Dog Wellbeing Technician

Guide Dogs; Belfast City District; Hybrid; GBP 21,000 - 25,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

26 days leave

Real Living Wage

Flex pot

Annual leave buy/sell

Discounts & cash-back

Pension scheme

Job summary

Guide Dogs is seeking a Dog Wellbeing Technician for Belfast on a full-time 35-hour week, working 8am–6pm, Monday to Friday. The role focuses on canine health, wellbeing and specialist care, including supporting volunteers and handling duties in a kennel environment.

You will identify health concerns, raise them promptly and maintain records while ensuring high standards of care and safety. Local travel and lone-working are part of the role.

Qualifications

• A qualification in animal care, experience or equivalent work-based experience.
• Able to undertake physical demands of the role, walking distances unaided and able to handle and walk with a range of dog breeds, ages, sizes and temperaments.
• Able to meet the travel requirements of the role which involves transporting dogs on a regular basis; UK driving may be required or alternative arrangements.

Responsibilities

• Manage the care of a group of dogs in a dog accommodation area; meet their routine husbandry needs.
• Work in line with national dog wellbeing practices and procedures, including specialist health care.
• Monitor and maximise dog wellbeing; identify health concerns and escalate as needed.
• Support the development and maintenance of the dog's behaviour using handling techniques.
• Lead and support volunteers in dog wellbeing and helping them complete tasks.
• Maintain accurate records and interpret health data to identify concerns or trends.
• Transport dogs across the region for health-related appointments with internal/external bodies.

Skills

Animal care

Dog handling

Canine health

Behaviour understanding

Education

Animal care qualification

Job description

About The Role

Pawsome Careers - Make Every Day Meaningful

Come and join us as a proactive and purposeful Dog Wellbeing Technician and be part of something life‑changing - helping people with sight loss live the life they choose.

As a Dog Wellbeing Technician at Guide Dogs, you’ll play a vital role inensuring the highest standards of dog health, wellbeing and specialist care. TheDog Wellbeing Technician will be an expert in canine wellbeing and husbandry,with strong knowledge of dog health, behaviour, welfare standards and positivehandling techniques. You’ll use your expertise to make informed decisions,identify and elevate health concerns, and coach colleagues and volunteers inbest practice dog care. Our Dog Wellbeing Technicians play a huge part inensuring everything we do enables us to deliver on our purpose and exceedexpectations.

Based at our Belfast office, this is a full-time role working 35 hours per week. You will work alongside one other Dog Tech, Monday to Friday, on a rota that covers the hours between 8am and 6pm. There is an element of lone working in the role, and other duties can include welcoming visitors in our reception area and money handling.

Key Responsibilities

• Responsible for managing the care of a group of dogs in adog accommodation area, ensuring their routine husbandry needs are met.
• Work in line with national dog wellbeing practices andprocedures, including the provision of specialist health care.
• Monitor and maximise the wellbeing of dogs. Identify healthconcerns, make appropriate decisions and elevate in a timely manner.
• Support the development and maintenance of the dog'sbehaviour using current guide dogs handling techniques.
• Lead and support volunteers in dog wellbeing and fosteringto complete their role and tasks to the best of their ability. Providetechnical input to support their preparation, performance and development.
• Maintain accurate and up to date records. Interpret healthdata and identify concerns/trends within the local dog population.
• Transport dogs across the region for health-relatedappointments with internal and external bodies.

You

You’ll have a person‑centred, expert and optimisticapproach to your work, grounded in a strong understanding of animal wellbeingand dog care principles. You’llenjoy working in a kennel and dog accommodation environment, supportingcolleagues and volunteers, with a dedicated focus on dog health, wellbeing,behaviour and positive handling techniques, whilst being committed todelivering the highest standards of care. You’ll act with integrity and honestyin everything you do.

Skills and Competencies

• A qualification in animal care, experience or equivalentrelevant work-based experience.
• Able to undertake physical demands of the role, walkingdistances unaided and able to handle and walk with a range of dog breeds, ages,sizes and temperaments.
• Able to meet the travel requirements of the role whichinvolves transporting dogs on a regular basis. In the absence of a full validUK Driving License, you will be expected to demonstrate how you will fulfilthis aspect of the role via alternative means.
• Experience of working in a kennel type environment - paidemployment or voluntary.
• Experience of supporting a customer serving basedorganisation.
• Proven understanding of the core principles of animalwellbeing.
• Demonstrable basic understanding of health and safety andsafeguarding.
• Proven understanding of dog care principles and healthconditions.

Benefits

We would n’t be able to change the lives of people with sight loss without our people. That’s why it’s important for us to provide a variety of benefits that reward our colleagues in a way that suits them and recognises the hard work and contribution that they make.

• 26 days annual leave. After three years ofcontinuous employment, this increases to 28 days plus bank holidays.
• Real Living Wage Employer
• Flex pot - equal to a proportion of yourannual salary to use on our wide variety of flexible benefits
• The option to buy and sell annual leave
• Discounts and cash‑back scheme
• Excellent pension scheme (We will match yourpension contributions plus 2% up to a maximum of 9% employer contribution)
• And lots more!

About Us

OurCommitment to Diversity and Inclusion

Behind Every Guide Dog Is Someone Like You - We’re passionate about creating an inclusive workplace that celebrates and values diversity. Bring your whole selfto work regardless of age, disability, gender identity or reassignment, maritalor civil partner status, pregnancy or maternity, race, nationality, ethnic ornational origin, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation. We don’t wantyou to ‘fit’ our culture, we want you to enrich it.

Safer Recruitment

GuideDogs follow Safer Recruitment practices to ensure we are safeguarding the vulnerable people we work with. As part of this, we require a full work history with any gaps accounted for & a minimum of 2 professional referee details fully covering the past 5 years. If you are applying for a disclosure role, please note that you will be required to undergo an enhanced DBS check and signup to the DBS update service.

At GuideDogs, we believe in fair and equitable hiring practices. A criminal record will not automatically disqualify an applicant from consideration for a position. Each case will be evaluated individually. We encourage all candidates to disclose relevant information, and we assure you that it will be handled confidentially and fairly.