Animal Care Specialist - Animal Services

Indian River County Board of County Commissioners; Gainesville (FL); On-site; USD 32,000 - 42,000; Full time

Job summary

Indian River County is seeking a Care Specialist to support veterinary care within the shelter environment. You will work closely with veterinarians and shelter staff to ensure animal well-being, conduct daily health checks, and monitor health and behavior.

Responsibilities include cleanliness of animal areas, aiding in adoptions, and providing excellent customer service to visitors, volunteers, and adopters.

Qualifications

• High school diploma or GED required.
• Six months of veterinary or animal handling experience preferred.
• Ability to follow instructions and work within timeframes.
• Able to interact professionally with visitors, volunteers, and adopters.

Responsibilities

• Conduct daily health checks on incoming animals and monitor health and behavior.
• Identify signs of illness or distress and report to veterinary team.
• Clean, sanitize, and maintain kennels, cages, and equipment.
• Assist with adoption process and support visitors, volunteers, and adopters.
• Provide basic animal care including feeding, watering, bathing, and grooming.

Skills

Animal care

Customer service

Teamwork

Record keeping

Communication

Education

High school diploma / GED

Six months veterinary/animal handling experience

Job description

Welcome, we are excited you are here.

Take a peek at what our beautiful County has to offer –

Indian River County

The Care Specialists plays a crucial role in supporting the veterinary care provided to animals within the shelter environment. Working closely with veterinarians, veterinary technicians and shelter staff, ensures the well‑being and health of animals under the shelter's care. The role involves conducting daily health checks on incoming animals and closely monitoring their health and behavior while in the shelter. It includes identifying and reporting signs of illness or distress to the veterinary team. Ensuring cleanliness and sanitation of animal areas and collaborating with shelter staff to enhance the animals' well‑being and adoptability are also essential duties. Assists with all aspects of the adoption process. Provide excellent customer service to visitors, volunteers, and adopters.

• Positively interacts with volunteers and promotes a team environment.
• Performs routine inspections of animals and their cages to monitor food consumption, behavior, symptoms of disease, and condition of confined animals for health and safety purposes; provides basic animal care, including bathing, feeding, and observing animal behavior, transports animals to a veterinarian’s office for medical testing and treatment as directed.
• Clean, sanitize, and disinfect kennels and cages, including food bowls and litter pans, sweeping and using a high‑pressure water hose to clean floors and walls using chemical disinfectants. Performs repair and routine maintenance of kennels, cages, exercise pens, and other facilities. Maintains and sanitizes equipment used, including vehicle assigned. Maintains accurate records of daily work activities and inventory on Animal Services software.
• Greets visitors to the shelter, answers questions, and assists visitors with their needs.
• Delivers excellent, non‑judgmental customer service to all visitors, adopters, fosters, and transfer partners in a friendly, informative and professional manner.
• Provides basic and routine care for animals per department guidelines, including feeding, watering, and light grooming.
• Supports animals with medical issues, which may include zoonotic disease, by medicating, treating, preparing special diets, observing and reporting, and assisting in the maintenance of required records.
• Provides socialization, enrichment, and exercise for animals as directed. These activities include but are not limited to dog walking, training and playgroup.
• Identifies behavioral issues and shares observations with team members and leaders. Follows behavior or training plans developed for specific animals.
• Cleans work areas and preserves physical appearance of buildings and grounds, including scooping, raking, sweeping, mopping, and trash removal. Notes maintenance or repairs needed and reports per protocol.
• Follows policies, procedures, and task lists for daily lifesaving outcome assignments, including accurate and timely communications, work completion, data entry, and recordkeeping.
• Strictly adheres to established safety procedures to protect self, co‑workers, and the general public.
• Attends job‑specific training classes as assigned by supervisor.

Education and Experience:

High school diploma / GED.

Six (6) months' work of veterinary experience/animal handling experience at an animal shelter, or equivalent combination of education and experience.

Licenses, Certifications, or Registrations:

• Valid Florida Driver’s License and a driving record acceptable to the insurance provider.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

Able to comprehend and follow oral and written instructions and complete tasks within assigned timeframes.

Able to resolve routine situations and problems.

Ability to work with, leash, kennel, walk, and handle dogs, including those with health and/or behavior conditions/concerns including shyness, fearfulness, and aggression; basic ability to identify and speak to medical and behavioral characteristics of dogs.

Basic knowledge and understanding of computer applications and software programs required to perform job duties.

Good written and verbal communication skills and interpersonal skills to be able to interact professionally and effectively with co‑workers, management, adopters, volunteers, and the public. Able to engage professionally during challenging conversations and accurately educate the public.

ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS:

Work is primarily performed indoors but requires moderate exposure to environmental changes (e.g., outdoor weather and/or field conditions, warehouses, garages, etc.), extreme noise, odors, fumes or airborne particles; dangerous animals, toxic and caustic chemicals, heights and/or dust.

This position requires some exposure or risk to physical health and/or physical safety (e.g., exposure to environmentally hazardous material, heavy equipment, etc.). This position may require the use of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and may include completing and successfully passing medical evaluations or clearances.

This position requires stooping, crouching, walking, pulling, lifting, grasping, hearing, visual acuity (i.e. seeing up close, seeing far away, depth perception), kneeling, reaching, pushing, talking, standing, climbing, finger movement, repetitive motions. This position requires dealing with animals, alive or dead, capturing, restraining, handling, lifting up to 50 lbs. and carrying up to 50lbs.

SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION:

This job description is not intended to be and should not be construed as an all‑inclusive list of all the responsibilities, skills, or working conditions associated with the position. While it is intended to accurately reflect the position activities and requirements, management reserves the right to modify, add, or remove duties and assign other duties as necessary. This job description does not constitute a written or implied contract of employment.

Indian River County is an equal opportunity, veterans’ preference, and drug‑free employer and does not discriminate based on age, ancestry, national origin, race, color, religion, sex, marital status, political affiliation, physical disability, or other non‑merit factors. Reasonable accommodations will be made in accordance with existing ADA requirements for otherwise qualified individuals with a disability.

JOB DESCRIPTION / ADA ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

ATTESTATION

I understand that a qualified employee or applicant with a disability may be afforded a reasonable accommodation to perform the essential job functions of a position in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

I have read the job description for the above position and understand the job duties, requirements, and responsibilities for the position. I attest that I am able to perform the essential functions as outlined in the job description either with or without accommodation. I understand that if I require accommodation, I will contact the Human Resources Department to request accommodation.

If I have any questions about the job duties described in the above job description, I should discuss them with my immediate supervisor or a member of the Human Resources staff.

I have discussed any questions I may have had about this job description prior to signing this
form.

______________________________________ __________________________

Employees Signature Date

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Employees Name (Please Print) Employee Number