According to the BLS, the median annual salary for veterinary technicians is slightly more than $37,000, with an hourly wage of $17.43. Incomes will, of course, depend largely on education, expertise, and location. According to the agency, the 10 leading percent of earners receive more than $52,000 per year.
Texas has the highest level of veterinary technician employment in the country, whereas Vermont has the most jobs. The District of Columbia, Connecticut, and Nevada continue to be the highest-paid regions for veterinary technologists and technicians.
Vet techs provide a variety of nursing care to animals but under the guidance and supervision of veterinarians. This includes everything from regular health assessments and evaluations to medical procedures and follow-up care.
Even though duties differ slightly by clinic and state, day-to-day obligations include laboratory testing, procuring and screening blood, feces, and other required specimens, and taking X-rays. They might also monitor an animal’s actions and situation.
Communication abilities are essential to maintain because techs frequently come in contact with animal owners. During the pandemic, more than 23 million Americans purchased pets, according to an ASPCA survey. That’s a lot of animals to cater to. As societal stresses mount, people will likely remain dependent on their beloved pets to aid them to move past difficult times.
Factors Influencing Vet Techs’ Annual Income
Veterinary technicians can make quite decent incomes. Nevertheless, the precise amount you would make as a vet tech is determined by a number of factors, including the following.
Facility Type
The sort of institution you operate in will influence how much money you can make as a veterinary technician. Vet techs are employed in a wide range of settings, from conventional small animal medical centers to exotic marine and wildlife sanctuaries.
Some of the widely known institutions are mentioned below, in addition to the estimated yearly earnings that they provide to their veterinary technicians.
- Small Animal Clinics – $39,000
- Larger Animal Hospitals – $32,000
- Emergency Veterinary Clinics – $35,000
- Wildlife Parks/Centers – $44,000
- Animal Shelters – $31,000
- Research Centers – $32,000
- Educational Facilities – $29,000
Traditional Employee Benefits
In addition to your salary, you might be able to qualify for numerous employee compensations as a veterinary technician. Naturally, this is dependent on your company and/or employee status.
Several smaller facilities, for instance, do not provide any perks and benefits at all, while others only provide them to full-time employees. Nonetheless, numerous businesses do provide perks to their vet techs, and several of the most notable perks include;
- Health coverage.
- Dental coverage.
- Plans for retirement.
- Pay raise.
- Overtime and holiday pay.
- Vacations.
- Sick Leave.
- Maternity and parental leave.
- Allowances
Experience and Education
If you have a considerable amount of training and/or expertise in veterinary technology, you can get a higher salary. A vet tech with a bachelor’s degree, for instance, will most certainly make more money than someone with an associate’s degree.
Similarly, a veterinary technician just graduating from college will earn less than a vet tech that has some years of experience. The list below shows an illustration of this.
- Vet Techs Fresh Out of College – $26,000.
- Vet Techs with Years of Experience in the Field – $30,000.
- Associate Degree-Holding Veterinary Technicians – $30,000.
- Bachelor’s Degree-Holding Veterinary Technicians (Technologists) – $41,000.
Internships or Externships
Involvement in an internship or externship can be extremely advantageous when it comes to negotiating your salary. Although the majority of veterinary technology programs necessitate an intern or externship, a small number of them do not.
Nonetheless, if you decide to take part in one, it almost always pays off in the long run. To get an internship or externship slot, you can;
- Examine Local Veterinary Clinics and Healthcare facilities
- Consult Your Local Animal Shelter
- Confirm with any local zoological parks or natural wildlife centers.
- Look online for any currently offered veterinary technician internships or externships in your neighborhood.
- Consult a local employment agency.
- Consult with the Employment Office at your school.
Specialties
Becoming a veterinary technician specialist, or VTS is another variable that influences how much you will make as a vet tech. Specializing in one or maybe more sectors of veterinary technology can vastly enhance your opportunities for employment and, in certain instances, your income.
There are numerous niches you can focus on, and the most popular specializations and their average annual salaries are mentioned below.
- Anesthesiology – $40,000
- Internal Medicine – $33,000 Surgery – $30,000
- Dental – $30,000
- Emergency and Intensive Care – $34,000
- Behavior – $31,000
- Zoo Animals – $35,000
- Wild Life – $44,000
- Large Animals – $35,000
- Small Animals – $30,000
- Nutrition – $38,000
- Marine Life – $27,000
- Cancer – $29,000
Conclusion
There are numerous advantages to working as a vet tech. Vet techs relish hands-on interactions with their clients day after day, away from the traditional office setting. Aside from all these animal encounters, vet techs could indeed benefit from an increasing employment market.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) predicts that employment among veterinary technicians will grow by 15% within the next 10 years. This is a much quicker rate of advancement than can be found in other career fields. More than 10,000 new vet tech jobs are expected to be added to the market every year.