Animal Control Workers
Also called: ACO (Animal Control Officer), Animal Enforcement Officer, Animal Park Code Enforcement Officer, Animal Services OfficerHandle animals for the purpose of investigations of mistreatment, or control of abandoned, dangerous, or unattended animals.
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What the data says: AI could halve the time on 4 of its 16 tasks, and jobs are projected to grow 4.0% by 2035. How to think about this →
About this projection
BLS builds AI into its projections where the research supports it: “BLS generally applies adjustments based on this research conservatively, where there is convincing evidence for a change.”
It also notes a limit: “BLS projection methods are not designed to capture extremely rapid technological change.”
On its AI exposure groups, BLS says exposure “does not imply job loss.”
Recent conditions
- In 2024, 0.1% of people in this work were unemployed, against 3.8% across all occupations Census ACS 2024
- From Sep 2025 to Aug 2026, 4.3 hires for every 10 job openings in government, which employs about 94% of people in this work, against 7.3 across all industries BLS JOLTS
One box per opening, filled for each hire; hires beyond the openings are added in a lighter shade. Higher can mean openings get filled, or that people leave often; lower, that jobs go unfilled, or hiring is slow.4.3 this industry7.3 all industries
Median pay by state BLS OEWS May 2025, state estimates
Tap a state for its figures.
Median pay in every state
| State | Median | Middle half earn | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $37,340 | $30,940 to $45,000 | 290 |
| Alaska | $63,340 | $46,820 to $70,050 | 30 |
| Arizona | $47,650 | $41,300 to $49,870 | 210 |
| Arkansas | $34,410 | $27,020 to $39,410 | 180 |
| California | $62,630 | $54,940 to $72,020 | 1,210 |
| Colorado | $58,470 | $49,330 to $64,000 | 170 |
| Connecticut | $57,130 | $44,460 to $73,070 | 220 |
| Florida | $45,860 | $38,280 to $55,560 | 640 |
| Georgia | $39,500 | $37,270 to $45,280 | 430 |
| Idaho | $43,930 | $37,500 to $48,500 | 50 |
| Illinois | $42,480 | $35,580 to $54,730 | 410 |
| Indiana | $43,000 | $35,620 to $48,500 | 340 |
| Iowa | $54,190 | $46,990 to $58,250 | 80 |
| Kansas | $39,520 | $38,380 to $44,310 | 190 |
| Kentucky | $35,360 | $30,080 to $38,570 | 190 |
| Louisiana | $38,020 | $30,220 to $45,130 | 120 |
| Maine | $49,660 | $43,370 to $56,780 | 90 |
| Maryland | $53,330 | $47,050 to $63,500 | 140 |
| Massachusetts | $60,930 | $50,130 to $73,010 | 280 |
| Michigan | $48,340 | $39,140 to $55,170 | 260 |
| Mississippi | $34,890 | $30,180 to $38,620 | 160 |
| Missouri | $41,760 | $34,310 to $46,810 | 440 |
| Montana | $50,530 | $45,900 to $54,390 | 50 |
| Nevada | $58,810 | $47,900 to $67,870 | 100 |
| New Hampshire | $48,840 | $39,760 to $57,510 | 60 |
| New Jersey | $52,050 | $42,690 to $64,580 | 260 |
| New Mexico | $37,800 | $33,960 to $44,850 | 260 |
| New York | $48,420 | $38,920 to $61,570 | 870 |
| North Carolina | $43,940 | $37,990 to $48,930 | 460 |
| Ohio | $45,220 | $37,050 to $51,410 | 290 |
| Oklahoma | $37,450 | $32,550 to $43,500 | 380 |
| Oregon | $66,130 | $60,800 to $72,500 | 40 |
| Pennsylvania | $52,000 | $49,140 to $56,410 | not published |
| Rhode Island | $55,060 | $49,650 to $59,720 | 70 |
| South Carolina | $38,790 | $35,190 to $44,960 | 180 |
| South Dakota | $45,530 | $33,280 to $49,440 | 50 |
| Tennessee | $42,970 | $34,820 to $45,570 | 280 |
| Texas | $43,250 | $37,750 to $46,730 | 1,300 |
| Utah | $47,210 | $39,360 to $54,250 | 200 |
| Virginia | $49,010 | $43,300 to $56,090 | 430 |
| Washington | $66,440 | $52,400 to $78,750 | 180 |
| West Virginia | $35,120 | $31,170 to $39,450 | 90 |
| Wisconsin | $37,380 | $35,710 to $60,200 | 120 |
| Wyoming | $53,870 | $46,270 to $57,860 | 40 |
Nationally: $45,660. Shades run from the lowest state median to the highest; a territory below that range takes the lightest. How to read this
How AI touches the work
What AI could speed up, task by task, and where people already use it.
AI could halve the time on 4 of its 16 tasks
| AI rating | Its main tasks | Share of Claude conversations May 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| AI + software | Write reports of activities, and maintain files of impoundments and dispositions of animals. | Not published |
| Not much | Investigate reports of animal attacks or animal cruelty, interviewing witnesses, collecting evidence, and writing reports. | Not published |
| AI + software | Educate the public about animal welfare, and animal control laws and regulations. | Not published |
| AI + software | Answer inquiries from the public concerning animal control operations. | Not published |
| Not much | Examine animals for injuries or malnutrition, and arrange for any necessary medical treatment. | Not published |
| Not much | Prepare for prosecutions related to animal treatment, and give evidence in court. | Not published |
See all 16 tasks
| Not much | Contact animal owners to inform them that their pets are at animal holding facilities. | Not published |
| Not much | Remove captured animals from animal-control service vehicles and place animals in shelter cages or other enclosures. | Not published |
| Not much | Capture and remove stray, uncontrolled, or abused animals from undesirable conditions, using nets, nooses, or tranquilizer darts as necessary. | Not published |
| AI + software | Issue warnings or citations in connection with animal-related offenses, or contact police to report violations and request arrests. | Not published |
| Not much | Supply animals with food, water, and personal care. | Not published |
| Not much | Clean facilities and equipment such as dog pens and animal control trucks. | Not published |
| Not much | Euthanize rabid, unclaimed, or severely injured animals. | Not published |
| Not much | Examine animal licenses, and inspect establishments housing animals for compliance with laws. | Not published |
| Not much | Organize the adoption of unclaimed animals. | Not published |
| Not much | Train police officers in dog handling and training techniques for tracking, crowd control, and narcotics and bomb detection. | Not published |
Ordered by how important O*NET's respondents rate each task (1 to 5) times the share who say it is part of their job. The ordering is ours. 0 of the 16 have a published share of Claude conversations; “not published” means too few conversations for Anthropic to publish a figure.
Where people already use AI
The tasks above say what AI could speed up. This shows what people are using it for. Its 16 tasks fall under 15 work activities that many occupations share, and Microsoft counted how often each one came up in 200,000 conversations with its Copilot assistant in 2024.
- #12 Explain regulations, policies, or procedures
| Work activity | This occupation's tasks under it | People asked AI for help in 10,000 conversations |
AI did it for them in 10,000 conversations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Care for plants or animals | |||
| Explain regulations, policies, or procedures | |||
| Issue documentation | |||
| Verify personal information | |||
| Maintain safety or security | |||
| Investigate criminal or legal matters | |||
| Interview people to obtain information | |||
| Prepare reports of operational or procedural activities |
Show all 15 activities
| Clean tools, equipment, facilities, or work areas | |||
| Coordinate activities with clients, agencies, or organizations | |||
| Maintain operational records | |||
| Inspect facilities or equipment | |||
| Train others on operational or work procedures | |||
| Examine people or animals to assess health conditions or physical characteristics | |||
| Present information in legal proceedings |
How to read this
Work activities come from O*NET, which links every task to the broader activities it involves. Microsoft's figures are for the activity across everyone who used Copilot, not for animal control workers specifically. Copilot is a general chat assistant; dedicated coding tools are not included, so programming help is under-counted here. Activities are listed by how many of this occupation's tasks fall under them.
The task ratings say whether AI could halve the time a task takes: on its own (“AI alone”), or with software built on it (“AI + software”). They were made by people in 2023 (Eloundou et al.). Claude's share is the task's share of all Claude.ai conversations in May 2026; Anthropic doesn't publish a task with too few conversations. None of these add up to the BLS exposure group, which combines five research measures.
More in the Guide: task ratings · task order · work activities · Copilot figures · Claude
High exposure doesn't mean fewer jobs
BLS projects most occupations in its two most exposed groups to grow: 141 of 206 rated Very high and 165 of 206 rated High. Each dot is one of the 831 occupations BLS rates.
Career moves into and out of this occupation
From moves between occupations found in online resumes, 2002–2016. Career changes only: a first job after school isn't a move.
Where people moved next
of 9,862 moves out
- 1 Managers, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 7%
- 2 Postsecondary Teachers, All Other Very high +2.0% 7%
- 3 Chief Executives Very high +3.2% 5%
- 4 General and Operations Managers High +5.0% 3%
- 5 Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers High +3.5% 3%
Where people moved in from
of 13,573 moves in
- 1 Managers, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 5%
- 2 First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers High -3.7% 5%
- 3 Postsecondary Teachers, All Other Very high +2.0% 3%
- 4 Police and Sheriff's Patrol Officers High +3.5% 3%
- 5 Chief Executives Very high +3.2% 3%
Resumes over-represent younger, white-collar job-seekers and moves into management. Schubert, Stansbury and Taska (resume data).
Education and training for the occupation
O*NET survey of workers in this occupation
- 65% high school
- 19% postsecondary certificate
- 12% associate's
- 4% bachelor's
O*NET 31.0 survey of workers in this occupation · 26 people answered.
Census survey (American Community Survey)
- 5% less than high school
- 26% high school
- 30% some college
- 14% associate's
- 16% bachelor's
- 8% master's
- 1% professional degree
Census ACS 2024, all workers in this occupation · 116 people surveyed.
Why the two can differ
O*NET asks about 20 people in each occupation, which makes its shares uncertain, but it reports the exact occupation and counts certificates. The Census survey reaches thousands, but it groups some occupations together and counts degrees only. More in the Guide
Jobs that require a credential BLS Occupational Requirements Survey 2023
BLS publishes no credential figures for this occupation.
Look up certifications, training and licenses U.S. Department of Labor
- Certification Finder ↗ certifications CareerOneStop lists for this occupation
- Training Finder ↗ schools and programs, nationwide; narrow the place there
- License Finder ↗ licenses by state
- Apprenticeships: DOL's list of apprenticeable occupations doesn't include this one.
These open in a new tab and send only the occupation's public code. More in the Guide
BLS AI exposure categories (Aug 2026) · BLS Employment Projections 2025–35 · O*NET 31.0 · Task ratings: Eloundou et al., Science (2024) · Microsoft "Working with AI" v1.1 · Anthropic Economic Index (2026-06-26) · Schubert, Stansbury and Taska · NCES CIP–SOC · Census ACS 2024 · BLS JOLTS
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