Also called: Animal Actor Trainer, Hollywood Animal Wrangler
Trains dogs, cats, birds and other animals to perform on cue for movies, TV and commercials.
On set, she stands just off-camera and uses hand signals to get a dog to 'limp' across the room on take 14. Off set, she spends weeks teaching a cat to open a door.
Day rates on productions can be high, but work is irregular.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
High school diploma, about 4 years after high school. Years of apprenticing with animal training companies; animal science or psychology degree helps.
Ways in: On-the-job training, Apprenticeship, 4-year college. Training cost: Get paid while you train.
Majors to look at: Animal Science, Psychology.
Growing about average.
Low risk for 10 years. CGI animals replace some shots, but many productions still want real trained animals on set.
Classes: Animal science (FFA/Ag CTE), Psychology, Biology.
Official data: O*NET occupation 39-2011.
Career Universe is an early version. Pay, training and AI-risk figures are estimates to start your own research, not verified facts. The research was written with AI research assistants, checked by validation scripts and spot-checked by hand. Check anything important with schools, employers and official sources. How the numbers work.