Animal trainers
SOC Code: 39-2011
Animal trainers carries a 31% AI exposure score (Medium automation risk), with a median annual wage of $38,750 and +5.1% projected employment growth from 2024 to 2034 (BLS), affecting approximately 47,300 workers. Full task breakdown, skills, and employer data are below.
Proportion of tasks susceptible to AI automation (O*NET analysis)
At 31% AI exposure, Animal trainers sits 6 points below the 37.2% average across 832 U.S. occupations - more exposed than 33% of them. Most of its core tasks still require human judgment.
Career outlook score
51/100
Animal trainers, weighted across 3 of 3 tracked dimensions
A weighted composite of median wage, projected growth, and AI-automation security (inverted exposure), each benchmarked against every other tracked occupation. It describes this occupation's standing across those three dimensions, not a guarantee of future outcomes.
- Median wage F $38,750
Annual median wage, percentile rank vs all tracked occupations
- Projected growth B+ +5.1%
Projected employment change, 2024-2034, BLS Employment Projections
- AI exposure (inverted) B- 31% exposure
Lower O*NET task-automability scores lower risk; this dimension scores security, not exposure
Home health and personal care aides is #1 of 832 occupations by employment (4.3M, AI exposure rank #392 at 35%) vs. Bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks #1 by AI task exposure (95%, employment rank #17 at 1.6M).
Automation-risk inventory
Exclusive cut of 832 occupations by PlainWorkforce automation-risk band. Orthogonal to the continuous AI-exposure distribution chart below and to this occupation's single risk badge, this is the corpus band mix, with Animal trainers in the Medium band.
Credential × growth standing
Open entry with non-declining BLS pace
Animal trainers keeps an HS / some college bar (333 of 832) and sits in Average (378 of 832). Lower formal gates with a non-shrinking employment line - skill and AI desks matter more than credentials here.
Where Animal trainers sits among all occupations
AI-exposure score distribution across 832 U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis). This occupation is marked in rose.
Where Animal trainers sits by AI exposure
AI-exposure score distribution across U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis)
31% Lower than most lower than 67% of 832 occupations
Occupations, banded by AI-exposure score
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more occupations. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source O*NET task data (U.S. Department of Labor) · BLS 2024–2034
Source: O*NET task data (U.S. Department of Labor); AI-exposure scores are PlainWorkforce's analysis. As of BLS 2024–2034.
Animal trainers vs. its occupational neighbors
AI exposure (horizontal) vs projected 2024–2034 growth (vertical) for occupations in the same SOC group. Animal trainers is marked in rose; the top-left corner is the most future-proof.
Source: BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034 (growth) and O*NET (AI-exposure analysis by PlainWorkforce).
Employment Projections
Where This Score Comes From
Animal trainers's Medium automation-risk tier is computed from O*NET Database 30.0 task-level analysis, where each documented task the occupation performs is evaluated against current generative AI, robotic process automation, and machine-learning capabilities. A score below 40% reflects tasks anchored in physical dexterity, unstructured environments, or high-touch human interaction that current AI cannot reliably replicate.
The employment, wage, and education figures above come from a second, separate federal source: BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034, matched to the O*NET task data by Standard Occupational Classification (SOC 39-2011) code, with the wage figure cross-validated against the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024 survey. BLS figures are presented exactly as published, with no adjustment on our part; the SOC-code match is what lets Animal trainers be compared directly against every other tracked occupation on the same basis, not just roles that happen to share a job title.
For career planners, this profile should be read alongside the task, skill, and knowledge breakdowns below and the list of employers whose workforce composition includes Animal trainers. Adjacent occupations shown further down offer lateral moves that preserve industry knowledge while potentially reducing exposure.
Education & Entry Requirements
Top Tasks (O*NET)
- 1. Train horses or other equines for riding, harness, show, racing, or other work, using knowledge of breed characteristics, training methods, performance standards, and the peculiarities of each animal.
- 2. Cue or signal animals during performances.
- 3. Talk to or interact with animals to familiarize them to human voices or contact.
- 4. Conduct training programs to develop or maintain desired animal behaviors for competition, entertainment, obedience, security, riding, or related purposes.
- 5. Use oral, spur, rein, or hand commands to condition horses to carry riders or to pull horse-drawn equipment.
- 6. Retrain horses to break bad habits, such as kicking, bolting, or resisting bridling or grooming.
- 7. Feed or exercise animals or provide other general care, such as cleaning or maintaining holding or performance areas.
- 8. Observe animals' physical conditions to detect illness or unhealthy conditions requiring medical care.
- 9. Train dogs in human assistance or property protection duties.
- 10. Evaluate animals to determine their temperaments, abilities, or aptitude for training.
Key Skills Required
- Instructing
- Speaking
- Learning Strategies
- Critical Thinking
- Active Learning
- Active Listening
- Monitoring
- Judgment and Decision Making
- Social Perceptiveness
- Coordination
Knowledge Areas
- Customer and Personal Service
- Education and Training
- Psychology
- Administration and Management
- English Language
- Sales and Marketing
- Administrative
- Personnel and Human Resources
- Biology
- Public Safety and Security
Frequently Asked Questions
Will AI replace Animal trainers?
Animal trainers has an AI exposure score of 31%, indicating a medium level of automation risk. The majority of tasks in this role require human judgment, creativity, or physical presence that AI cannot easily replicate.
What is the job outlook for Animal trainers?
According to BLS Employment Projections 2024-2034, Animal trainers is projected to grow by 5.1% over the decade. Current employment stands at approximately 47,300 workers.
What skills are needed for Animal trainers?
Key skills for Animal trainers include Instructing, Speaking, Learning Strategies, and others. Typical entry-level education is High school diploma or equivalent.
How much do Animal trainers earn?
The median annual wage for Animal trainers is $38,750, according to BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2024). Actual earnings vary by location, experience, industry, and employer. The BLS publishes detailed wage percentiles by region in its Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program.
What education is required for Animal trainers?
The typical entry-level education for Animal trainers is High school diploma or equivalent. Employers generally expect None of related work experience. On-the-job training typically involves Moderate-term on-the-job training. Requirements can vary by employer and specialization.
Which companies employ Animal trainers?
Animal trainers roles exist across many industries and employers. Workforce composition is estimated from BLS industry-occupation employment distributions matched to SEC-registered public companies.
AI Exposure Rating
Medium automation risk based on 10 analyzed tasks. Most tasks require human judgment and are resistant to automation.
Nationwide occupations with similar workforce profiles
Two data-derived peer sets for Animal trainers: AI-exposure neighbors and BLS 2034 growth neighbors (distinct comparison neighborhoods, cross-occupation).
Similar AI exposure score
Nearest O*NET task-automability scores nationwide (31% here).
- Carpet installers · AI exposure 31%
- Chemical engineers · AI exposure 31%
- Chemists · AI exposure 31%
- Craft artists · AI exposure 31%
Similar projected growth (2024–2034)
Nearest BLS employment change rates nationwide (+5.1% here).
- Aircraft service attendants · growth +5.1%
- Commercial pilots · growth +5.1%
- Cooks, private household · growth +5.1%
- Emergency medical technicians · growth +5.1%
Peers are nearest-neighbor matches on published BLS + O*NET metrics among occupations with ≥10,000 workers in 2024; corpus ranks above sort the full tracked set.
Related Occupations
Showing 6 of 23 occupations with a comparable automation-risk profile.
What to do with this
Use Animal trainers' numbers above to compare, not just read in isolation.
- Compare Animal trainers side by side against another occupation on wage, growth, and AI exposure. Workforce comparison tool
- Understand how the AI exposure score above is actually calculated before treating it as a verdict. Reading AI exposure scores
- See the full ranked list of occupations with the lowest automation exposure nationwide. Safest occupations from AI
AI exposure scores estimate task automatability from O*NET data; they are not a certainty of job loss, and BLS growth projections are estimates, not guarantees.
Data sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections 2024–2034 and O*NET Database 30.0. Employment figures are rounded. Wage data from BLS Occupational Employment Statistics (OES).