Most jobs at this level will involve starting as a trainee or apprentice to learn the essential skills and procedures required in animal care.
Jobs include kennel maid, farm hand, stable hand, animal care assistant, dog grooming assistant, cattery assistant, pet shop assistant, assistant groom, zoo assistant and gamekeeper.
Case study
You need at least five good GCSEs to become a veterinary nurse. I took the apprenticeship route...
Sarah Spinks, community veterinary nurse, PDSA
Example jobs
Animal care assistant
Cleaning and feeding animals both indoors and outdoors.
Farm hand
Caring for animals and general maintenance duties, possibly using machinery.
Dog grooming assistant
Bathing pets and clipping claws before the dog’s coat is trimmed.
Things you need to know
Typical working conditions
- Jobs can be outdoors, in all weathers.
- Some jobs will be indoors in a surgery, laboratory, shop or grooming parlour.
- Working hours can be long.
Qualifications needed
You will need basic maths and English. For some jobs, you will also need sciences. As this is a competitive area, you will need to describe any animal-related experience you have. This could be work experience or looking after your own or other people’s animals.
Career path
An apprenticeship will involve taking NVQs in your area of work. This could be NVQ 1 and 2 in domestic animal care, dog grooming or horse care.
Useful links
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Pay scales in the UK
LANTRA
Information, training and support for the land-based and environmental sector
The National Apprenticeship Service
NAS - Information and advice about becoming an apprentice