Veterinary Technologists and Technicians
Perform medical tests in a laboratory environment for use in the treatment and diagnosis of diseases in animals. Prepare vaccines and serums for prevention of diseases. Prepare tissue samples, take blood samples, and execute laboratory tests, such as urinalysis and blood counts. Clean and sterilize instruments and materials and maintain equipment and machines. May assist a veterinarian during surgery.
129,140 people do this job in the US. $47,380 a year.
of the working time. Estimate.
- 15%
- 2%
- 82%
Measured, from Anthropic's usage data (2025). Counts help on part of a task.
On the chosen pace and reliability. Estimate.
Share of the working time within reach, now to 2030
What each choice means: , , , , . Every pace starts from .
At this date and pace, models finish tasks up to 4.4 h long four times in five.
How far this has come
With GPT-4, measured in March 2023, 0% of this job's working time was within reach at . With Claude 3.7 Sonnet, measured in February 2025, 1%. With Claude Mythos Preview (early), measured in April 2026, 15%. Today's estimate: 15%.
A backcast: today's task data with the best model METR had measured by each date. It shows how fast the models have moved, not what anyone forecast at the time.
The tasks
Sorted by . 31 tasks from .
| Task | Kind | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Perform laboratory tests on blood, urine, or feces, such as urinalyses or blood counts, to assist in the diagnosis and treatment of animal health problems.Done several times a day by most who do it. | 7% | 29 min13 min to 1.1 h | Stays with people | |
| Clean kennels, animal holding areas, surgery suites, examination rooms, or animal loading or unloading facilities to control the spread of disease.Done hourly or more by most who do it. | 6% | 25 min8 min to 1.1 h | Stays with people | |
| Prepare and administer medications, vaccines, serums, or treatments, as prescribed by veterinarians.Done hourly or more by most who do it. | 5% | 17 min8 min to 29 min | Stays with people | |
| Bathe animals, clip nails or claws, and brush or cut animals' hair.Done daily by most who do it. | 5% | 38 min17 min to 1.7 h | Stays with people | |
| Administer anesthesia to animals, under the direction of a veterinarian, and monitor animals' responses to anesthetics so that dosages can be adjusted.Done several times a day by most who do it. | 5% | 50 min25 min to 2.5 h | Stays with people | |
| Restrain animals during exams or procedures.Done hourly or more by most who do it. | 5% | 13 min4 min to 25 min | Stays with people | |
| Perform dental work, such as cleaning, polishing, or extracting teeth.Done more than weekly by most who do it. | 4% | 1.1 h25 min to 1.7 h | Stays with people | |
| Maintain laboratory, research, or treatment records, as well as inventories of pharmaceuticals, equipment, or supplies.Done daily by most who do it. | 4% | 29 min13 min to 1.3 h | 99%Half by now | |
| Care for and monitor the condition of animals recovering from surgery.Done several times a day by most who do it. | 4% | 29 min17 min to 1.3 h | Stays with people | |
| Clean and sterilize instruments, equipment, or materials.Done daily by most who do it. | 4% | 25 min13 min to 50 min | Stays with people | |
| Collect, prepare, and label samples for laboratory testing, culture, or microscopic examination.Done several times a day by most who do it. | 4% | 17 min8 min to 33 min | Stays with people | |
| Take and develop diagnostic radiographs, using x-ray equipment.Done several times a day by most who do it. | 4% | 29 min13 min to 1.1 h | Stays with people |
Within reach, per task: the share of the task's time whose instances are short enough for a model to finish at the chosen date, pace and reliability. Half by: the date half of that time comes within reach.
Jobs that share skills with this one
From O*NET's related occupations. Within reach now and by the end of 2028, long-run pace, four in five.
- Veterinary Assistants and Laboratory Animal Caretakers18% now, 19% by 2028
- Surgical Assistants0% now, 0% by 2028
- Medical Assistants41% now, 42% by 2028
- Cardiovascular Technologists and Technicians18% now, 18% by 2028
- Surgical Technologists3% now, 3% by 2028
- Emergency Medical Technicians7% now, 60% by 2028
Where this job works
The industry groups that employ the most of it (BLS, May 2025).
Where the most of these jobs are
The metro areas with the most people in it (BLS, May 2025).