Manager, Animal Services & Integrated Care

Calgary Humane Society; Calgary; On-site; CAD 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

100% employer-paid health and dental

Vision coverage

Employer-matched RSP contributions

Paid vacation, sick time, wellness and

Holiday and birthday day off

Professional development opportunities

Discounts on CHS services

Employee Assistance Program

Free on-site parking

Job summary

Calgary Humane Society (CHS) seeks a Manager, Animal Services & Integrated Care to lead the AWBS team, align wellness, behavioural programming, and volunteer-integrated operations.

The role focuses on force-free, evidence-based approaches, reducing stress, improving adoptability, and forecasting capacity to welcome animals in need. Collaboration with staff, volunteers, and partners is essential.

Qualifications

• Minimum 3 years’ experience in animal welfare or sheltering.
• Minimum 4 years in formal leadership with staff and volunteers.
• Hands-on multispecies handling and wellbeing practices.
• Experience designing operational workflows and pathways.

Responsibilities

• Design and lead the volunteer-integrated service model for AWBS.
• Integrate volunteers into AWBS operations with competency-based roles.
• Partner with the Volunteer Engagement team to scale meaningful opportunities.
• Mentor staff to effectively guide volunteers in a unified team.
• Maintain and elevate welfare standards across species and housing.

Skills

Leadership

Team management

Communication

Animal welfare

Decision making

Coaching

Data analysis

Tools

Microsoft 365

Shelter database systems

Job description

At Calgary Humane Society (CHS), we are dedicated to delivering individualized, humane support that enhances animal wellbeing and helps each animal move toward a successful placement. Reporting to the Director of Community Services and Pathway Planning, the Manager, Animal Services & Integrated Care provides leadership to the Animal Wellness & Behaviour Services team (AWBS), aligning wellness practices, behavioural programming, and a volunteerintegrated service model. This role helps ensure consistent, forcefree, evidencebased approaches that reduce stress, encourage behavioural progress, strengthen adoption outcomes, and expand capacity through the effective integration of trained volunteers alongside staff.

Rotation

• Tuesday to Saturday | 37.5 hours per week
• Shifts: 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and 10:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.

Salary

Competitive salary commensurate with combined experience and education.

Responsibilities

• Design and lead the volunteerintegrated service model for AWBS, including role design, onboarding, training, competency checks, quality assurance, and recognition.
• Integrate volunteers into AWBS operations in clearly defined, competencybased roles that expand capacity and support consistent service delivery.
• Partner with the Volunteer Engagement team to scale meaningful, animalfacing volunteer opportunities aligned with AWBS needs.
• Equip staff to effectively mentor, coach, and collaborate with volunteers in a unified team environment.
• Maintain and elevate standards for housing, handling, cleanliness, and overall welfare across species within AWBS.
• Build systems that ensure individualized wellness, behaviour, and stressreduction plans are implemented consistently and adjusted as animals progress.
• Guide the delivery of sciencebased, forcefree approaches that reduce stress, support behavioural recovery, and improve adoptability.
• Support populationmanagement decisions and maintain animal flow, helping forecast capacity and plan for intake so CHS can make space for the next animal in need.
• Lead the strategy in aligning wellness practices, behavioural programming, documentation, and daily routines.
• Unify AWBS practices, systems, and workflows to create a seamless experience for each animal, from intake through adoption.
• Translate observations and daily rounds into structured pathways with clear actions, timelines, milestones, and success metrics.
• Foster a culture of compassion, accountability, and evidencebased work across staff and volunteers.
• Working closely with the Animal Flow Specialist, oversee the development of individualized, historyinformed pathways that integrate medical, behavioural, and placement considerations.
• Lead the Behaviour function in creating structured enrichment and behaviour plans that promote measurable behavioural progress.
• Ensure all handling and interactions are intentional, humane, and consistent with positivereinforcement principles.
• Maintain and develop SOPs, policies, and safety standards for AWBS.
• Set goals with the Director; track key metrics and drive continuous improvement across wellness, behaviour, and volunteerintegrated operations.
• Ensure accurate documentation within shelter software systems.
• Support storytelling efforts by contributing program insights, welfare highlights, and behavioural updates.
• Represent CHS at donor events, volunteer events, community outreach, and media engagements as needed.
• Provide written content that reflects the impact and mission of AWBS and CHS’s broader work.

Education & Experience

• Minimum 3 years’ experience in animal welfare, sheltering, or related fields.
• Minimum 4 years of formal leadership experience with both staff and volunteer teams (or volunteerdependent operations).
• Handson experience with multispecies handling and wellbeing practices.
• Behaviour certification (e.g., CPDTKA, KPA) is an asset or willingness to obtain certification.
• Strong understanding of animal welfare, wellness, enrichment, and forcefree behavioural principles.
• Experience creating and improving operational workflows and pathway systems.
• Excellent coaching, mentorship, and teambuilding skills.
• Proficiency in Microsoft 365 and shelter database systems.
• Strong communication, analytical, and decisionmaking skills.

Core Competencies

• Compassionate, calm, and collaborative leadership style that builds trust.
• Flexible, resilient, and solutionsoriented in dynamic environments.
• Strong relationshipbuilding skills with staff, volunteers, and external partners.

Additional Requirements

• Valid Class 5 driver’s license and clean abstract.
• Successful candidate will be required to provide a police information check at their own expense to be arranged by Calgary Humane Society.
• Flexibility to work weekends and statutory holidays.

Physical Requirements

• Comfortable and capable of handling a variety of species (e.g., cats, dogs, rabbits, birds, reptiles, rodents).
• Ability to lift up to 50 lbs.
• Ability to perform repetitive motions of sitting, standing, reaching, lifting, squatting, bending, walking, and pulling.

What We Offer

• 100% employer-paid health and dental benefits for employees and their eligible dependants.
• Vision coverage and Wellness Spending Account.
• Employer-matched RSP contributions.
• Paid vacation, sick time, wellness days and flex days, plus a paid day off for your birthday.
• Professional development and career-growth opportunities.
• Discounts on CHS products and services, including adoption fees.
• Access to an Employee and Family Assistance Program and reduced-rate counselling services.
• Free on-site parking.
• A meaningful, mission-driven workplace where your work directly supports animals and people in the community.

Our Commitment to Inclusion

The people and families we serve are diverse, and Calgary Humane Society is committed to building an inclusive workplace that reflects the community around us. We believe that different identities, lived experiences, perspectives, and abilities strengthen our organization and help us better support animals and the people who care for them.

We welcome applications from all qualified candidates and particularly encourage applications from people who have historically faced barriers to employment. We are committed to an accessible and equitable recruitment process, and accommodation is available at any stage upon request.

We thank all applicants for their interest. Only those selected for an interview will be contacted. To ensure a fair and consistent recruitment process, we are unable to respond to telephone or email inquiries regarding applications.