Find Your Dream Job
Animal Control Workers
Handle animals for the purpose of investigations of mistreatment, or control of abandoned, dangerous, or unattended animals.
Also Known As:
ACO (Animal Control Officer)
Animal Attendant
Animal Cruelty Investigator
Animal Enforcement Officer
Animal Instructor Officer
Animal Ordinance Enforcement Officer
Animal Park Code Enforcement Officer
Animal Safety Officer
Animal Services Officer
Community Service Officer
Wages
Annual wages for Animal Control Workers in United States
Job Outlook
Average
New job opportunities are likely in the future
United States
2033 Projected Employment
12,600
5% Change From 2023
Explore Animal Control Workers video
Tasks you might complete in a day.
- Write reports of activities, and maintain files of impoundments and dispositions of animals.
- Clean facilities and equipment such as dog pens and animal control trucks.
- Investigate reports of animal attacks or animal cruelty, interviewing witnesses, collecting evidence, and writing reports.
- Organize the adoption of unclaimed animals.
- Euthanize rabid, unclaimed, or severely injured animals.
- Examine animals for injuries or malnutrition, and arrange for any necessary medical treatment.
- Write reports of activities, and maintain files of impoundments and dispositions of animals.
- Remove captured animals from animal-control service vehicles and place animals in shelter cages or other enclosures.
- Prepare for prosecutions related to animal treatment, and give evidence in court.
- Investigate reports of animal attacks or animal cruelty, interviewing witnesses, collecting evidence, and writing reports.
- Issue warnings or citations in connection with animal-related offenses, or contact police to report violations and request arrests.
- Train police officers in dog handling and training techniques for tracking, crowd control, and narcotics and bomb detection.
- Supply animals with food, water, and personal care.
- Train police officers in dog handling and training techniques for tracking, crowd control, and narcotics and bomb detection.
- Capture and remove stray, uncontrolled, or abused animals from undesirable conditions, using nets, nooses, or tranquilizer darts as necessary.
- Examine animal licenses, and inspect establishments housing animals for compliance with laws.
- Contact animal owners to inform them that their pets are at animal holding facilities.
- Answer inquiries from the public concerning animal control operations.
- Educate the public about animal welfare, and animal control laws and regulations.
- Issue warnings or citations in connection with animal-related offenses, or contact police to report violations and request arrests.
- Capture and remove stray, uncontrolled, or abused animals from undesirable conditions, using nets, nooses, or tranquilizer darts as necessary.
- Investigate reports of animal attacks or animal cruelty, interviewing witnesses, collecting evidence, and writing reports.
- Examine animal licenses, and inspect establishments housing animals for compliance with laws.
Subject areas you may need to master.
- Economics and Accounting - Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
- Administrative - Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
- Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
- Food Production - Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
- Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
- Building and Construction - Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
- Sales and Marketing - Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
- Fine Arts - Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
- Transportation - Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
- Personnel and Human Resources - Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
- Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
- Communications and Media - Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
- Geography - Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
- History and Archeology - Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
- Sociology and Anthropology - Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
- English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
- Telecommunications - Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
- Philosophy and Theology - Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
- Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
- Production and Processing - Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
- Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
- Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
- Mechanical - Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
- Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
- Therapy and Counseling - Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
- Public Safety and Security - Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
- Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
- Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
- Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
- Physics - Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
- Chemistry - Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
- Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
- Foreign Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
Strengths you may need in this role.
- Critical Thinking - Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
- Learning Strategies - Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
- Active Listening - Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
- Quality Control Analysis - Testing how well a product or service works.
- Writing - Writing things for co-workers or customers.
- Coordination - Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
- Negotiation - Bringing people together to solve differences.
- Instructing - Teaching people how to do something.
- Complex Problem Solving - Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
- Monitoring - Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
- Management of Financial Resources - Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
- Active Learning - Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
- Systems Evaluation - Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
- Management of Personnel Resources - Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
- Installation - Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
- Service Orientation - Looking for ways to help people.
- Technology Design - Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
- Management of Material Resources - Managing equipment and materials.
- Speaking - Talking to others.
- Science - Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
- Judgment and Decision Making - Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
- Operations Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
- Systems Analysis - Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
- Mathematics - Using math to solve problems.
- Programming - Writing computer programs.
- Equipment Selection - Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
- Repairing - Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
- Equipment Maintenance - Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
- Time Management - Managing your time and the time of other people.
- Reading Comprehension - Reading work-related information.
- Operation and Control - Using equipment or systems.
- Social Perceptiveness - Understanding people's reactions.
- Persuasion - Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
- Operations Analysis - Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
- Troubleshooting - Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
- Peripheral Vision - Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
- Control Precision - Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
- Inductive Reasoning - Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
- Explosive Strength - Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
- Written Expression - Communicating by writing.
- Speech Recognition - Recognizing spoken words.
- Extent Flexibility - Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Dynamic Flexibility - Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Night Vision - Seeing at night or under low light.
- Gross Body Equilibrium - Keeping your balance or staying upright.
- Dynamic Strength - Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
- Fluency of Ideas - Coming up with lots of ideas.
- Oral Expression - Communicating by speaking.
- Sound Localization - Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
- Auditory Attention - Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
- Depth Perception - Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
- Number Facility - Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
- Visualization - Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
- Originality - Creating new and original ideas.
- Category Flexibility - Grouping things in different ways.
- Wrist-Finger Speed - Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
- Stamina - Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
- Deductive Reasoning - Using rules to solve problems.
- Selective Attention - Paying attention to something without being distracted.
- Time Sharing - Doing two or more things at the same time.
- Trunk Strength - Using your lower back and stomach.
- Hearing Sensitivity - Telling the difference between sounds.
- Information Ordering - Ordering or arranging things.
- Arm-Hand Steadiness - Keeping your arm or hand steady.
- Manual Dexterity - Holding or moving items with your hands.
- Visual Color Discrimination - Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
- Gross Body Coordination - Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
- Problem Sensitivity - Noticing when problems happen.
- Static Strength - Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
- Mathematical Reasoning - Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
- Spatial Orientation - Knowing where things are around you.
- Finger Dexterity - Putting together small parts with your fingers.
- Perceptual Speed - Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
- Reaction Time - Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
- Speed of Limb Movement - Quickly moving your arms and legs.
- Memorization - Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
- Multilimb Coordination - Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
- Speech Clarity - Speaking clearly.
- Written Comprehension - Reading and understanding what is written.
- Oral Comprehension - Listening and understanding what people say.
- Near Vision - Seeing details up close.
- Glare Sensitivity - Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
- Far Vision - Seeing details that are far away.
- Flexibility of Closure - Seeing hidden patterns.
- Rate Control - Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
- Speed of Closure - Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
- Response Orientation - Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
Average Education Attained
Highest level of education earned by people in this career.
Career Coaching
Need a guide to help you on your career journey or to prepare for your next interview?
You May Also Be Interested In
Content sourced from United States Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration ("DOLETA") and the Minnesota Department of Employment & Economic Development ("DEED")