How to become an animal care attendant
Official title: Animal care attendant
Also called: Animal assistant, Animal attendant, Kennel assistant, Zookeeper, Dog walker, Boarding kennel or cattery operator, Pet store worker
Animal care attendants provide shelter, food, exercise and basic health care for pets and other domesticated animals.
Main tasks
- Feed, bathe and groom animals
- Train and exercise animals
- Treat animals under veterinary supervision
- Give animal healthcare advice to owners
- Clean and maintain animal facilities and equipment
- Document and monitor animal health and behaviour
- Prepare food for animals
- Do administrative tasks
How to become one
You usually learn on the job to become an animal care attendant and a qualification may be useful. You usually don’t need specific NCEA levels for this job, but Level 2 may be useful. Required: a driver licence. Other requirements: an entry certificate in veterinary assisting; an intermediate certificate in veterinary assisting; to be over 20 years old.
Ways in
- Certificates and diplomas: Advanced certificates and diplomas in veterinary assisting. TEC links this job to study in veterinary. Qualifications: NZ Dip in Veterinary Nursing, NZ Dip in Animal Technology, NZ Dip in Rural Animal Veterinary Technology. Usually 1 year. Graduates of these qualifications earn a median $47,000 a year one year after study and $59,000 five years after; 69% are employed one year after (TEC, from Stats NZ IDI data).
Pay · Past change
- Median pay: $57,000 a year, a TEC estimate before tax.
- Upper: $99,000 a year
- TEC shows pay for this job by the hour: median $27.40 an hour.
- TEC's pay figures are estimates only. TEC says they must not be used to set pay, in pay negotiations or in visa applications.
- Change in the number of people doing this job between the 2018 and 2023 Censuses: Steady (TEC). This is past change, not a forecast.
Who does this work
- About 3,100 people did this job at the 2023 Census (TEC).
Related jobs
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Questions people ask
How do I become an animal care attendant?
You usually learn on the job to become an animal care attendant and a qualification may be useful. You usually don’t need specific NCEA levels for this job, but Level 2 may be useful. Required: a driver licence. Other requirements: an entry certificate in veterinary assisting; an intermediate certificate in veterinary assisting; to be over 20 years old.
How much does an animal care attendant earn in New Zealand?
The Tertiary Education Commission estimates median pay at $57,000 a year, before tax.
Has the number of people working as an animal care attendant grown in New Zealand?
It has held steady: TEC records the number of people doing this job as steady between the 2018 and 2023 Censuses. This is past change, not a forecast.
Sources
- Tertiary Education Commission (Tahatu Career Navigator): Tahatu career ideas: descriptions, tasks, pay estimates, people employed, employment change 2018 to 2023, entry requirements, registration, interest scores (Site scrape 2026-10 (816 career ideas, sitemap lastmod 2026-10-01)), CC BY 4.0, retrieved 4 October 2026
This content is sourced from the Tertiary Education Commission through the Tahatū Career Navigator website (www.tahatu.govt.nz) and used under the CC BY 4.0 licence. All or some of the information has been modified by Peernovo. TEC has not approved, endorsed or tested these modifications. TEC will not be held accountable for any errors within this content.
Qualification information from NZQA, used under CC BY 3.0 NZ.
This work is based on/includes Stats NZ's data which are licensed by Stats NZ for reuse under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence. Census data via Figure.NZ.
Includes information from O*NET OnLine by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.
Sources: Tertiary Education Commission, Tahatū Career Navigator (career ideas, pay estimates, entry requirements and study options, CC BY 4.0, modified by Peernovo); Stats NZ, 2023 Census (via Figure.NZ) and the National Occupation List (CC BY 4.0); NZQA qualification information (CC BY 3.0 NZ); O*NET interest scores (CC BY 4.0); ILO global generative AI exposure index (CC BY 4.0). Links between career ideas and ANZSCO groups, degree fields and broad job groups are Peernovo's.
These results are not official statistics. They have been created for research purposes from the Integrated Data Infrastructure (IDI), which is carefully managed by Stats NZ.
Graduate outcomes: these results are not official statistics. They have been created for research purposes from the Integrated Data Infrastructure (IDI), which is carefully managed by Stats NZ.
Updated 4 October 2026