4 Portable Animal Careers for Military Spouses
How many times have you been turned down for a job because you’re a military spouse? Probably more than you’d like to admit. Being a military spouse and trying to maintain a career—one that you enjoy—can seem impossible. However, there are several careers for military spouses that are both portable and fun.
Below is a list of career opportunities for the animal lovers among military spouses.
Cat Trainer
The cat training industry is relatively new, but it’s no secret that cats can be trained. As a certified cat trainer, you can help fellow felines learn new behaviors and eliminate the bad ones. You get to work with pet owners and teach them how to train their own cats at home. In addition, you’ll be saving cats from entering animal shelters due to preventable unwanted behavior.
Dog Trainer
On that same note, becoming a dog trainer has many similar benefits. You’re saving dogs from animal shelters and helping pet owners strengthen their bonds with their pets. What’s great about dog training is you can specialize in a specific field. For example, after you’ve become certified, you can continue your education to become a service dog trainer or therapy dog trainer.
Learning how to train dogs to become service or therapy dogs will be beneficial in more ways than one. You get to train dogs for the purpose of helping others.
Pet Groomer
For military spouses who love doing hair, a pet grooming career may be more in your alley. Pet groomers give their furry clients a proper bath, trim their nails and remove any mats. In addition to grooming dogs, you may serve as the first line of defense against potential health issues by checking for lumps or skin abnormalities.
An essential skill every professional dog groomer will have is being able to properly handle pets during the grooming process. This keeps your clients and yourself safe. It wouldn’t hurt to pick up some animal training skills along the way.
Veterinary Assistant
If you’ve always wanted to help animals recover from injury or illness, you may want to consider becoming a veterinary assistant. While the veterinarian will be the one directly diagnosing and treating animals, you will still have animals under your care.
Veterinary assistants have a range of responsibilities, including: ensuring the comfort of injured or sick animals during their stay, collecting blood and tissue samples, and assisting with surgical procedures. Vet assistants are the ones who communicate with pet owners and transfer their pets’ information to the vet techs and veterinarians.
Military spouses have several wonderful opportunities to work with animals wherever they relocate. Given that nearly 68% of U.S. households own a pet1, there’s high potential you’ll be able to find an animal care job in your location. Plus, getting the education and skills to start any one of these careers is convenient as well.
Animal Behavior College offers all four of these certification programs online. Each program includes hands-on training or real world experience in your area where you can work with animals.
As a Military Spouse Career Advancement Accounts (MyCAA)-approved school, you may be eligible for free tuition toward our Dog Trainer Program, Veterinary Assistant Program or Pet Groomer Program.*
With a rewarding career that involves animals within your reach, what are you waiting for?
*Call 800-795-3294 for more details about your military spouse benefits.
1. 2017-2018 National Pet Owners Survey presented by American Pet Products Association (APPA)