Veterinary Assistant (Vet Assistant) job description

Holding an animal still while the veterinarian works is the task O*NET rates highest for this job. Veterinary assistants handle the routine care in a clinic, from feeding and cleaning to monitoring animals after surgery. BLS counts them on one line with laboratory animal caretakers, who do similar work in research settings. That shared line had a median of $38,150 in May 2025, or $18.34 an hour. Inside veterinary services, where 86 percent of these jobs are, the median was $37,930. Colleges and universities paid more, at $47,860, but employ far fewer.

Core Duties and Responsibilities

Restraint comes first, then watching animals recover from surgery and telling the veterinarian about any change. Assistants fill medication prescriptions and clean kennels, holding areas, and exam and operating rooms to stop disease spreading. They look for behavioral changes that could mean illness, run routine lab tests and x-rays, collect blood, urine, and fecal samples, and give medications and vaccinations a veterinarian has prescribed. In surgery they prepare the equipment and pass instruments. Many also cover the front desk, scheduling appointments and helping clients, and keep records of feeding, behavior, and breeding.

Common Skills and Technologies

Among skills, active listening rates highest, with critical thinking, monitoring, and service orientation after it. The Handbook adds the physical side: the strength to lift and restrain animals, and care with sterilizing equipment and measuring doses. Like technicians, assistants work in one of the higher-injury occupations, because frightened animals bite and scratch. Postings name Microsoft Office tools, and the job also runs on scheduling, label-making, and medical software.

Education, Training, and Career Path

Job Zone Two. In O*NET's requirement survey, about 78 percent of answers named a high school diploma, and 11 percent a postsecondary certificate. Training is short-term and on the job, and the Handbook notes that experience around animals helps. Certification is optional. The National Association of Veterinary Technicians in America runs an Approved Veterinary Assistant program for those who want one. Reported titles include kennel veterinary assistant, inpatient technician assistant, and research animal attendant. The usual next step is veterinary technician, which takes an accredited program and a credentialing exam. The Handbook projects about 23,200 openings a year from 2025 to 2035.

Sources: O*NET 30.0, 31-9096.00 Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers, https://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/31-9096.00. BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, 31-9096, https://www.bls.gov/oes/tables.htm. BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers, https://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/veterinary-assistants-and-laboratory-animal-caretakers.htm.