Animal Trainer Job Description, Skills, and Salary
Get to know about the duties, responsibilities, qualifications, and skills requirements of an animal trainer. Feel free to use our animal trainer job description template to produce your own. We also provide you with information about the salary you can earn as an animal trainer.
Who is an Animal Trainer?
The act of teaching animals precise behaviors to specified conditions or stimuli is known as animal training. Companionship, detection, protection, and amusement may all be reasons for training. The manipulation of behavior is what animal training is all about. Behavior is the measure of the training technique, not the tool with which the animal is trained: if the animal’s behavior changes, then learning has occurred. Animals can only be trained to perform tasks that are physically possible for them.
Animal trainers assist animals in learning to do certain tasks or refrain from engaging in unwanted habits. Animal trainers will work closely with animals, observing their behavior and physical condition, as well as their owners or handlers, to define expectations and discuss the animal’s development. Animal trainers work with animals one-on-one and often reward them when they do well. The animal learns that if they behave in a certain way, they will be rewarded with positive reinforcement and a treat, and as a result, they will be more inclined to obey a command. Animal trainers train animals to become acclimated to human interaction in order for them to respond to specific directions and behave in a specific manner. Protection, detection, companionship, or amusement may all be reasons for training. Service animals, family pets, and show animals can all be trained by animal trainers.
Animal trainers prepare animals for a variety of purposes, including obedience, performance, riding, security, and assisting people with impairments. They acclimate animals to human speech and touch, as well as teach them to obey directions. The majority of animal trainers work with dogs and horses, but some also work with dolphins and other marine creatures. Trainers instruct on a wide range of abilities. Some people train dogs to assist people with disabilities, while others teach animals to work with veterinarians or train animals for a competition or exhibition.
Whether it’s for a search and rescue mission, therapeutic horseback riding, shows, or simply educating a puppy not to jump up on guests, professional animal trainers teach animals new habits. Birds, monkeys, and, most commonly, dogs, can be trained to assist deaf, blind, or mobility-impaired people. Animal trainers employ a variety of methods, but the most basic is to reward correct behavior with food or praise. A passion for animals may lead you to this career path, but patience and solid communication skills, as well as the desire to manage the less glamorous aspects of animal care and upkeep, are required. Working with large animals, in particular, can be physically demanding. Apprenticeships or vocational training programs may be used to enter this field.
A bachelor’s degree and specific abilities such as SCUBA diving may be required for more exotic occupations in venues such as movies or television, zoos, and research centers. In general, the remuneration is poor. To augment their income, many trainers work at kennels, stables, and grooming facilities.
Animal Trainer Job Description
Below are the animal trainer job description examples you can use to develop your resume or write an animal trainer job description for your employee. Employers can also use it to sieve out job seekers when choosing candidates for interviews.
As seen in many advertisements, animal trainer responsibilities can vary substantially and are dependent on factors such as the type of business and animal. The following are the responsibilities of an animal trainer and the specific fields they are practised:
- Keep dogs safe and help them learn manners.
- Coach, encourage, and motivate dogs and pet parents.
- Perform daily care and behavioral conditioning of pinnipeds.
- Educate volunteers, adopters, and the community on dog behavior and training.
- Work with other staff on post-adoption difficulties with training class pupils.
- Assist with animal care and backstage responsibilities at an animal entertainment production firm.
- Speak with animals owners to determine their goals and expectations of animal owners or trainers.
- Increase the knowledge of an Animal trainer on animal behavior as a teacher
- Create animal training regimens.
- Watch animals for health and behavioral issues.
- Learn about animals’ special abilities.
- Fed and medicate animals
- Use positive reinforcement and other strategies to induce desired animal behavior.
- Keep other parties informed about the animals’ progress and condition.
- Educate others about animals, their behavior, training, and the environment.
- Acclimatize animals to human sounds.
Qualifications
A high school diploma or general equivalency diploma is normally required to work as an animal trainer (GED). In other circumstances, however, a bachelor’s degree is required. A bachelor’s degree in biology, marine biology, animal science, or a similar discipline, for example, is required of a marine mammal trainer. To put it another way, the majority of animal care and service worker jobs demand a high school graduation or equivalent. On-the-job training is used by the majority of animal care and service personnel.
The requirements for becoming an animal trainer are mostly determined by the sort of animal you will be training. A high school graduation and some post-secondary school or training is required if you are training assistance dogs, show animals, horses, or animals that perform in movies. You should also have a lot of experience with the animals you’ll be working with. Animal trainers frequently begin their careers in animal shelters or horse stables. A bachelor’s degree in a topic like marine biology or animal science is usually required to train marine mammals.
Despite the fact that licenses and certifications are not needed by law, they may assist workers in establishing their credentials and improving their abilities. Dog trainers can be certified by a number of professional groups as well as hundreds of private vocational and state-approved trade schools.
Essential Skills
To be successful as an animal trainer, you will need the following soft talents or personality traits:
- Knowledge of animal care and behavior is extensive.
- Presentation, interpersonal, listening, and communication abilities are all excellent.
- Patience and outstanding teaching abilities are required.
- Exceptional record-keeping abilities.
- Problem-solving talents are exceptional.
- Interpersonal Skills: While your employer will require you to train animals, you will also have to work with their owners. Your ability to get along with people will be quite beneficial to you. Patience and compassion must be among your interpersonal skills. Not only must you be able to coach your animal clients, but you must also be able to instruct the individuals who look after them.
- Problem-Solving: The capacity to recognize difficulties and come up with solutions is an essential skill.
- Physical stamina: Animal trainers must be able to bend, lift, and kneel on a regular basis, and you must have the stamina to perform all three.
- Listening: It is critical that you are able to listen to and comprehend the needs of your human clients.
- Ability to observe and pay attention to details: When working with animals, you’ll require great observation abilities because they can’t tell you how they’re doing vocally.
Employers may also look for talents such as:
- The ability to motivate and inspire oneself and others.
- Possessing an optimistic, can-do attitude.
- Strong teamwork abilities.
- An animal trainer must be able to complete tasks on or before the deadline. To finish many jobs on or before a deadline, you must be able to create goals, prioritize, and provide feedback to others.
- Excellent time management and organization skills.
How to Become an Animal Trainer
Taking lessons in theatre or public speaking can be beneficial for those who want to train animals for people’s pleasure. While a degree is not always required, it can be a significant benefit when it comes to getting recruited for a job. Being recruited also requires extensive experience working with animals, so volunteering and working with animals while attending school is a wonderful way to gain expertise.
Veterinary assistants, laboratory animal caretakers, farmers, ranchers, and other agricultural managers are all options for anyone interested in becoming an animal trainer. Only high school graduation or equivalent is required for these occupations, which involve caring for animals in an animal hospital, veterinarian’s office, laboratory, or on a farm. Veterinary technologists and technicians also provide care for animals while assisting veterinarians with medical testing and examinations. These occupations, however, necessitate at least an associate’s degree.
Animal training education varies based on the type of animal you want to work with. A degree in zoology, marine biology, animal sciences, or a related discipline is often recommended for persons interested in working with exotic or marine creatures. As a result, if you want to work as an aquarium or zoo trainer, your training needs may be more severe. A bachelor’s degree in animal science, marine biology, animal behavior, or a similar discipline is required by many of these employers. To become an animal trainer, you don’t have to stick to a single, set path. Getting a lot of experience with your chosen species under the guidance of a seasoned trainer is crucial. Although most occupations require high school graduation, the type of training you receive may be determined by the animals you choose to train. Working as a groom in a stable is a common way for prospective equestrian trainers to obtain experience. Volunteering at animal shelters and attending training courses are two options for aspiring pet trainers. You may take coursework in ecology, mathematics, chemistry, molecular biology, physics, and zoology as a student in one of these programs, in addition to areas pertinent to your specific program of study.
Step 1: Get formal training
While there are few formal degree programs for animal trainers, associate’s degree or bachelor’s degree programs in veterinary technology or animal science can offer you a foundation in biology, animal behavior, and animal nutrition. Animal training can benefit from zoology, zookeeping, wildlife management, and behavioral psychology courses.
Veterinary technology programs typically contain courses in animal anatomy, small animal management, and animal diseases and treatment to prepare you to help veterinarians. Animal breeding, animal genetics, and animal growth and development are all topics covered in animal science classes. In agriculturally oriented schools, lab classes allow you to deal with livestock such as goats, sheep, horses, cows, and pigs.
Step 2: Enroll in a training program for apprenticeship
Apprenticeships as an animal trainer vary depending on the animal. Courses, workshops, and other programs for dog trainers are available at colleges, vocational institutions, and professional organizations. As a future horse trainer, you can get your education at stables or through private equestrian and riding schools. Zoos may have prospects for you if you desire to work with aquatic animals.
Step 3: Look for a Job
Equine stables, marine parks, race tracks, circuses, animal shelters, kennels, and zoos are just a few of the places where you can work. Animal trainers employed roughly 60,200 individuals in 2020, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Between 2020 and 2030, employment is expected to expand by 28%, which is substantially faster than the national average for all occupations.
Step 4: Obtain Certification
Obtaining the certification could lead to more job options and higher pay. The Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers, for example, awards the Certified Professional Dog Trainer – Knowledge Assessed (CPDT-KA) certificate to trainers who have completed 300 hours of training in the last five years, with 225 hours as a head trainer or teacher. The exam comprises of 250 multiple-choice questions that assess your understanding of animal husbandry, learning theory, and business ethics.
Step 5: Become a member of a professional organization
Joining a professional group shows prospective employers and consumers that you are dedicated and professional. Professional organizations serve as meeting places for professionals. Professional organizations offer opportunities for professional development and education. If you teach dolphins, dogs, or horses, the International Marine Animal Trainers’ Association, the Association of Animal Behavior Professionals, and the National Trainers Association are all good choices.
Where to Work as an Animal Trainer
Kennels, aquariums, animal shelters, and animal rescue organizations employ animal trainers. They could also work on a zoo, aquarium, circus, research facility, or film set. Animal trainers must be patient and have a good understanding of how to communicate and react to the animals they work with. Animal trainers that work with aquatic species must be physically fit, have good swimming skills, and have scuba diving training. Self-employed animal trainers account for around a quarter of all animal trainers. According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), animal trainers employed by municipal governments earned the highest yearly wages in 2020. You could work as an animal trainer in animal shelters, circuses, aquariums, horse farms, or zoos. The average yearly income for this profession was $37,950 as of May 2020, according to the BLS.
Animal Trainer Salary Scale
Animal trainers make more than $22,230 per year ($10.69 per hour). Animal trainers made a median yearly compensation of $28,880 in 2017.
In Nigeria, a person working as an Animal Trainer earns roughly 167,000 NGN per month on average. Salaries range from 80,000 NGN to 262,000 NGN (lowest to highest) (highest).
This is the monthly average pay, which includes housing, transportation, and other benefits. Salary for Animal Trainers varies greatly depending on experience, skills, gender, and region.