About Veterinary Medicine and Animal Care Workers

Key points

  • Veterinary medicine and animal care workers are exposed to a wide variety of environments and species of animals based on their specialization.
  • Workers are exposed to a variety of biological, chemical, physical, and psychological hazards depending on their workplace setting, types of animals, and types of tasks.
  • NIOSH's Healthcare and Social Assistance Sector Program is working to identify and address priority hazards of these workers.
Veterinarian examining X-ray of dog on computer at desk. Credit: Morsa Images, Getty Images

Overview

A mini–Australian Shepherd dog being examined by a female veterinarian wearing magenta scrubs.
Dog being examined by a veterinarian. Image credit, MrVito, Getty Images

Veterinary medicine and animal care workers provide medical, surgical, laboratory, preventive health, and animal care services for a variety of animal species including routine care and disaster and emergency response. The industry covers a wide range of professionals, including veterinarians, veterinary technologists, technicians, assistants, and administrative staff, as well as laboratory veterinarians and animal caretakers. It also includes zoo and aquarium employees, such as animal caretakers and groundskeepers, workers in animal shelters and animal control, stable and kennel attendants, groomers, animal trainers, meat and poultry processing staff, and employees in pet and pet supply stores.

In the United States, there are more than 596,000 veterinary medicine and animal care workers, including 89,500 veterinarians, 122,900 veterinary technologists and technicians, 114,800 veterinary assistants and laboratory animal caretakers, and 268,830 non-farm animal caretakers.[1, 2, 3, 4]

Many veterinary medical workers are female, including 69% of veterinarians, 90% of veterinary technicians, and 80% of veterinary assistants and laboratory animal workers.1 Veterinary services ranks fourth in incidence rates for nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses among all industries.2

Why does NIOSH include Veterinary Medicine and Animal Care Workers in the Healthcare and Social Assistance Industry Sector? ‎

Because of the many similarities between human and animal healthcare, the Healthcare and Social Assistance Industry Sector includes workers engaged in veterinary medicine and animal care in settings other than food production. Examples of industries that employ these workers include veterinary services, pet care services, zoos and botanical gardens, academic institutions, pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, and others.

Resources

National Association of State Public Health Veterinarians (NASPHV)

American Veterinary Medical Association

The Center for Food Security and Public Health, Iowa State University

Print
Content Source:
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
  1. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) [2023]. Table SNR01. Highest incidence rates of total nonfatal occupational injury and illness cases, 2022. Available at: https://www.bls.gov/iif/nonfatal-injuries-and-illnesses-tables.htm. Date accessed: July 31, 2024.
  2. BLS [2023]. Labor Force Statistics from the Current Population Survey. Household Data Annual Averages. Table 11. Employed persons by detailed occupation, sex, race and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity. Available at: https://www.bls.gov/cps/cpsaat11.htm. Date accessed: July 31, 2024.