Animal Care Technician - Transport Hub
Austin Pets Alive! (APA!) is one of Austin's most dynamic and best-loved nonprofits. The organization is the leader in the no kill movement nationally and is considered a national thought leader in animal welfare. APA! locally rescues, treats, and adopts out 10,000 homeless dogs and cats each year, providing the safety net for Austin's most at-risk shelter pets, which helps Austin to be a no-kill city, while also assisting other communities in saving homeless animals. The organization is distinguished by the scrappiness of its grassroots, non-traditional community-based animal rescue work.
The organization continues to innovate best practices to save lives and teaches its renowned lifesaving model through American Pets Alive!, APA!'s national division. In 2020, AmPA! began the Human Animal Support Services (HASS) project, a collaborative movement of more than 10,000 animal welfare professionals working in nearly 1,900 organizations. Austin Pets Alive! works through American Pets Alive! to expand Austin's life-saving model throughout the nation. Part of this includes facilitating the relocation of animals from our under-resourced partner shelters to communities with more life-saving capacity.
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The Transport Care Technician is responsible for ensuring all dogs and cats in the Transport program at APA! have a clean living environment, are fed, watered, and have all their needs met. This position works closely with the Transport Coordinators in assisting with unloading and loading animals on and off transports, kennel preparation, and van preparation. This role will work closely with a team of volunteers to complete daily tasks. This role is focused on animal care and transport program support, and is fundamental to the transport program's success and lifesaving impact in Texas shelters.
ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:
- Perform basic observations and report the general behavior and health of animals in all
- departments of the program
- Adhere to strict sanitation protocols specific to each program
- Ability to clean animal habitats including
- ○ scooping litter boxes
- ○ removing feces
- ○ replacing soiled bedding
- ○ disposing of litter/debris
- ○ scrubbing and sanitizing rooms and/or kennels
- ○ replenishing water bowls
- ○ sanitizing play yards
- Perform deep clean tasks on a regularly scheduled basis
- Sweep and mop floors daily
- Empty trash in all assigned areas
- Wash and sanitize dirty litter boxes
- Wash and sanitize dirty food and water bowls
- Wash dirty laundry
- Restock essential supplies
- Maintain special feeding protocols for certain animals
- Work collaborative and in a positive manner with all volunteers and staff
- Walk dogs as needed and rotate into play yards
- Set up dog and cat kennels, with fresh water, food, and bedding
- Meet transporters bringing dogs and cats to APA and assist with loading/unloading
- Customer service and help potential adopters, volunteers, and visitors
- Walk dogs and take cats to their appropriate kennels, and ensure they have kennel cards
- Assist with van and kennel cleaning and preparation for transport
- Assist with transport load ups, for both vans and flights
- Occasionally able to transport animals safely and humanely between locations in APA! Transport vehicle
- Assist Veterinarians with holding dogs/cats for physical exams, and other treatments as necessary for transport animals
OTHER FUNCTIONS:
- Attend and participate in all required training sessions and meetings
- Maintain open and consistent communication with Program Manager or designee, supervisor, and other colleagues
- Able to react to change productively and perform other related duties as assigned
- Able to work evenings, weekends, and holidays as needed
- Able to work in a high volume, fast-paced, high-stress environment
- Comfortable working both autonomously when given goals and deadlines
QUALIFICATIONS, SKILLS, & EXPECTATIONS:
- Must embody APA!'s core values of innovation, respect, drive, resourcefulness, and inclusion
- Must be able to handle all animals with kindness at all times without exception
- Act with integrity at all times
- Must be able to work in a high volume, fast paced, high stress environment. Self motivated, great attitude, and team-oriented
- Work efficiently with minimal oversight to complete all duties and responsibilities
- Safely work with and around animals of varying temperaments
- Attention to detail, able to follow directions
- Timely and good attendance
- Effectively communicate with others in person, on the phone, and through email
- Basic experience in animal handling and care
- Basic knowledge of common animal health conditions
- Basic knowledge of animal behavior
- Attend and participate in all required training sessions and meetings
- Maintain open and consistent communication with Program Manager or designee, supervisor,
- and other colleagues
- Willing and committed to working well with volunteers and staff in all roles
- Desire to engage in regular networking and partnership building
- Solution-oriented, positive attitude when encountering challenges or barriers
- Interest in growing and expanding a program on a state and national level
- Must have a valid driver's license and insurance
PHYSICAL JOB REQUIREMENTS:
- Must be able to routinely lift 40-50 pounds
- Must be able to work around animals (including diseased, injured, and/or potentially aggressive animals), loud noises, chlorine or other chemicals, and inclement weather
- Must be able to comfortably interact with cats/dogs of various health levels, including zoonotic diseases such as ringworm, scabies, intestinal parasites, etc.
- Must be able to push/pull a large cart over uneven ground
- Be able to bend and use your arms in a repetitive manner
- Can be on your feet for an entire 8 hour shift
- Must have physical strength to perform cleaning duties quickly and on schedule
- Must be able to walk big dogs that pull and jump
- Must be able to visually observe people and animals from up to 150 feet away
- Ability to hear normal speech at close contact and shouting up to 150 feet away with the ability to hear and discern dog vocalizations both soft and loud
- Prolonged periods of sitting at a desk and working on a computer
- Must be able to focus in a loud and busy environment despite distractions
- Must be able to walk around shelter as needed - uneven ground, keeping a safe distance from dogs and handlers
- Will sit, stand, walk, talk, hear, stoop, bend, stretch, squat, kneel, grasp, grip, put fingers together firmly and reach above and below shoulder level, lift and/or carry up to 50 pounds and push and pull up to 50 pounds for situations of moving supplies and setting up for events; repetitively use hands to operate computers; flex the neck upward and downward; twist the neck and the waist.
WORK ENVIRONMENT:
- Rapid pace with exposure to potential hazards including animal waste, disinfectants
- High levels of noise, dogs barking
- Potential for animal bites and scratches and diseases that can be transmitted from animals
- to people
- May use own transportation to travel and transport
- Occasional after-hours or weekend work will be required to support program needs
- Exposure to unpleasant odors.
- Potential for animal bites and scratches and diseases that can be transmitted from animals to people
TIME COMMITMENT: This is a part-time position of up to 29 hours per week. Occasional overnight shifts are required as some transport flights load in the early hours of the morning.
COMPENSATION: $17.00/hr
WORKING RELATIONSHIPS: This position reports directly to the Animal Care Manager, or another individual designated by APA, and works closely with the Transport Coordinators.
LOCATIONS:
- APA! Transport Hub Facility in Elgin: 929 Old McDade Rd, Elgin, TX
- May travel to offsite locations as needed
BENEFITS
All employees are eligible for access to an Employee Assistance Program, Discounted Perks Programs, fully subsidized Pet Insurance and time off incentives.
EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES AND ACCOMMODATIONS STATEMENT
Austin Pets Alive! is an equal employment opportunity employer and we value having staff who come from communities that are most impacted by the issues we engage on. We especially encourage people of color, LGBTQ people, women, transgender and gender non-conforming people, and people with disabilities to apply.
Austin Pets Alive! does not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law. Austin Pets Alive! is committed to creating a dynamic work environment that values diversity and inclusion, respect and integrity, community focus, and innovation.
Pay Range: $17 per hour