I'm a kennel technician with a supervisory role, in a supremely understaffed lodging/dog daycare environment. We do lodging and 12 hour daycare for dogs with group play as well as private care for dog-aggressive AND human-aggressive pups. I won't lie, I make more than industry standard, however $18/hr is still not much in my part of Maryland.
The issue is, we have an upsettingly understaffed department, and the standards set by upper management are too high for what we do. So either they put us in a position where some customers don't get their “package deal” regarding playtime, or the pups who's parents have less money wouldn't even get out to use the bathroom without us forsaking the high paying customers and getting written up for not reaching the unrealistic goals set. Some times it's 2-3 humans to 100-150 dogs.
Besides that, I'm often asked to step in and help our veterinary staff with restraints and assists on vaccinations/grooming on aggressive dogs. Ive been bit 3 times in 9 months and needed vaccinations bevause of it. Other times i havent sought medical care bc its too much a hassle. That would be fine, however I'm not compensated the same and have wanted to explore a VT career but I'm “too essential” to my current department.
To be honest I would understand that my department is hard to staff if it wasn't for the intense nepotism that's occurred over the time I've been here and before.
It's still good pay, it's got decent benefits, but I really think I'm getting the short stick. If anyone who works in vet med or kennel tech/dog daycare has any advice I'd love to hear your experiences.