How To Become A Kennel Attendant: What It Is and Career Path

What is a kennel attendant and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

The role of a Kennel Attendant, also known as a Kennel Assistant, as the name implies, is to provide care, such as food, warmth, and water, to animals found in shelters and veterinary clinics and centers.

Their tasks might range from simple ones to more complicated ones. They often transport animals from one kennel to another, check on animals regularly, clean up around the kennel and the center, providing company to these animals so that they do not feel mistreated or lonely, and reporting on the animals' health and state, should any change occur, to higher management or the local veterinarian.

A prospect in this field should have a high school diploma or a GED. Prior experience with animals and animal care is always preferred but not necessarily a must. Strong organizational skills and a strong passion for animal welfare are key to doing well in this position.

ScoreKennel AttendantUS Average

Salary

2.1

Avg. Salary $26,373

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability Level

6.7

Growth Rate 28%

Growth Rate 0.3%

Diversity

1.1

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.48%

Asian 2.66%

Black or African American 4.38%

Hispanic or Latino 18.24%

Unknown 6.41%

White 67.84%

Gender

female 79.21%

male 20.79%

Age - 29

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 29

Stress Level

6.7

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity Level

8.0

Complexity Level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work Life Balance

8.1

Work Life balance is good

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a kennel attendant

Explore kennel attendant education requirements

Most common kennel attendant degrees

High School Diploma

37.5 %

Bachelor's

31.4 %

Associate

19.9 %

Start to develop specific kennel attendant skills

Skills	Percentages
PET	39.34%
Animal Handling	10.34%
Facility Laundry	7.57%
Animal Hospital	5.26%
Animal Restraint	4.24%

Complete relevant kennel attendant training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New kennel attendants learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a kennel attendant based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real kennel attendant resumes.

Research kennel attendant duties and responsibilities

Assist in managing shelter for animals and arranging for adoption or euthanasia of confiscate animals.
Train to give dogs baths, brushing out coats, scissoring, and toenails.
Perform animal grooming duties such as washing, brushing, clipping, and trimming coats, etc.
Experience in the use of specialize equipment such as cage washers, autoclaves and animal transport vehicles.

Prepare your kennel attendant resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your kennel attendant resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a kennel attendant resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose From 10+ Customizable Kennel Attendant Resume templates

Build a professional Kennel Attendant resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your Kennel Attendant resume.

Apply for kennel attendant jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a kennel attendant job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do kennel attendants rate their job?

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Kennel Attendant reviews

A zippia user wrote a review on Dec 2019

Cons

There nothing about this job I dont like .