Kennel Attendant Salary in New Hampshire
Animal caretakers in New Hampshire — SOC 39-2021, a federal occupation that spans all industries, not only veterinary practices — earned a median annual wage of $34,790 in the May 2025 estimates, 2% below the national median of $35,360.
That ranks 19th of the 51 jurisdictions that publish a median.
The distinctive feature is a wide band: the 25th-to-75th percentile range runs $13,430 against $10,230 nationally — the 75th percentile 7% above the national figure, the 25th percentile and median 2% under theirs.
What these figures cover
10th percentile
$27,830
25th percentile
$29,290
75th percentile
$42,720
90th percentile
$51,040
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 state estimates — New Hampshire, SOC 39-2021 (Animal Caretakers). Retrieved 2026-09-16 from the BLS Public Data API.
How to read these figures
New Hampshire vs. the national figures
The New Hampshire median is below the national median by 2%. Among the 51 jurisdictions (states plus DC) where BLS publishes a Animal Caretakers (SOC 39-2021) median for May 2025, it ranks 19th, and 37th by estimated employment.
Differences are whole percentages, rounded half away from zero, computed from the figures shown.
Behind in the lower middle, ahead in the upper-middle
New Hampshire's position against the national figures changes across the distribution.
The lower middle sits slightly under: the 25th percentile, $29,290, is 2% below the national $29,820, and the median of $34,790 is 2% below the national median of $35,360.
The 10th percentile holds its own at $27,830, 2% above the national $27,250.
Above the middle the state pulls ahead: the 75th percentile, $42,720, is 7% above the national $40,050, and the 90th percentile, $51,040, stays 2% above the national $50,060.
Benchmarking an offer against the national median alone would miss how much stronger the New Hampshire upper-middle is.
A wider band than the national one
Half of the New Hampshire workers counted earned between $29,290 and $42,720 — a band $13,430 wide, against $10,230 nationally.
The widening is not spread evenly: the lower edge sits close to the national figures, and the upper edge pulls away from them.
The full span from the 10th to the 90th percentile is $23,210, close to the national $22,810.
The median sits $5,500 above the 25th percentile and $7,930 below the 75th, so it falls in the lower half of the band.
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 New Hampshire hourly median is $16.73, against $17.00 nationally — a 2% 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.
What the employment estimate does and does not say
BLS estimates 1,810 animal caretakers were employed in New Hampshire across all industries, ranking the state 37th among the 51 jurisdictions that publish a median.
The estimate is a headcount of people in jobs during the survey period, not a count of openings, and it says nothing about how many hours they worked or whether the jobs are full time.
BLS publishes no state count of how many of them work in veterinary settings.
Against the New Hampshire vet tech median
In the same release, veterinary technologists and technicians in New Hampshire have a median of $48,780 — $13,990, or 40%, more than the all-industry animal caretaker median on this page.
The comparison sets a veterinary occupation against one that spans all industries, counting different workers, so it is context for someone weighing a move into technician work — not a raise anyone should expect, and not a measure of what veterinary kennel work pays.
Same release, same state: veterinary technologists and technicians (SOC 29-2056) in New Hampshire have a median of $48,780 ($23.45/hr) — $13,990 above the animal caretakers median shown on this page. Vet tech salary in New Hampshire →
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the median kennel attendant salary in New Hampshire?
No federal wage series isolates kennel attendants.
The closest is SOC 39-2021, Animal Caretakers, which covers all industries; its New Hampshire median annual wage was $34,790 in May 2025, or $16.73 an hour.
Half of the animal caretakers counted earned more and half earned less.
The national median for the occupation is $35,360, so New Hampshire sits 2% below it.
What do the top-paid animal caretakers in New Hampshire earn?
The New Hampshire 90th percentile is $51,040, so one in ten animal caretakers counted across all industries earned more than that.
Nationally the 90th percentile is $50,060, so the state sits 2% above it.
The 75th percentile is the stronger comparison: $42,720, 7% above the national $40,050 — the point where New Hampshire's distribution pulls furthest ahead of the national one.
How does this all-industry figure compare with vet tech pay in New Hampshire?
In the same BLS release, veterinary technologists and technicians in New Hampshire have a median of $48,780, which is $13,990 above the $34,790 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 New Hampshire?
BLS estimates 1,810 animal caretakers were employed in New Hampshire across all industries, 37th 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.
What does the low end of pay look like in New Hampshire?
The 10th percentile is $27,830 — 2% above the national $27,250 — so one in ten animal caretakers counted earned less than that.
The 25th percentile, $29,290, sits just under the national $29,820.
The bottom of the New Hampshire distribution therefore holds its own against the national figures, while the middle dips slightly below them.
More New Hampshire Kennel Attendant Resources
Sources
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 state estimates — New Hampshire, 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 2026-09-24.