animal assisted therapist
Snapshot
Do you love animals and want to make a real difference in people's lives? As an animal assisted therapist, you’ll combine your passion for both to help individuals overcome challenges and improve their well-being through the power of animal interaction.
Animal assisted therapists work with individuals experiencing cognitive, motoric, or social-emotional difficulties. Your daily tasks involve carefully planned interventions using animals, often domesticated pets, to support patients' recovery and overall well-being. This requires a deep understanding of therapeutic techniques, animal behaviour, and the specific needs of each client. You’ll collaborate with other healthcare professionals and ensure the safety and welfare of both the patients and the animals involved.
- • Developing and implementing individualized animal assisted intervention plans.
- • Facilitating therapeutic sessions involving animals, monitoring patient responses and adjusting approaches as needed.
- • Assessing patient progress and documenting outcomes.
Do you love animals and want to make a real difference in people's lives? As an animal assisted therapist, you’ll combine your passion for both to help individuals overcome challenges and improve their well-being through the power of animal interaction.
Could animal assisted therapist fit you?
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Do you enjoy tasks that require Integrity?
Do you enjoy tasks that require Attention to Detail?
Future Outlook for animal assisted therapist
The outlook for animal assisted therapist is exceptionally stable. While AI tools will assist with daily tasks, the core of this role relies on human judgment, resulting in a high resilience score of 85.4%.
How are these scores calculated?
The Resilience Score (0–100) estimates how structurally protected this occupation is from automation and AI disruption, based on task-level analysis. Higher scores mean more human-judgment-intensive tasks. AI Exposure shows the estimated percentage of task hours that current AI capabilities could affect. These are model-derived structural indicators, not predictions about individual job security.
How could animal assisted therapist change as AI adoption grows?
Human judgement, trust, and context remain strong protectors for this role.
How could animal assisted therapist change as AI adoption grows?
Human judgement, trust, and context remain strong protectors for this role.
How AI may change this role
Deterministic, model-based interpretation of current role signals — not a guarantee of replacement.
What still depends on people
This role remains strongly human-led where instruct animals for therapy purposes depends on trust, nuance, and real-world judgement.
Where AI may become a co-pilot
AI is more likely to assist supporting tasks such as recruit animal handlers, documentation, search, and workflow coordination.
Tasks most exposed to automation
Automation pressure appears selective rather than broad, with the strongest signal currently coming from Generative AI.
Detailed Analysis Vital Signs, AI Vectors & Megatrends
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Vital Signs, AI Vectors & Megatrends
Vital Signs
AI Exposure Vectors
0-100%Exposure to content generation, creative augmentation, and large language model tools
Exposure to workflow automation, decision-support software, and process digitisation
Exposure to physical automation, robotics, and sensor-driven task displacement
Exposure to AI-assisted analysis, pattern recognition, and predictive modelling tasks
Megatrend Signals
0-100%Model-derived scores. Indicates structural exposure to megatrends, not direct demand.
Technical Details
NexFuture™ v2.0 combines O*NET ability and activity profiles with ESCO skill group distributions and six global megatrend signals. Scores are probabilistic estimates, not guarantees. See the NexFuture™ Methodology White Paper for full details.
What people in this role usually do
Healthcare & Human Services
A typical day as a animal assisted therapist
09 09:00 · Morning assess the patient's therapeutic needs
10 10:30 · Mid-morning instruct animals for therapy purposes
12 12:00 · Midday recruit animal handlers
14 14:00 · Afternoon maintain healthcare user data confidentiality
15 15:30 · Late afternoon select therapy animals
17 17:00 · Wrap-up develop a collaborative therapeutic relationship
Task order is illustrative. Individual days vary.
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animal therapy
The involvement of animals in a treatment in order to improve the social, emotional or cognitive functioning of the patient.
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animal behaviour
The natural behavioural patterns of animals, i.e. how normal and abnormal behaviour might be expressed according to species, environment, human-animal interaction and occupation.
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behavioural therapy
The characteristics and foundations of behavioural therapy, which focuses on changing patients` unwanted or negative behaviour. It involves studying the present behaviour and the means by which this can be un-learned.
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evaluation of psychological performance
The characteristics of the methods used to assess psychological parameters.
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human psychological development
The human psychological development across the lifespan, theories of personality development, cultural and environmental influences, human behavior, including developmental crises, disability, exceptional behavior, and addictive behavior.
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palliative care
The methods of pain relief and quality of life improvement for the patients with serious illnesses.
- assistive instruments
- sociology
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maintain healthcare user data confidentiality
Comply with and maintain the confidentiality of healthcare users` illness and treatment information.
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provide health education
Provide evidence based strategies to promote healthy living, disease prevention and management.
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select therapy animals
Identify the right animal with the right temperament appropriate for the therapy.
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instruct animals for therapy purposes
Control animals in order to provide therapeutic treatments for psychologically or medically ill patients.
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recruit animal handlers
Select and instruct animal trainers in order to integrate the animals in the therapy.
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listen actively
Give attention to what other people say, patiently understand points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times; able to listen carefully the needs of customers, clients, passengers, service users or others, and provide solutions accordingly.
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assess the patient's therapeutic needs
Observe and assess the patient`s behaviour, attitudes and emotions in order to understand if and how their therapeutic needs can be met with a specific kind of therapy, collecting and analysing information on how the client makes, responds to, and relates to artistic stimulae. Relate this information to other aspects of the patient`s life.
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interact with healthcare users
Communicate with clients and their carer’s, with the patient’s permission, to keep them informed about the clients’ and patients’ progress and safeguarding confidentiality.
Skill DNA
Work personality traits and values that define this role
See whether this role fits your Career DNA
Take the free Career DNA assessment to see how animal assisted therapist aligns with your interests, work style, and future path. In less than 10 minutes, you will get a personalized fit signal and a roadmap for what to do next.
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Where does animal assisted therapist fit?
Similarity scores based on skill overlap from ESCO data.
Frequently asked questions
- What kind of animals are typically used in animal assisted therapy?
- While dogs are most common, animal assisted therapy can involve a variety of animals including cats, horses, rabbits, and even birds, depending on the patient’s needs and the therapist’s expertise. The animal’s temperament and suitability for therapeutic interaction are carefully assessed.
- What skills or qualities are important for success as an animal assisted therapist?
- Beyond a passion for animals, successful therapists demonstrate strong communication and interpersonal skills, empathy, patience, and the ability to adapt to changing situations. Understanding of animal behaviour and training techniques is also crucial, as is the ability to work collaboratively within a healthcare team.
- Is it common to work in private practice as an animal assisted therapist?
- While this occupation is primarily employee-based, working in private practice is also a common option. Many animal assisted therapists establish their own practices, offering services directly to clients or collaborating with various healthcare facilities.