Kennel Attendant Salary in Florida
Animal caretakers in Florida — SOC 39-2021, a federal occupation that spans all industries, not only veterinary practices — earned a median annual wage of $34,150 in the May 2025 estimates, $1,210 or 3% below the national median of $35,360.
That ranks 23rd of the 51 jurisdictions that publish a median.
The distinctive feature is a compressed middle: the Florida 25th-to-75th percentile band is $7,700 wide, against $10,230 nationally, while the 90th percentile is almost level with the national one.
What these figures cover
10th percentile
$28,950
25th percentile
$29,760
75th percentile
$37,460
90th percentile
$50,140
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 state estimates — Florida, SOC 39-2021 (Animal Caretakers). Retrieved 2026-09-16 from the BLS Public Data API.
How to read these figures
Florida vs. the national figures
The Florida median is below the national median by 3%. Among the 51 jurisdictions (states plus DC) where BLS publishes a Animal Caretakers (SOC 39-2021) median for May 2025, it ranks 23rd, and 3rd by estimated employment.
Differences are whole percentages, rounded half away from zero, computed from the figures shown.
Ahead at the floor, behind in the upper-middle
Florida's position against the national figures changes across the distribution.
At the bottom it is ahead: the 10th percentile, $28,950, is 6% above the national $27,250.
The 25th percentile is essentially level with the national one, the median is 3% lower, and the 75th percentile, $37,460, is 6% below the national $40,050.
Then the gap closes again — the Florida 90th percentile, $50,140, is essentially level with the national $50,060.
Benchmarking an offer against the national median alone would miss how much lower the Florida upper-middle sits.
A compressed middle band
Half of the Florida workers counted earned between $29,760 and $37,460 — a band $7,700 wide, against $10,230 nationally.
The full span from the 10th to the 90th percentile is $21,190, close to the national $22,810, because the Florida top end reaches the national level while the middle is compressed.
The median sits $4,390 above the 25th percentile and $3,310 below the 75th.
OEWS does not publish why a distribution has this shape, and this row spans every industry, so this page does not assign it a cause.
Holding an hourly posting against these figures
The Florida hourly median is $16.42, against $17.00 nationally — a 3% gap, matching the annual median.
The data set carries hourly pay at the median only, so it is the figure to hold an hourly posting against.
Before comparing a posted rate with the annual percentiles, ask how many hours a week the role is scheduled.
Against the Florida vet tech median
In the same release, veterinary technologists and technicians in Florida have a median of $46,380 — $12,230, or 36%, more than the all-industry animal caretaker median on this page.
The comparison sets a veterinary occupation against one that spans all industries, so it is context for someone weighing a move into technician work, not a measure of what veterinary kennel work pays.
Same release, same state: veterinary technologists and technicians (SOC 29-2056) in Florida have a median of $46,380 ($22.30/hr) — $12,230 above the animal caretakers median shown on this page. Vet tech salary in Florida →
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the median kennel attendant salary in Florida?
No federal wage series isolates kennel attendants.
The closest is SOC 39-2021, Animal Caretakers, which covers all industries; its Florida median annual wage was $34,150 in May 2025, or $16.42 an hour.
Half of the animal caretakers counted earned more and half earned less.
The national median for the occupation is $35,360, so Florida sits 3% below it.
What do the top-paid animal caretakers in Florida earn?
The Florida 90th percentile is $50,140, so one in ten animal caretakers counted across all industries earned more than that.
Nationally the 90th percentile is $50,060, essentially the same figure.
The 75th percentile tells a different story: $37,460 in Florida, 6% below the national $40,050, so the top tenth reaches national levels while the upper-middle does not.
How does this all-industry figure compare with vet tech pay in Florida?
In the same BLS release, veterinary technologists and technicians in Florida have a median of $46,380, which is $12,230 above the $34,150 median for animal caretakers across all industries — 1.4 times as much.
Only the technician figure is veterinary-specific, so treat the gap as context for a career decision, not as a promised raise.
How many animal caretakers work in Florida?
BLS estimates 17,210 animal caretakers were employed in Florida across all industries, 3rd among the 51 jurisdictions that publish a median.
BLS publishes no state count of how many of them work in veterinary settings, and the estimate is a headcount of people in jobs during the survey period, not a count of openings.
More Florida Kennel Attendant Resources
Sources
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 state estimates — Florida, SOC 39-2021 Animal Caretakers (all industries), and SOC 29-2056 for the technician comparison (BLS Public Data API) (retrieved 2026-09-16)
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 national estimates — SOC 39-2021 percentiles (via O*NET OnLine) (retrieved 2026-08-15)
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 national estimates — SOC 39-2021 hourly median (BLS Public Data API) (retrieved 2026-09-23)
Wage figures: BLS OEWS May 2025 state and national estimates, SOC 39-2021, retrieved 2026-09-16. Page last updated 2026-09-23.