The IRS defines the term “qualified public safety employee” as an employee of a State or of a political subdivision of a State whose principal duties include services requiring specialized training in the area of police protection, firefighting services, or emergency medical services.
See
https://www.irs.gov/irb/2007-05_IRB/ar11.html .
This is a gray area. The answer would depend on the level of training required for the job. Some cities have complete job descriptions that address this issue by stating that animal control officers are not public safety officers. See
http://agency.governmentjobs.com/sunnyvale/default.cfm?action=viewclassspec&ClassSpecID=857481.
While other municipalities state that animal control officers are considered public safety officers. See
http://www.cityofenglewood.org/filestorage/1441/1468/2265/1487/1576/Municipal_Animal_Control_Frequen... .
