Kennel Attendant Salary in Virginia
Animal caretakers in Virginia — SOC 39-2021, a federal occupation that spans all industries, not only veterinary practices — earned a median annual wage of $34,380 in the May 2025 estimates, 3% below the national median of $35,360.
That ranks 21st of the 51 jurisdictions that publish a median.
The distinctive feature is the shape: Virginia pays 3% above the national figure at the 10th percentile, then falls further behind at every point above it.
What these figures cover
10th percentile
$28,050
25th percentile
$29,490
75th percentile
$38,120
90th percentile
$46,180
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 state estimates — Virginia, SOC 39-2021 (Animal Caretakers). Retrieved 2026-09-16 from the BLS Public Data API.
How to read these figures
Virginia vs. the national figures
The Virginia 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 21st, and 6th by estimated employment.
Differences are whole percentages, rounded half away from zero, computed from the figures shown.
Ahead at the floor, further behind at every point above
Virginia's position against the national figures inverts as you move up the distribution.
The 10th percentile is ahead: $28,050, 3% above the national $27,250.
From there the state slips — the 25th percentile is 1% below the national figure, the median 3% below, the 75th percentile $1,930 or 5% below the national $40,050 — and the gap is widest at the 90th percentile: $46,180, $3,880 or 8% below the national $50,060.
An offer benchmarked against the national median alone understates how much lower the top of the Virginia distribution sits.
A compressed range, with the median above its middle
Half of the Virginia workers counted earned between $29,490 and $38,120 — a 25th-to-75th band $8,630 wide, against $10,230 nationally.
The 10th-to-90th span is $18,130, well inside the national $22,810, because the Virginia ceiling pulls in far more than the floor does.
The median sits $4,890 above the 25th percentile and $3,740 below the 75th, in the upper half of its own 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 Virginia hourly median is $16.53, against $17.00 nationally — a 3% gap that matches the annual one.
The data set carries hourly pay at the median only, so this 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 Virginia vet tech median
In the same release, veterinary technologists and technicians in Virginia have a median of $52,090 — $17,710, or 52%, 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 Virginia have a median of $52,090 ($25.04/hr) — $17,710 above the animal caretakers median shown on this page. Vet tech salary in Virginia →
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the median kennel attendant salary in Virginia?
No federal wage series isolates kennel attendants.
The closest is SOC 39-2021, Animal Caretakers, which covers all industries; its Virginia median annual wage was $34,380 in May 2025, or $16.53 an hour.
Half of the animal caretakers counted earned more and half earned less.
The national median for the occupation is $35,360, so Virginia sits 3% below it.
What do the top-paid animal caretakers in Virginia earn?
The Virginia 90th percentile is $46,180, so one in ten animal caretakers counted across all industries earned more than that.
Nationally the 90th percentile is $50,060, so the Virginia top tenth sits 8% below the national figure.
The 75th percentile shows the same direction: $38,120, 5% below the national $40,050.
How does this all-industry figure compare with vet tech pay in Virginia?
In the same BLS release, veterinary technologists and technicians in Virginia have a median of $52,090, which is $17,710 above the $34,380 median for animal caretakers across all industries — 1.5 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 Virginia?
BLS estimates 10,070 animal caretakers were employed in Virginia across all industries, 6th 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 Virginia Kennel Attendant Resources
Sources
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 state estimates — Virginia, 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.