Animal Careers

Could a career with animals hold the key to greater wellbeing and happiness for you? There are a lot of jobs in the animal sector, which has expanded considerably. They are unlikely to earn you a fortune, but they could give you a lot of job satisfaction, although many will undoubtedly be frustrating and, depending on the career path you choose in the animal care sector, you may find yourself having to deal with some pretty awful sights & hear some terrible tales.

The animal sector offers a wide range of jobs

They range from jobs working hands-on with animals & those needing a knowledge about animals & an enthusiasm for them, but which aren't necessarily hands-on in day to day basis

Jobs providing services for pets or their owners, e.g. pet insurers, pet retailers, pet transporters (e.g. airlines carrying pets), animal products; pet delivery services, pet sitting services, training (e.g. racehorses, dogs), veterinary supply services - many of these be on-line or actually in retail outlets, and they may be offered through franchise arrangements
Training and education - e.g. colleges offering courses in animal care, pet care, veterinary subjects, but also in leisure or tasters for people considering taking up an aspect of animal husbandry, for instance - horse riding instructor, classes on how to keep chickens, bee-keeping etc.
Animal charities where the animal human bond is concerned - for instance, assistance dog charities employ staff
Leisure pursuits, such as llama farms, horse riding centres, pet farms, trekking centres, safaris
Pet care - veterinary profession, kennels, catteries, livery yards, hydrotherapy centres, groomers, complementary therapies such as animal communication and animal reiki
Conservation & willdife organisations

Charities will need both hands-on staff and those perform those tasks which keep the animal charity going e.g. fund-raising, public relations, volunteer management, human resources, secretarial, finance etc (more in larger animal charities - smaller charities will probably depend on volunteers for many of these jobs

In the UK, Lantra is the Sector Skills Council for the environmental and land based sectors, including agriculture, animal care, horticulture, garden design, floristry, game keeper, green keeper, zoo keeper, estate workers, dog groomers, farriers, jockeys, fish farmers, animal traners & the like - you can find out more about animal careers here

These resources may be helpful if you are wishing to work with or for animals, set up your own business or charity.

Jobs	Start your own buisness
Charity Job Work for a Charity EnvironmentJob	British Franchise Association Business and Self-Employed Pet Industry Federation Startups
Set up a Charity	Business & charity tools
Things to think about before you start up a charity Thoughts from the Charities' Commission Find an animal charity	Create.net - create your own website.