Will AI replace Animal Control Workers?
Estimated risk score: 34 out of 100
Lower replacement risk
Estimate from published task research, not reviewed by a person · how we estimate
Within about 19 points for 4 in 5 of the jobs we checked (15 to 53).
For the occupation as a whole, from ratings of its 16 O*NET tasks published in 2023 and calibrated to our hand scores. A specialty inside it can sit higher or lower.
O*NET-SOC 33-9011.00 · Protective Service
Tasks rated in 2023 as ones AI could do or speed up
Tasks a GPT-4-class model could do, or do in half the time or less: 4 of its 16 rated tasks. In O*NET’s words.
- Answer inquiries from the public concerning animal control operations.
- Contact animal owners to inform them that their pets are at animal holding facilities.
- Write reports of activities, and maintain files of impoundments and dispositions of animals.
- Prepare for prosecutions related to animal treatment, and give evidence in court.
Tasks rated in 2023 as not sped up by AI
Tasks such a model was rated as not speeding up or taking over: 9 of its 16 rated tasks; the first 6 are shown. In O*NET’s words.
- Capture and remove stray, uncontrolled, or abused animals from undesirable conditions, using nets, nooses, or tranquilizer darts as necessary.
- Clean facilities and equipment such as dog pens and animal control trucks.
- Euthanize rabid, unclaimed, or severely injured animals.
- Remove captured animals from animal-control service vehicles and place animals in shelter cages or other enclosures.
- Supply animals with food, water, and personal care.
- Examine animal licenses, and inspect establishments housing animals for compliance with laws.
What the job is
Handle animals for the purpose of investigations of mistreatment, or control of abandoned, dangerous, or unattended animals.
Also called: Animal Services Officer, Animal Enforcement Officer, ACO (Animal Control Officer), Animal Park Code Enforcement Officer, ACO, Dog Warden, Dog Catcher, Humane Agent.
Source. This site includes information from the O*NET 30.1 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. (O*NET, CC BY 4.0.) Task ratings: Eloundou, Manning, Mishkin and Rock (2023), “GPTs are GPTs: An Early Look at the Labor Market Impact Potential of Large Language Models”, data used under the MIT licence (licence texts). Our change: we averaged the ratings over this occupation’s tasks and calibrated them to our 0–100 scale. It is not a prediction about any one person and not career advice. Disagree? Write to hello@yourstopwashit.com. How we estimate