Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2020

39-2021 Animal Caretakers

Feed, water, groom, bathe, exercise, or otherwise provide care to promote and maintain the well-being of pets and other animals that are not raised for consumption, such as dogs, cats, race horses, ornamental fish or birds, zoo animals, and mice. Work in settings such as kennels, animal shelters, zoos, circuses, and aquariums. May keep records of feedings, treatments, and animals received or discharged. May clean, disinfect, and repair cages, pens, or fish tanks. Excludes "Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers" (31-9096) and "Farmworkers, Farm, Ranch, and Aquacultural Animals" (45-2093).

National estimates for Animal Caretakers
Industry profile for Animal Caretakers
Geographic profile for Animal Caretakers

National estimates for Animal Caretakers:

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Animal Caretakers:

Employment (1)	Employment RSE (3)	Mean hourly wage	Mean annual wage (2)	Wage RSE (3)
193,660	1.5 %	$ 13.65	$ 28,380	0.5 %

Percentile wage estimates for Animal Caretakers:

Percentile	10%	25%	50% (Median)	75%	90%
Hourly Wage	$ 9.29	$ 10.59	$ 12.54	$ 15.13	$ 19.33
Annual Wage (2)	$ 19,310	$ 22,030	$ 26,080	$ 31,480	$ 40,210

Industry profile for Animal Caretakers:

Industries with the highest published employment and wages for Animal Caretakers are provided. For a list of all industries with employment in Animal Caretakers, see the Create Customized Tables function.

Industries with the highest levels of employment in Animal Caretakers:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Other Personal Services	88,560	29.85	$ 13.45	$ 27,970
Other Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services	33,210	4.57	$ 12.64	$ 26,280
Other Miscellaneous Store Retailers	29,440	8.78	$ 13.18	$ 27,410
Social Advocacy Organizations	10,910	4.97	$ 12.73	$ 26,470
Local Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OEWS Designation)	6,120	0.11	$ 16.76	$ 34,850

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Animal Caretakers:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Other Personal Services	88,560	29.85	$ 13.45	$ 27,970
Support Activities for Animal Production	3,720	11.71	$ 16.36	$ 34,040
Other Miscellaneous Store Retailers	29,440	8.78	$ 13.18	$ 27,410
Spectator Sports	6,060	5.52	$ 14.11	$ 29,350
Social Advocacy Organizations	10,910	4.97	$ 12.73	$ 26,470

Top paying industries for Animal Caretakers:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Promoters of Performing Arts, Sports, and Similar Events	(8)	(8)	$ 27.31	$ 56,810
Federal Executive Branch (OEWS Designation)	420	0.02	$ 21.34	$ 44,390
State Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OEWS Designation)	170	0.01	$ 21.31	$ 44,330
Traveler Accommodation	60	(7)	$ 19.62	$ 40,810
Civic and Social Organizations	(8)	(8)	$ 18.50	$ 38,470

Geographic profile for Animal Caretakers:

States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for Animal Caretakers are provided. For a list of all areas with employment in Animal Caretakers, see the Create Customized Tables function.

States with the highest employment level in Animal Caretakers:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
California	19,560	1.19	0.85	$ 16.70	$ 34,730
Texas	15,180	1.25	0.90	$ 12.35	$ 25,680
Florida	12,730	1.51	1.08	$ 13.53	$ 28,150
New York	10,970	1.26	0.91	$ 15.87	$ 33,000
Illinois	9,790	1.74	1.25	$ 12.60	$ 26,220

States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Animal Caretakers:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Colorado	5,160	2.00	1.44	$ 14.67	$ 30,520
Kansas	2,580	1.94	1.39	$ 11.74	$ 24,420
Missouri	5,150	1.91	1.37	$ 12.63	$ 26,270
Idaho	1,310	1.83	1.31	$ 11.18	$ 23,260
New Hampshire	1,120	1.80	1.29	$ 13.97	$ 29,060

Top paying states for Animal Caretakers:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
District of Columbia	420	0.61	0.44	$ 18.56	$ 38,610
Hawaii	650	1.13	0.81	$ 16.86	$ 35,070
California	19,560	1.19	0.85	$ 16.70	$ 34,730
Washington	4,020	1.26	0.90	$ 16.41	$ 34,120
Alaska	390	1.33	0.95	$ 16.34	$ 33,980

Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Animal Caretakers:

Metropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA	10,940	1.24	0.89	$ 15.37	$ 31,980
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI	8,280	1.90	1.36	$ 12.58	$ 26,160
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA	4,970	0.85	0.61	$ 16.90	$ 35,150
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD	4,300	1.60	1.15	$ 15.59	$ 32,420
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV	4,300	1.42	1.02	$ 15.41	$ 32,050
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX	3,930	1.09	0.79	$ 12.36	$ 25,710
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX	3,690	1.24	0.89	$ 11.70	$ 24,340
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL	3,540	1.41	1.01	$ 14.62	$ 30,410
Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH	3,420	1.32	0.95	$ 15.78	$ 32,810
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA	3,240	1.23	0.88	$ 12.83	$ 26,680

Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Animal Caretakers:

Metropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Ocala, FL	720	6.96	5.00	$ 12.28	$ 25,540
Niles-Benton Harbor, MI	260	4.69	3.37	$ 12.83	$ 26,700
Jacksonville, NC	210	4.57	3.28	$ 12.11	$ 25,180
Lexington-Fayette, KY	1,060	4.10	2.94	$ 11.93	$ 24,820
Punta Gorda, FL	180	3.87	2.78	$ 12.70	$ 26,420
Hot Springs, AR	130	3.55	2.55	$ 13.19	$ 27,430
Bend-Redmond, OR	270	3.42	2.45	$ 14.95	$ 31,090
Fort Collins, CO	530	3.39	2.43	$ 13.81	$ 28,720
Sierra Vista-Douglas, AZ	90	2.97	2.13	$ 13.54	$ 28,170
Santa Fe, NM	170	2.94	2.11	$ 14.00	$ 29,110