# Will animal control workers be replaced by AI? Updated October 2026 Animal control workers score 33 out of 100 for AI exposure. AI helps with 45% of their task time, and they stay in charge. AI can do another 14%. 41% needs a person. - **14%** AI can do it - **45%** AI helps - **41%** Needs a person Moderate exposure Lower than 57% of the 923 jobs we scored. ## Task by task We graded 16 tasks, most exposed first. AI can do 2 of them, helps with 7 and leaves 7 to people. | Task | AI exposure | | --- | --- | | Write reports of activities, and maintain files of impoundments and dispositions of animals. Report drafting and impoundment records are routine digital writing. | 75% AI can do it | | Answer inquiries from the public concerning animal control operations. Public questions suit chatbots and FAQ tools; some calls stay human. | 62% AI can do it | | Contact animal owners to inform them that their pets are at animal holding facilities. Owner notifications can be automated; personal calls stay human. | 50% AI helps | | Educate the public about animal welfare, and animal control laws and regulations. AI drafts education materials; in-person outreach remains human-led. | 45% AI helps | | Organize the adoption of unclaimed animals. Listings and scheduling assisted; adoption handoffs stay human. | 40% AI helps | ## How animal control workers compare All jobs (923) Protective service (26) The dark line is **animal control workers, at 33**. Each dot is a score, and darker dots mean more jobs share it. The short marks are the averages, 37 for all jobs and 31 for protective service. ## Pay and outlook in the US Median pay $45,660 a year, May 2025 People employed 12,070 in the US, May 2025 Projected change in jobs +4.0% from 2024 to 2034 ## Skills to build - Run field capture and restraint with nets and tranquilizer darts - Examine injured animals and arrange veterinary treatment - Carry out in-person site inspections of establishments housing animals - Check impoundment logs and dispositions in Microsoft Access - Build license compliance checks in Microsoft Excel - Lead owner notification calls and adoption handoffs in person ## Safer roles nearby 5 related jobs with lower scores. - [Animal caretakers29 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/animal-caretakers/) - [Veterinary assistants27 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/veterinary-assistants/) - [Game wardens27 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/game-wardens/) - [Animal trainers18 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/animal-trainers/) - [Police officers31 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/police-officers/) ## Questions about animal control workers and AI Will AI replace animal control workers? Partly. About 3 in 10 working hours go to tasks AI can already do, mostly report writing and impoundment records, plus answering public inquiries. What stays with people is the physical work of capturing, feeding, and examining animals, along with site inspections and owner calls that need a person in the room. Which animal control tasks is AI taking over? Report writing and impoundment records are the most exposed, with an exposure score of 75, because they are routine digital writing that software can draft from case notes. Public inquiries score 62, since chatbots and FAQ tools can answer common questions about licensing and pickup. Owner notifications score 50 and can be automated, leaving personal calls to people. Which animal control tasks stay human? Euthanasia, animal capture, and feeding stay with people, with exposure scores of 2 to 3. Euthanizing rabid or severely injured animals and capturing strays with nets, nooses, or tranquilizer darts are hands-on acts that need trained, accountable staff in the field. Examining animals for injuries scores 8, because treatment needs physical presence. How can animal control workers stay valuable? Keep the hands-on field work, since capture, restraint, and injury exams score lowest for AI exposure. Then tighten the paperwork by checking impoundment logs in Microsoft Access and license data in Excel, so the records AI drafts are accurate. Keep owner calls and adoption handoffs as the human step in every case. ## Related jobs - [Veterinary technicians22 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/veterinary-technicians/) - [Animal breeders27 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/animal-breeders/) - [Agricultural inspectors31 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/agricultural-inspectors/) - [Livestock workers18 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/livestock-workers/) ## Next steps for animal control workers - ### Check your job Your job title is a rough guide. Your tasks decide your score. Paste your job description or CV to see which tasks AI can do. [Check your job](https://www.aigentcy.com/tools/ai-exposure-checker/) [Check your CV](https://www.aigentcy.com/tools/cv-checker/) - ### Estimate team savings The score is per person. Add headcount and salary to see the hours AI can take on in a team of animal control workers, and what they cost. [Estimate what AI saves a team of animal control workers](https://www.aigentcy.com/tools/team-ai-audit/?role=animal-control-workers) [Work out the return on automation](https://www.aigentcy.com/tools/ai-savings-calculator/) ### Check which roles in your team AI can take on We map your team's tasks, show what AI can do today and build the automations that pay back first. [Book an AI audit](https://www.aigentcy.com/audit/) ## Related topics - [**Jobs AI can't replace**Roustabouts score lowest, at 6.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/jobs-ai-cant-replace/) - [**Jobs most at risk from AI**Proofreaders score highest, at 76.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/jobs-most-exposed-to-ai/) - [**High-paying jobs with low AI exposure**Pediatric surgeons earn a median $559,030 and score 29.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/high-paying-jobs-low-ai-exposure/) - [**Entry-level jobs with low AI exposure**Roustabouts need little prior training and score 6.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/entry-level-jobs-low-ai-exposure/) - [**Jobs AI speeds up the most**AI helps with 98% of the task time for health informatics specialists.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/jobs-ai-speeds-up/) - [**AI and jobs in Malta**15 iGaming roles graded task by task.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/malta/) - [**Skills that keep work human**The skills to build in the jobs AI changes least.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/skills/) - [**Jobs A to Z**Every job we score, by first letter.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/jobs/) - [**AI exposure by industry**Average scores for 22 job groups.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/industries/) - [**Write a CV screening software can read**How applicant tracking systems read a CV, and what to change.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/cv-screening-guide/) - [**AI for businesses**The tasks to automate first in each team and industry.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-for/) - [**How we score AI exposure**The grading, the weights and every source.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/methodology/) Sources and licences Occupation data from the O\*NET 30.3 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under [CC BY 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) and modified by Aigentcy. O\*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. Wage, employment and projection data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. EU occupation names from ESCO, European Commission. AI usage signals from the Anthropic Economic Index (CC BY) and Microsoft Research (CC BY 4.0). [Methodology and sources](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/methodology/). Scores © Aigentcy. Quote them with a link to the page.