Many people like animals. But, as pet owners can attest, taking care of them is hard work. Animal care and service workers—who include animal caretakers and animal trainers—train, feed, water, groom, bathe, and exercise animals and clean, disinfect, and repair their cages. They also play with the animals, provide companionship, and observe behavioral changes that could indicate illness or injury. Boarding kennels, pet stores, animal shelters, veterinary hospitals and clinics, stables, laboratories, aquariums and natural aquatic habitats, and zoological parks all house animals and employ animal care and service workers. Job titles and duties vary by employment setting.
Kennel attendants care for pets while their owners are working or traveling out of town. Beginning attendants perform basic tasks, such as cleaning cages and dog runs, filling food and water dishes, and exercising animals. Experienced attendants may provide basic animal healthcare, as well as bathe animals, trim nails, and attend to other grooming needs. Attendants who work in kennels also may sell pet food and supplies, assist in obedience training, help with breeding, or prepare animals for shipping.
Groomers are animal caretakers who specialize in grooming or maintaining a pet's appearance. Most groom dogs and a few groom cats. Some groomers work in kennels, veterinary clinics, animal shelters, or pet-supply stores. Others operate their own grooming business, typically at a salon, or increasingly, by making house calls. Such mobile services are growing rapidly as they offer convenience for pet owners, flexibility of schedules for groomers, and minimal trauma for pets resulting from their being in unfamiliar surroundings. Groomers clean and sanitize equipment to prevent the spread of disease, maintain grooming equipment, and maintain a clean and safe environment for the animals. Groomers also schedule appointments, discuss pets' grooming needs with clients, and collect information on the pet's disposition and its veterinarian. Groomers often are the first to notice a medical problem, such as an ear or skin infection that requires veterinary care.
Grooming the pet involves several steps: an initial brush-out is followed by a first clipping of hair or fur using electric clippers, combs, and grooming shears; the groomer then cuts the nails, cleans the ears, bathes, and blow-dries the animal, and ends with a final clipping and styling.
Animal caretakers in animal shelters perform a variety of duties and work with a wide variety of animals. In addition to attending to the basic needs of the animals, caretakers at shelters also must keep records of the animals received and discharged and any tests or treatments done. Some vaccinate newly admitted animals under the direction of a veterinarian or veterinary technician, and euthanize (painlessly put to death) seriously ill, severely injured, or unwanted animals. Animal caretakers in animal shelters also interact with the public, answering telephone inquiries, screening applicants for animal adoption, or educating visitors on neutering and other animal health issues.
Grooms, or caretakers, care for horses in stables. They saddle and unsaddle horses, give them rubdowns, and walk them to cool them off after a ride. They also feed, groom, and exercise the horses; clean out stalls and replenish bedding; polish saddles; clean and organize the tack (harness, saddle, and bridle) room; and store supplies and feed. Experienced grooms may help train horses.
In zoos, animal care and service workers, called keepers, prepare the diets and clean the enclosures of animals, and sometimes assist in raising them when they are very young. They watch for any signs of illness or injury, monitor eating patterns or any changes in behavior, and record their observations. Keepers also may answer questions and ensure that the visiting public behaves responsibly toward the exhibited animals. Depending on the zoo, keepers may be assigned to work with a broad group of animals such as mammals, birds, or reptiles, or they may work with a limited collection of animals such as primates, large cats, or small mammals.
Animal trainers train animals for riding, security, performance, obedience, or assisting people with disabilities. Animal trainers do this by accustoming the animal to human voice and contact and conditioning the animal to respond to commands. The three most commonly trained animals are dogs, horses, and marine mammals, including dolphins. Trainers use several techniques to help them train animals. One technique, known as a bridge, is a stimulus that a trainer uses to communicate the precise moment an animal does something correctly. When the animal responds correctly, the trainer gives positive reinforcement in a variety of ways: food, toys, play, rubdowns, or speaking the word "good." Animal training takes place in small steps and often takes months and even years of repetition. During the conditioning process, trainers provide animals with mental stimulation, physical exercise, and husbandry care. A relatively new form of training teaches animals to cooperate with workers giving medical care. Animals learn "veterinary" behaviors, such as allowing and even cooperating with the collection of blood samples; physical, x-ray, ultrasonic, and dental exams; physical therapy; and the administration of medicines and replacement fluids.
Training also can be a good tool for facilitating the relocation of animals from one habitat to another, easing, for example, the process of loading horses on trailers. Trainers often work in competitions or shows, such as circuses or marine parks, aquariums, animal shelters, dog kennels and salons, or horse farms. Trainers in shows work to display the talent and ability of an animal, such as a dolphin, through interactive programs to educate and entertain the public.
In addition to their hands-on work with the animals, trainers often oversee other aspects of animals' care, such as preparing their diet and providing a safe and clean environment and habitat.
Work environment. People who love animals get satisfaction from working with and helping them. However, some of the work may be unpleasant, physically and emotionally demanding, and sometimes dangerous. Most animal caretakers and service workers have to clean animal cages and lift, hold, or restrain animals, risking exposure to bites or scratches. Their work often involves kneeling, crawling, repeated bending, and lifting heavy supplies like bales of hay or bags of feed. Animal caretakers must take precautions when treating animals with germicides or insecticides. They may work outdoors in all kinds of weather, and the work setting can be noisy. Caretakers of show and sports animals travel to competitions.
Animal caretaker and service workers who witness abused animals or who assist in euthanizing unwanted, aged, or hopelessly injured animals may experience emotional distress. Those working for private humane societies and municipal animal shelters often deal with the public, some of whom might react with hostility to the implication that they are neglecting or abusing their pets. Such workers must maintain a calm and professional demeanor while helping to enforce the laws regarding animal care.
Animal care and service workers often work irregular hours. Most animals are fed every day, so caretakers often work weekend and holiday shifts. Some zoo animals skip one meal a week to mimic their lives in the wild. In some animal hospitals, research facilities, and animal shelters, an attendant is on duty 24 hours a day, which means night shifts.
| 1. | Feed and water animals according to schedules and feeding instructions. |
| 2. | Clean, organize, and disinfect animal quarters such as pens, stables, cages, and yards, and animal equipment such as saddles and bridles. |
| 3. | Answer telephones and schedule appointments. |
| 4. | Examine and observe animals to detect signs of illness, disease, or injury. |
| 5. | Respond to questions from patrons, and provide information about animals, such as behavior, habitat, breeding habits, or facility activities. |
| 6. | Provide treatment to sick or injured animals, or contact veterinarians to secure treatment. |
| 7. | Collect and record animal information such as weight, size, physical condition, treatments received, medications given, and food intake. |
| 8. | Perform animal grooming duties such as washing, brushing, clipping, and trimming coats, cutting nails, and cleaning ears. |
| 9. | Exercise animals to maintain their physical and mental health. |
| 10. | Order, unload, and store feed and supplies. |
| 11. | Mix food, liquid formulas, medications, or food supplements according to instructions, prescriptions, and knowledge of animal species. |
| 12. | Clean and disinfect surgical equipment. |
| 13. | Discuss with clients their pets' grooming needs. |
| 14. | Observe and caution children petting and feeding animals in designated areas to ensure the safety of humans and animals. |
| 15. | Find homes for stray or unwanted animals. |
| 16. | Adjust controls to regulate specified temperature and humidity of animal quarters, nurseries, or exhibit areas. |
| 17. | Anesthetize and inoculate animals, according to instructions. |
| 18. | Transfer animals between enclosures to facilitate breeding, birthing, shipping, or rearrangement of exhibits. |
| 19. | Install, maintain, and repair animal care facility equipment such as infrared lights, feeding devices, and cages. |
| 20. | Train animals to perform certain tasks. |
| 21. | Teach obedience classes. |
| 22. | Sell pet food and supplies. |
| 23. | Saddle and shoe animals. |
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