Animal Attendant, Cranbourne

The Lost Dogs Home; Melbourne; On-site; AUD 42,000 - 54,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Discounts at veterinary clinics

Employee Assistance Program

Foster Care Program

Friendly, animal-centered work culture

Job summary

The Lost Dogs’ Home is seeking an Animal Attendant to join our team in Victoria. You will begin the day by preparing equipment and tending to dogs, cats, and other animals, ensuring they are fed, cleaned, and enriched. You may assist with health checks and medications under supervision.

You may also handle laundry, stock checks, and occasional transport between shelter and partners. A rewarding, hands-on role in a busy animal welfare environment with opportunities for growth and development.

Qualifications

• Experience working with animals in a professional capacity.
• Current driver’s licence.
• Sound emotional maturity and ethics regarding animals and welfare.
• Ability to perform physically demanding tasks and long shifts.

Responsibilities

• Clean, feed, and enrich the animals in the cattery, kennels, or other enclosures.
• Monitor animals for health or behavioural changes and report them to vets/nurses.
• Assist with transporting animals between the shelter and council partners when required.
• Maintain accurate records for all animals in care.

Skills

Animal handling

Initiative

Physical fitness

Health reporting

Education

Animal-related qualification (desired)

Job description

The Lost Dogs’ Home is one of Victoria’s most iconic animal welfare organisations, caring for around 18,000 lost and abandoned dogs and cats each year. We provide a wide range of animal welfare and community programs and services to help give animals and we pride ourselves on employing passionate individuals who demonstrate a strong personal connection to animals, the community and the cause.

The Role - Animal Attendant

Due to the growing demand for our animal care services as the number of surrendered and abandoned animals in Victoria increases, we are looking for Animal Attendants to join our team.

On a typical day as a Cranbourne Animal Attendant, you will clock in at 8:00 am (weekdays) or 7:00 am (weekends). You will review the area(s) you are working in, pick up the equipment needed for the day (radio, ear protection, PPE, etc.), and get started cleaning, feeding, and enriching our animals. You put your animal handling skills to work in our cattery, our kennels, or perhaps while looking after our pocket pets, birds, or other exotics that have come through our doors. As an integral part of our operation, our vets and vet nurses look to you to report any changes in health, or behaviour, and in some cases, to administer medication to our animals. You keep accurate records for all animals you care for. And you’re ready to help identify an animal for a lost and found inquiry if needed.

You might find you have time to tackle some laundry or do a food stock take. On some occasions, you might be doing some driving jobs including transporting animals between our shelter and council partners.

You finish your workday by 4:30 pm knowing you gave each animal you cared for the best chance at a happy healthy life – which is our vision at The Lost Dogs’ Home.

*Note, some Animal Attendants might be rostered on for our later shift which is 10:00 am to 6:00 pm.

In addition to the above, other duties may include:

• Moving animals to different locations across the shelter,
• Assisting members of the public with lost and found inquiries,
• Liaising with the public and council officers,
• Maintaining the shelter, including laundry, animal pens and vehicles,
• Keeping up-to-date records of all impounded animals,
• Recording food stock levels.

Skills and Experience:

• Experience working with animals in a professional capacity,
• A recognised animal-related qualification/s (desired),
• A current driver's licence,
• Sound emotional maturity and ethics regarding animals and their welfare,
• The ability to display initiative and motivation,
• A reasonable level of fitness and the ability and motivation to work in a physically demandingrole.

Culture:

People who work at The Lost Dogs’ Home enjoy working here because there are regular opportunities for our team members to catch up outside of work. Our social committee has organised Paint and Sip Night, Bowling, Smash Rooms, Trivia, and many more activities.

• A purposeful animal welfare career,
• Fantastic career development and opportunities,
• Discounts at our veterinary clinics
• Access to our Employee Assistance Program,
• Access to the Foster Care Program,
• A unique and friendly working environment (surrounded by animals!),
• Rewarding work with animals in need of a forever home.

The successful applicant will be required to complete satisfactory background screening checks.

The Lost Dogs’ Home is an equal-opportunity employer committed to providing a working environment that embraces and values diversity and inclusion. Only candidates with the right to work in Australia may apply for this position.