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Date: 04/22/2025

Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers

Feed, water, and examine pets and other nonfarm animals for signs of illness, disease, or injury in laboratories and animal hospitals and clinics. Clean and disinfect cages and work areas, and sterilize laboratory and surgical equipment. May provide routine postoperative care, administer medication orally or topically, or prepare samples for laboratory examination under the supervision of veterinary or laboratory animal technologists or technicians, veterinarians, or scientists.

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    Work Activities

    Work Activities

    • Prepare feed for animals according to specific instructions, such as diet lists or schedules.
    • Clean, maintain, and sterilize instruments or equipment.
    • Educate or advise clients on animal health care, nutrition, or behavior problems.
    • Prepare examination or treatment rooms by stocking them with appropriate supplies.
    • Clean and maintain kennels, animal holding areas, examination or operating rooms, or animal loading or unloading facilities to control the spread of disease.
    • Administer anesthetics during surgery and monitor the effects on animals.
    • Perform office reception duties, such as scheduling appointments or helping customers.
    • Clean, maintain, and sterilize instruments or equipment.
    • Prepare surgical equipment and pass instruments or materials to veterinarians during surgical procedures.
    • Provide emergency first aid to sick or injured animals.
    • Perform accounting duties, such as bookkeeping, billing customers for services, or maintaining inventories.
    • Place orders to restock inventory of hospital or laboratory supplies.
    • Hold or restrain animals during veterinary procedures.
    • Perform office reception duties, such as scheduling appointments or helping customers.
    • Perform hygiene-related duties, such as clipping animals' claws or cleaning and polishing teeth.
    • Record information relating to animal genealogy, feeding schedules, appearance, behavior, or breeding.
    • Collect laboratory specimens, such as blood, urine, or feces, for testing.
    • Provide assistance with euthanasia of animals or disposal of corpses.
    • Dust, spray, or bathe animals to control insect pests.
    • Prepare surgical equipment and pass instruments or materials to veterinarians during surgical procedures.
    • Assist veterinarians in examining animals to determine the nature of illnesses or injuries.
    • Sell pet food or supplies to customers.
    • Provide assistance with euthanasia of animals or disposal of corpses.
    • Examine animals to detect behavioral changes or clinical symptoms that could indicate illness or injury.
    • Exercise animals or provide them with companionship.
    • Administer medication, immunizations, or blood plasma to animals as prescribed by veterinarians.
    • Fill medication prescriptions.
    • Write reports, maintain research information, or perform clerical duties.
    • Groom, trim, or clip animals' coats.
    • Write reports, maintain research information, or perform clerical duties.
    • Monitor animals recovering from surgery and notify veterinarians of any unusual changes or symptoms.
    • Perform enemas, catheterizations, ear flushes, intravenous feedings, or gavages.
    • Administer anesthetics during surgery and monitor the effects on animals.
    • Perform routine laboratory tests or diagnostic tests, such as taking or developing x-rays.
    • Prepare examination or treatment rooms by stocking them with appropriate supplies.
    • Perform accounting duties, such as bookkeeping, billing customers for services, or maintaining inventories.

    Skills

    • Operation and Control

      Using equipment or systems.

    • Operations Monitoring

      Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.

    • Programming

      Writing computer programs.

    • Quality Control Analysis

      Testing how well a product or service works.

    • Repairing

      Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.

    • Monitoring

      Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.

    • Social Perceptiveness

      Understanding people's reactions.

    • Equipment Maintenance

      Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.

    • Troubleshooting

      Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.

    • Management of Material Resources

      Managing equipment and materials.

    • 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.

    • Instructing

      Teaching people how to do something.

    • Learning Strategies

      Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.

    • Persuasion

      Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.

    • Technology Design

      Making equipment and technology useful for customers.

    • Equipment Selection

      Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.

    • Critical Thinking

      Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.

    • Judgment and Decision Making

      Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.

    • Time Management

      Managing your time and the time of other people.

    • Installation

      Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.

    • Negotiation

      Bringing people together to solve differences.

    • Reading Comprehension

      Reading work-related information.

    • Speaking

      Talking to others.

    • Operations Analysis

      Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.

    • Service Orientation

      Looking for ways to help people.

    • Writing

      Writing things for co-workers or customers.

    • Active Listening

      Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.

    • Coordination

      Changing what is done based on other people's actions.

    • Mathematics

      Using math to solve problems.

    • Management of Financial Resources

      Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.

    • Complex Problem Solving

      Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.

    • Systems Analysis

      Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.

    • Science

      Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.

    • Management of Personnel Resources

      Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.

    WorkKeys®

    Applied Math
    3
    Workplace Documents
    4
    Graphic Literacy
    3

    Abilities

    • Problem Sensitivity

      Noticing when problems happen.

    • Manual Dexterity

      Holding or moving items with your hands.

    • Written Comprehension

      Reading and understanding what is written.

    • Originality

      Creating new and original ideas.

    • Time Sharing

      Doing two or more things at the same time.

    • Dynamic Flexibility

      Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.

    • Extent Flexibility

      Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.

    • Memorization

      Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.

    • Written Expression

      Communicating by writing.

    • Gross Body Equilibrium

      Keeping your balance or staying upright.

    • Peripheral Vision

      Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.

    • Depth Perception

      Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.

    • Hearing Sensitivity

      Telling the difference between sounds.

    • Rate Control

      Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.

    • Category Flexibility

      Grouping things in different ways.

    • Mathematical Reasoning

      Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.

    • Information Ordering

      Ordering or arranging things.

    • Perceptual Speed

      Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.

    • Number Facility

      Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.

    • Far Vision

      Seeing details that are far away.

    • Visualization

      Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.

    • Dynamic Strength

      Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.

    • Control Precision

      Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.

    • Wrist-Finger Speed

      Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.

    • Response Orientation

      Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.

    • Spatial Orientation

      Knowing where things are around you.

    • Deductive Reasoning

      Using rules to solve problems.

    • Stamina

      Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.

    • Visual Color Discrimination

      Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.

    • Flexibility of Closure

      Seeing hidden patterns.

    • Selective Attention

      Paying attention to something without being distracted.

    • Inductive Reasoning

      Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.

    • Fluency of Ideas

      Coming up with lots of ideas.

    • Speech Clarity

      Speaking clearly.

    • Gross Body Coordination

      Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.

    • Explosive Strength

      Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.

    • Near Vision

      Seeing details up close.

    • Trunk Strength

      Using your lower back and stomach.

    • Reaction Time

      Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.

    • Speed of Closure

      Quickly knowing what you are looking at.

    • Arm-Hand Steadiness

      Keeping your arm or hand steady.

    • Oral Comprehension

      Listening and understanding what people say.

    • Finger Dexterity

      Putting together small parts with your fingers.

    • Oral Expression

      Communicating by speaking.

    • Glare Sensitivity

      Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.

    • Night Vision

      Seeing at night or under low light.

    • Speech Recognition

      Recognizing spoken words.

    • Speed of Limb Movement

      Quickly moving your arms and legs.

    • Static Strength

      Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.

    • Sound Localization

      Noticing the direction that a sound came from.

    • Auditory Attention

      Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.

    • Multilimb Coordination

      Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.

    Knowledge

    • 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.

    • Transportation

      Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.

    • Food Production

      Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.

    • 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.

    • Economics and Accounting

      Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.

    • Computers and Electronics

      Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

    • 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.

    • Mechanical

      Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.

    • 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.

    • 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.

    • History and Archeology

      Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.

    • Biology

      Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.

    • 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.

    • Design

      Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.

    • Production and Processing

      Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.

    • 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.

    • 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.

    • 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.

    • 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.

    • Mathematics

      Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.

    • 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.

    • Law and Government

      Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.

    • 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.

    • Fine Arts

      Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.

    • Sociology and Anthropology

      Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.

    • 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.

    • 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.

    • 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.

    • English Language

      Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.

    • 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.

    • 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.

    Career Video

    Additional videos and more information available on CareerOneStop

    Pay

    • Ohio Annual Salary 30730/yr
    • Typical Salary
    • Ohio Hourly Wage 14.77/hr
    • Typical Hourly Wage

    Ohio Employment Trends

    • Currently Employed 5,300
    • Yearly Projected Openings 1020

    Typical Education

    Personality

    Realistic: People interested in this work like activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions.They do well at jobs that need:
    • Dependability
    • Integrity
    • Attention to Detail
    • Self Control
    • Cooperation
    • Persistence

    Tools

    • Animal catching devices
    • Animal shearing or clipping equipment
    • Animal weighing scales
    • Bar code reader equipment
    • Benchtop centrifuges
    • Binocular light compound microscopes
    • Blood collection syringes
    • Chemical or gas sterilizers
    • Clothes dryers
    • Desktop computers
    • Digital cameras
    • Full body immersion hydrotherapy baths or tanks
    • Gas anesthesia apparatus or machines
    • Handheld refractometers or polarimeters
    • Hematology analyzers
    • Intravenous tubing with catheter administration kits
    • Label making machines
    • Laboratory beakers
    • Laboratory forceps
    • Laundry type washing machines
    • Medical acoustic stethoscopes
    • Medical picture archiving computer systems PACS
    • Medical radiological shielding aprons or masks or drapes
    • Medical radiological shielding gloves
    • Medical x ray darkroom accessories
    • Medical x ray films or cassettes
    • Medical x ray units for general diagnostic use
    • Microcentrifuges
    • Microscope slides
    • Multipurpose or general test tubes
    • Muzzles
    • Notebook computers
    • Personal computers
    • Protective gloves
    • Special purpose telephones
    • Specimen collection container
    • Steam autoclaves or sterilizers
    • Surgical scissors
    • Suture removers
    • Tablet counters
    • Tourniquets
    • Urinalysis analyzers
    • Vacuum blood collection tubes or containers
    • Veterinary blood pressure testers
    • Veterinary clinical thermometers
    • Veterinary injection or suction unit
    • Veterinary nail trimmers or cutters

    Technology

    • Calendar and scheduling software
    • Data base user interface and query software
    • Electronic mail software
    • Label making software
    • Medical software
    • Office suite software
    • Presentation software
    • Spreadsheet software
    • Word processing software

    Tags

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