Kennel Attendant Statistics 2026: Job Market, Pay, Demand & Workforce

GroomerHires had 495 open kennel attendant listings from 59 employers on November 14, 2026.

88 were first posted in the previous 14 days and 214 in the previous 30 days.

At least 57% of kennel attendant listings were part-time on November 14, 2026.

Listings that name no schedule are counted as full-time, so the real part-time share is likely higher.

The benefit kennel attendant listings named most often on November 14, 2026 was paid time off, in 34.3% of listings, followed by dental or vision coverage (21.2%).

A listing that does not mention a benefit may still offer it.

To browse the openings themselves, see all kennel attendant listings.

BLS publishes no kennel attendant-only wage, so the figure here is for animal caretakers (SOC 39-2021, includes groomers), the broader BLS occupation that counts kennel attendants together with groomers, bathers, daycare and shelter staff, pet sitters and dog walkers, for payroll employees only.

The median wage for that occupation was $35,360 a year in May 2025 (BLS OEWS, Animal Caretakers (SOC 39-2021), national, all industries, May 2025).

The middle half of workers in that occupation earned $29,820 to $40,050 a year.

Employers hiring kennel attendants on GroomerHires advertise a median of $16.00 an hour across 30 employers on November 14, 2026; this is advertised pay, not earnings.

For pay by state, percentile and experience, see the kennel attendant salary guide.

Texas had the most open kennel attendant listings on November 14, 2026, with 43 (8.7% of the national total).

To browse the openings in one state, start with kennel attendant openings in Texas.

59 employers had open kennel attendant listings on GroomerHires on November 14, 2026, and the five largest posted 80.6% of them.

40 employers (67.8%) had exactly one open kennel attendant listing.

The largest single employer, Petco, posted 37.8% of all kennel attendant listings, so this sample leans toward large employers.

Employers in all industries reported 266,910 animal caretakers (SOC 39-2021, the BLS occupation that includes groomers and kennel attendants) on payroll in May 2025, at a median of $17.00 an hour ($35,360 a year); the count leaves out the self-employed (BLS OEWS May 2025).

BLS projects employment of animal caretakers (includes groomers) to grow 12.1% from 2025 to 2035, from 365,300 to 409,400 jobs, with about 62,800 openings a year; the projection counts include the self-employed (BLS Employment Projections 2025–35).

Of the about 365,300 animal caretaker jobs in 2025, 40% were in other personal services (the industry that includes pet care), 25% were held by the self-employed, 10% were in professional, scientific and technical services (which include veterinary services) and 9% were in retail trade (BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook).

Other personal services (NAICS 812900, the industry group containing pet care services such as boarding and daycare) employed 146,190 animal caretakers on payroll in May 2025, at a median of $16.92 an hour (BLS OEWS May 2025 industry estimates).

Animal caretakers in veterinary services (NAICS 541940) had a lower median, $15.46 an hour ($32,150 a year), in May 2025 (BLS OEWS May 2025 industry estimates).

BLS notes that part-time work is common for animal caretakers, that schedules can include evenings, weekends and holidays, and that 24-hour facilities such as kennels may need round-the-clock care (BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook).

For how to enter the field, see the kennel attendant career guide.

Listing figures are computed from every active, paid kennel attendant listing on GroomerHires at the time shown, and refreshed every six hours.

Listings on a job board are not a random sample of all kennel attendant jobs, so read them as a picture of current hiring, not of total employment.

This page is published only while the live sample has at least 300 listings from 25 employers.

Advertised pay is the midpoint of the range an employer posts, or its single figure, and hourly and annual postings are never converted into each other.

The headline is the employer median: each employer’s own median, then the median across employers, so a group posting hundreds of openings counts once.

A pay figure needs at least 30 listings from 10 employers and is withheld when one employer posted more than half of them.

Federal figures come from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the other sources listed below, quoted as published, with the year in each sentence.

Shelter animal care attendant and big-box pet care associate listings are counted with this role. The BLS figures are for animal caretakers (SOC 39-2021) in all industries, the broader occupation that includes kennel attendants along with groomers and daycare staff; BLS publishes no kennel-only wage or count. Animal care workers in vet clinics and research labs may be counted as veterinary assistants and laboratory animal caretakers (SOC 31-9096) instead.