Careers That Involve Working with Animals

There are many people who have an ardent love for animals. Sometimes, this love may stem from a compassionate nature, while some may have been surrounded by different pets since childhood. I am sure there are many people out there who just enjoy begin around animals and share feelings of compassion for them. This often makes them wonder if they could mix pleasure with work, which means that they might want to learn about the different jobs involving working with animals.

A few years ago, such jobs included becoming a veterinarian, trainer, a wildlife researcher, and a wildlife photographer. As the awareness regarding this topic grew, more and more avenues related to such jobs were thrown open. Some of the good careers that involve working with animals are listed below.

Most of the time, people looking for such jobs are not very concerned about the money they earn. However, one has to make a living and live decently in today's world of high inflation. There are few high paying jobs that not only offer you a mode of living, but also high job satisfaction and excitement.

A veterinarian is an animal doctor. It is one of the well paying jobs. More and more pet owners are concerned with pet care more often than before and visit veterinarians for help. Not only does a private veterinarian practice a flourishing job, there are other avenues too available.

You can either be appointed as a veterinarian for a zoo, a ranch, sporting groups, and even in laboratories for research. To be come a veterinarian, you need to earn a post bachelor's degree in Doctor of Veterinary Medicine.

Once you graduate from a veterinary medicine school, you will be taking an exam that will help you earn your license to practice. The salary is about USD 96,449 per annum.

Like all doctors, veterinarians cannot work single-handedly. They need the help of a trained and experienced person to assist them on the job. This calls for a veterinarian technician. You need to have an associate degree and pass a licensing exam. A veterinary technician salary is about USD 31,544 per annum.

Veterinarian pathologists are trained in studying diseases, and their causes and development. Their job profile is the same as a normal pathologist. They help the veterinarian diagnose the diseases and choose the correct line of treatment. The median salary for a veterinarian pathologist is about USD 85,711 per annum.

Pet sitters or exercisers can either work part-time or full-time. You need to take the pets for grooming sessions, training classes, visits to a doctor, etc. It also involves pet care and baby-sitting pets when owners are out or have gone for a vacation. This is a job full of responsibility, as you need to care for pets that belong to others.

High work ethics, patience, and love for the pet are the requirements. You need to have flexible working hours, as you maybe required to undertake the job anytime during the day. The annual salary for a single person (as a pet sitter) is about USD 30,803. Those having a large pet sitting business earn about USD $100,000 and even more.

Other similar jobs include the following:

• Research Veterinarian
• Physical Therapist
• Chiropractor
• Welfare
• Behaviorist
• Breeders
• Trainers
• Canine Welfare Technician
• Jobs in Herpetology
• Jobs with Horses
• Dog Groomer

• Dog Handlers
• Dog Obedience Trainer
• Horse Trainers
• Horse Racing Jockey
• Jobs in Primatology
• Professional Farrier
• Range Managers
• Shearer
• Stable Lad
• Pet Shop Owner
• Petting Zoo Owner

It's not just the domestic ones, which require love and care, but also the wild animals. There are many fulfilling jobs working with wild animals that require dedication as well as courage. One needs courage, because after all, they are wild, like lions, bears, elephants, wolves, giraffes, zebras, etc. If you are a true enthusiast and want to do something for our friends in the jungle, then have a look at the list below.

Zoo keepers are those who work and care for the creatures living in the zoo. They need to take care about their feeding, cleaning up, and understand any changes in their behavior. They should have enough knowledge about them. They should also be able to explain about their different habitats and behavior patterns to the visitors. A trainee's salary is about USD 28,000 per year. Those with some experience can earn about USD 40,000 per year.

Wildlife biologists are those who study wild animals and their environment. They may study them in private laboratories, universities, or they may work on the field. They are experts who specialize in one particular species, like a bird, animal, reptile, or fish. To become a wildlife biologist or zoologist, one needs to study a lot and earn many degrees.

One may need to spend 10 years in advanced schools and maybe even earn a Ph. D. The median annual salary of wildlife biologists and zoologists is about USD 73,537 or more.

Other jobs related to this field include:

• Conservation Officer
• Forestry/Park Ranger
• Environmental Chemistry
• Ecologist
• Cooperative Extension Agent
• Interpretive Naturalist
• Fish Farming
• Environmental Management

• Natural Resources Management
• Wildlife Rehabilitator
• Zoo and Aquarium Jobs
• Zoological Park Jobs
• Zoological Scientist
• Game Warden
• Gamekeeper
• Wildlife Conservation
• Fish and Game Wardens
• Fish and Wildlife Management

If you love being outdoors, work in all types of weather, even on weekends, nights, and even holidays, then you might want to consider jobs with the marine organisms. There are many jobs in this field, some of which need a 4 year college degree and/or specialization degree.

Marine and freshwater biologists need to work with animals and plants of the rivers, lakes, and the sea. Their job description includes rescue and rehabilitation of marine organisms that are either stranded, injured, or sick. A freshwater or marine biologists salary, who has a work experience of over 5 years is about USD 78,355.

Those who work in a freshwater and marine aquarium setups are called aquarists. They need to feed the fish, monitor their health, water quality, and set up the tanks for exhibition for public, and also observe their behavior in the aquariums. Experienced aquarists earn about USD 31,823 per year.

Those who study and research about reptiles and amphibians are called herpetologists. A herpetologist needs to work with turtles, frogs, snakes, lizards, etc. The salary range for a herpetologist is about USD 18,000 to USD 80,000, depending upon the work setup. They may work with museums, zoos, wildlife management, professors, etc.

Other related jobs are::

• Aquarium Supervisor
• Curator
• Naturalists
• Marine Mammal Trainers
• Water Quality Technicians
• Marine educator
• Marine filmmaker
• Marine photographer
• Ecotourism guide
• Park ranger
• Beach superintendent
• Maritime or environmental lawyer

• Coastal or ocean policy experts
• Aquavet (veterinarians who specialize in marine or aquatic organisms)
• Marine archaeologist
• Marine historian
• Aquaculturist hatchery specialist
• Landscape or maritime architect
• Marine botanist

These jobs involve working with feral creatures native to other countries. If you wish to have this kind of a job, then the options available include working as a zoo keeper, veterinarian, and trainer. As a trainer, one needs to train the animals to perform in front of large groups. You need to have a lot of patience and perseverance while training. They are, after all, wild and feral, and may also be dangerous.

Some of them include creatures, like dolphins, gorillas, chimpanzees, lions, tigers, etc. You may be employed by zoos and rehabilitation centers. Trainers are also in demand by movie makers. They need to train dogs, cats, horses, monkeys, chimpanzees, lions, elephants, etc. for movies. Apart from training, one may need to control cobras, pythons, crocodiles, etc. The median annual salary for this job may be about USD 17,460 to USD 28,420 and more.

There are many more different jobs in this field, which you can choose. Hope the above paragraphs have helped you find some options for yourself.