Natural Animal Nutrition Careers
The complete career guide to be an Animal Nutritionist: salary, job growth, employers, best schools, and education you may need to get started.
Animal nutritionists ensure all types of animals—domestic, farm, and zoo animals—are fed a nutritious diet. They may work for formulate recipes for animal food that are tasty, healthy, and cost-friendly, or they may conduct testing of animal food to determine if the food provides the necessary nutrition.
Animal nutritionists are concerned with the diets of all types of animals, including domestic, farm, and zoo animals. They may work for pet food manufacturing companies and help develop pet food recipes that provide adequate nutrition, are appealing to pets, and are inexpensive enough to encourage purchases. In this role, they may also be responsible for conducting tests of produced pet foods on an ongoing basis to ensure no chemicals or bacteria are present that would risk animal health.
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In agriculture, animal nutritionists are concerned with the nutrition of livestock. They may consult with farm owners and managers to help them find more cost-effective ways to provide nutrition to the animals in their care. For plant-eating animals, an animal nutritionist may recommend moving animals to larger spaces with greater quantities of grass, or they may recommend foods that substitute grass-fed diets when weather or climate conditions don’t support natural eating habits.
In zoos, animal nutritionists are responsible for establishing diet plans for exotic animals. They are experts in the natural diets of exotic animals in the wild and use that knowledge to formulate feeding plans that zookeepers can follow to ensure captive animals get the right amount of nutritious food. For example, animal nutritionists may work with breeders to ensure enough mice are available to feed a zoo’s population of snakes, or they may teach zoo caretakers about the eating habits of walruses.
Most animal nutritionists work full-time schedules, but the role isn’t necessarily a normal 9-5. Animal nutritionists who work for zoos or farms may need to be available in evenings or weekends to handle emergencies, and some are also required to travel for work.
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Animal nutritionists may work for farms, ranches, pet food manufacturers, zoos, aquariums, or pet stores. Additionally, many are self-employed and provide their services on a freelance basis.
The first step in becoming an animal nutritionist is to earn a bachelor’s degree in a related field. Common degrees pursued by aspiring animal nutritionists include animal science, agriculture, horticulture, biology, nutrition, or veterinary studies. Some colleges may offer programs that focus specifically on animal nutrition, and this is an ideal degree if available. With a bachelor’s degree, you should be able to find entry-level work in the field to begin accruing professional experience.
However, most animal nutritionists hold advanced degrees. While a master’s degree or Ph.D. is not an absolute requirement, it is more common for individuals in this career field to pursue graduate degrees. A graduate degree is usually required to work in research positions or to secure management or other upper-level roles. Many aspiring animal nutritionists pursue graduate veterinary degrees so that they can care for animals in all aspects of their health and nutrition.
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When working toward a career in animal nutrition, taking entry-level positions and internships at pet stores, zoos, aquariums, and in veterinary offices can provide valuable professional experience in the field. While pursuing undergraduate and/or graduate degrees, aspiring animal nutritionists who work to gain professional experience in the field will have an edge over unexperienced candidates when applying for open animal nutritionist roles after graduation.
We’ve provided you the following to learn more about this career. The salary and growth data on this page comes from recently published Bureau of Labor Statistics data while the recommendations and editorial content are based on our research.
How do Animal Nutritionist salaries stack up to other jobs across the country? Based on the latest jobs data nationwide, Animal Nutritionist's can make an average annual salary of $71, 830, or $35 per hour. On the lower end, they can make $46, 180 or $22 per hour, perhaps when just starting out or based on the state you live in.
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Natural Animal Nutrition Careers And Employment
Here are the most common degrees for becoming an Animal Nutritionist. a is usually recommended and specifically a degree or coursework that prepares you for the particular field, see below.
How does Animal Nutritionist job growth stack up to other jobs across the country? By 2024, there will be a change of 300 jobs for a total of 3, 200 people employed in the career nationwide. This is a 10.3% change in growth over the next ten years, giving the career a growth rate nationwide of Above Average.
Generate your free SmartPlan™ to identify colleges you like, and potential ways to save on a degree or certification program toward your career with courses, offers, and much more!Agriculture holds a whole host of opportunities in terms of career paths, but many people often forget about the behind the scenes work that goes on when it comes to animal care. If you'd love to work with animals but would prefer more of a balance between the farmyard and the lab, then one of many animal feed jobs could be for you.
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A particularly popular option is becoming an animal nutritionist, which is a highly valuable role that ensures the health and well-being of livestock.
Just like a nutritionist for humans, you'll be focusing on how the diet of animals impacts their overall health. It's key to ensure that the types of food animals are eating benefits them in the best possible way, particularly as they'll provide food sources for humans later.
It's up to you whether you decide to focus on a particular type of animal and specialise, or whether you want to work on nutrition across the board. Many nutritionists even branch out into working with zoos and pets, though it's in agriculture where the bulk of your efforts are likely to be needed.
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Being an animal nutritionist isn't quite as simple as making a meal plan and monitoring the amount of food animals are being given. You'll be involved with formulating feeds in labs, using both nutritional and chemical information to determine the best combinations for specific purposes. Different feeds focus on optimising various things, such as performance, overall health, reproduction and growth.
In the lab, sophisticated software is used to aid diet formulation. At times, the role of an animal nutritionist can be quite technical, especially when looking at certain disorders and illnesses that require special attention. This work will be conducted alongside veterinary surgeons for additional insight.
You'll also work closely with farmers to determine the needs of their livestock and any problems they might be having. Together, you can find a diet plan that works best for the animals in question, as well as the environment and economy. But the work of a nutritionist doesn't end here, as it's important to monitor the efficacy of plans and feeds put in place. Research is a large part of being able to improve feeding systems and agriculture on a wider scale.
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This also means staying on top of the latest developments in your industry. It's important to be aware of other work that's going on as well as changes to regulations in animal feed. These regulations must always be upheld to ensure livestock is later suitable for human consumption. Harmful chemicals or foods from unsatisfactory sources could prove to be damaging to agricultural produce and those who consume it.
Like with most jobs in agriculture, you're unlikely to be working regular hours. When making a trip to a farm you may be needed early in the morning or later in the evening, and don't expect weekends to be free all the time either.
In terms of your working environment, it can be varied, from on-site at the farm to in a lab or an office. Some animal nutritionists work from home, acting as consultants to those requesting advice. Although research and hands-on work is all a part of the role, day to day it involves a lot of independent work.
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However, animal feed companies also employ nutritionists which is probably a more common starting point. Although pursuing a freelance route is a consideration for the future, it's always best to build up experience with a company beforehand.
Due to the technical nature of the role, it's helpful to have at least an undergraduate degree in a subject related to nutrition or animal care. More specialised roles will require a PhD, though many people decide to gain work experience in a more junior position before considering moving onto these. It's also worth considering becoming registered with the Association for Nutrition, which is available to those with a degree in nutrition. Although there are no new skills you'll gain as a result, employers are often impressed by this extra layer of credibility.
Arguably, more than ever, the agricultural industry has a need for animal nutritionists. With growing concerns over the use of antibiotics in animal feed, it's essential that there's extensive research and development within the industry to make sure food remains safe for the population. Organic feed isn't always the answer,
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