- 10% to low risk due to hands-on animal care and observation
- AI disruption risk
- Very Low
- Demand trend
- Stable
How people feel about it
- Overall satisfaction
- 3.4/10
- Meaning
- 3.8/10
- Work-life balance
- 3/10
- Prestige
- 3.5/10
- Social perception
- Moderate