Spirit needed by animal trainer (4)

I believe the answer is:

malt

'spirit' is the definition.
(malt whisky is a spirit)

'needed by animal trainer' is the wordplay.
'needed by' indicates a hidden word (the solution letters are needed to write the clue).
'MALT' is hidden within 'animal trainer'.

(Other definitions for malt that I've seen before include "Grain prepared for brewing or distilling" , "strong drink" , "Barley product used in brewing" , "Ingredient of beer" , "Kind of Scotch whisky" .)

I've seen this clue in The Guardian.

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