• Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics

Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2022

31-9096 Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers

Feed, water, and examine pets and other nonfarm animals for signs of illness, disease, or injury in laboratories and animal hospitals and clinics. Clean and disinfect cages and work areas, and sterilize laboratory and surgical equipment. May provide routine postoperative care, administer medication orally or topically, or prepare samples for laboratory examination under the supervision of veterinary or laboratory animal technologists or technicians, veterinarians, or scientists. Excludes “Animal Caretakers” (39-2021).

---

National estimates for Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers
Industry profile for Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers
Geographic profile for Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers

National estimates for Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers:

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers:

Employment (1)	Employment RSE (3)	Mean hourly wage	Mean annual wage (2)	Wage RSE (3)
111,880	1.4 %	$ 16.58	$ 34,490	0.5 %

Percentile wage estimates for Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers:

Percentile	10%	25%	50% (Median)	75%	90%
Hourly Wage	$ 12.15	$ 14.03	$ 16.70	$ 18.03	$ 21.60
Annual Wage (2)	$ 25,270	$ 29,190	$ 34,740	$ 37,510	$ 44,920

---

Industry profile for Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers:

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

Industries with the highest levels of employment in Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Other Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services	102,180	12.42	$ 16.28	$ 33,860
Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools	2,970	0.10	$ 21.34	$ 44,400
Scientific Research and Development Services	2,220	0.26	$ 21.90	$ 45,560
Social Advocacy Organizations	1,360	0.57	$ 15.62	$ 32,480
Other Personal Services	960	0.26	$ 17.40	$ 36,180

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Other Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services	102,180	12.42	$ 16.28	$ 33,860
Social Advocacy Organizations	1,360	0.57	$ 15.62	$ 32,480
Scientific Research and Development Services	2,220	0.26	$ 21.90	$ 45,560
Other Personal Services	960	0.26	$ 17.40	$ 36,180
Other Miscellaneous Retailers	700	0.14	$ 18.42	$ 38,320

Top paying industries for Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals	240	(7)	$ 23.92	$ 49,760
Scientific Research and Development Services	2,220	0.26	$ 21.90	$ 45,560
Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools	2,970	0.10	$ 21.34	$ 44,400
Pharmaceutical and Medicine Manufacturing	150	0.04	$ 20.37	$ 42,370
Local Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OEWS Designation)	240	(7)	$ 19.33	$ 40,200

---

Geographic profile for Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers:

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

States with the highest employment level in Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
California	14,190	0.80	1.06	$ 19.28	$ 40,090
Texas	7,780	0.60	0.79	$ 15.25	$ 31,720
Florida	7,240	0.79	1.04	$ 15.94	$ 33,150
North Carolina	5,150	1.11	1.47	$ 15.00	$ 31,190
Ohio	4,530	0.84	1.11	$ 14.72	$ 30,610

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

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Maine	900	1.47	1.94	$ 20.54	$ 42,720
Oregon	2,310	1.22	1.61	$ 18.17	$ 37,800
Washington	3,910	1.15	1.52	$ 18.62	$ 38,720
Montana	560	1.15	1.52	$ 14.72	$ 30,610
North Carolina	5,150	1.11	1.47	$ 15.00	$ 31,190

Top paying states for Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Massachusetts	2,100	0.59	0.78	$ 20.77	$ 43,190
Maine	900	1.47	1.94	$ 20.54	$ 42,720
New York	4,370	0.48	0.63	$ 19.36	$ 40,270
California	14,190	0.80	1.06	$ 19.28	$ 40,090
Connecticut	1,070	0.66	0.87	$ 19.26	$ 40,050

Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers:

Metropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA	4,550	0.75	0.99	$ 19.32	$ 40,190
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA	3,790	0.41	0.54	$ 19.80	$ 41,170
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI	2,640	0.60	0.79	$ 17.61	$ 36,630
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV	2,480	0.82	1.08	$ 18.93	$ 39,380
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX	2,280	0.60	0.79	$ 15.89	$ 33,040
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA	2,220	1.09	1.44	$ 19.43	$ 40,410
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA	2,150	0.79	1.04	$ 15.77	$ 32,810
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ	2,090	0.94	1.24	$ 16.68	$ 34,680
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX	1,920	0.63	0.83	$ 15.37	$ 31,980
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD	1,920	0.69	0.92	$ 16.83	$ 35,010

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

Metropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Ithaca, NY	160	3.41	4.50	(8)	(8)
Corvallis, OR	90	2.51	3.32	$ 17.29	$ 35,970
Ames, IA	110	2.46	3.25	$ 22.38	$ 46,540
Monroe, MI	90	2.34	3.09	$ 15.58	$ 32,400
Athens-Clarke County, GA	200	2.25	2.97	$ 15.72	$ 32,700
Manhattan, KS	80	2.10	2.78	$ 17.92	$ 37,260
Charlottesville, VA	220	2.00	2.65	$ 16.94	$ 35,240
Staunton-Waynesboro, VA	90	1.85	2.44	$ 14.17	$ 29,480
Auburn-Opelika, AL	110	1.79	2.37	$ 14.50	$ 30,160
Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA	170	1.76	2.33	$ 19.96	$ 41,510