Different Jobs Working With Animals

Whether you want to walk a dog or train a dolphin, there are numerous careers for those who want to work with animals. Many jobs entail animals to some degree, which includes working with live animals, animal products or dead animals. These careers can be very rewarding and provide an opportunity to interact with the wide variety of species on the planet.

  1. Classic Animal Jobs

    • Traditional jobs that work with animals include veterinarians, farmers, pet supply retailers and zoo workers. Farming ranges from raising cows for food, shearing sheep for wool or owning a chicken coop to collect eggs. In some places, getting into veterinary school can be just as competitive as getting into medical school, and the curriculum for these schools includes courses, internships and a residency in some cases. Pet supply retailers are a first step, if you want to see how you'd fare in a job working with animals. Zoo workers typically need experience working with animals prior to application.

    Animal Training Jobs

    • Training jobs may require you to work with domestic or exotic animals. Many zoos offer training programs for this career track. Keep in mind that training animals involves teaching them to do certain things, but it also involves teaching them discipline. If you find that you sympathize with animals too much, punishing them may become increasingly difficult.

    Animal Research

    • Research jobs may require you to work with dead animals. These jobs often take place in a laboratory and involve testing animals for diseases, disorders, dietary concerns or cause of death. These jobs may be very rewarding, and are crucial to studying and prolonging the existence of certain animal species in the wild. These types of jobs can also yield findings that may help humans in the medical field.

    Wild Jobs

    • If you want to work with animals in a wild, seemingly uncontrolled environment, then you may want to think outside the cage. Ecologists, nature preservationists, biologists, wildlife preservation officers, park rangers and wildlife rehabilitators work in the wild with animal populations for a variety of reasons, whether it is to study, research, observe, control or educate.