Animal Control Kennel Medical Assistant

City of Richmond; Richmond (VA); On-site; USD 43,000 - 50,000; Full time

Job summary

The City of Richmond's Animal Care and Control seeks a dynamic Animal Control Medical Kennel Assistant to provide high-quality daily care and basic medical support for housed animals. The role supports the veterinary team and ensures sanitary, safe enclosures and accurate records.

This essential position requires a high school diploma or GED, with no prior work experience required; animal handling experience is preferred. The team emphasizes growth and ongoing training opportunities.

Qualifications

• High School Diploma, GED, or equivalent required.
• No work experience required; experience with animals preferred.
• Willingness to work with animals and perform physically demanding tasks.

Responsibilities

• Cleaning the animals, the bay area, and cages.
• Distributing food and water to the animals.
• Assisting in administering medication or vaccination to the animals.
• Ensuring the safety and security of the animals housed.
• Completing required paperwork on incoming and outgoing animals.
• Maintaining inventory of the required supplies.
• Report any abnormalities, injuries, signs of illness, or distress to the veterinary staff.
• Performing other related duties as assigned.

Skills

Feeding, watering, and walking animals

Caring for dogs and cats

Cleaning

Communication with kennel staff and/or

Basic animal medical duties

Education

High School Diploma, GED, or equivalent

Tools

Shelter intake system

Shelterbuddy

Job description

The anticipated hiring range is $42,900 - $50,030.

The City of Richmond's Animal Care and Control seeks a dynamic, enthusiastic, and hardworking person to join its team as an Animal Control Medical Kennel Assistant. The incumbent is responsible for high-quality daily care and husbandry for animals housed in the facility while assisting the medical team with basic treatments, clinical observations, and disease control. This role ensures that all patient enclosures are sanitary and safe, closely monitors medical or recovering animals for changes in clinical status, and assists the veterinary team with handling, feeding, and medical prep.

The selected candidate will join a dynamic team of individuals focused on providing excellent, prompt, and accurate services to both external and internal customers while achieving the following mission:

To provide and maintain a healthy, safe environment for all animals in the kennel facility for the City of Richmond.

Richmond Animal Care and Control is committed to becoming an employer of choice AND we are dedicated to the growth of our workforce. We value our employees and seek to attract and retain the best. We are also committed to individual professional growth! The selected candidate will have the opportunity to attend applicable training and educational workshops.

• Cleaning the animals, the bay area, and cages
• Distributing food and water to the animals
• Assisting in administering medication or vaccination to the animals
• Ensuring the safety and security of the animals housed
• Completing required paperwork on incoming and outgoing animals
• Maintaining inventory of the required supplies
• Report any abnormalities, injuries, signs of illness, or distress immediately to the veterinary technician or veterinarian on duty.
• Performing other related duties as assigned

This position is considered an Essential Personnel, which means that the incumbent is required to work when the City is closed due to public emergencies, critical or hazardous conditions or inclement weather. This individual may be required to work weekends and holidays, as needed.

MINIMUM TRAINING AND EXPERIENCE:

• High School Diploma, GED, or equivalent
• No work experience required
• Experience working with animals preferred

LICENSING, CERTIFICATIONS, and OTHER SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS:

• None required

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES:

TYPICAL KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES: These are a representative sample; position assignments may vary.

Knowledge (some combination of the following):

• Distinguishing common intestinal parasites
• Symptoms of common viruses
• Behaviors and body language of animals
• Good knowledge of caring for dogs and cats and basic knowledge of caring for farm animals, birds, etc.
• Electronic databases and related software applications such as the shelter intake system,Shelterbuddy
• First aid
• Animal CPR
• Proper animal handling
• Various animal shelter equipment and machines such as catch-poles,hide gloves, muzzles, flat leashes, power washers, washing machines, dryers, dishwashers, etc.

Skills (some combination of the following):

• Assisting in the adoption process
• Feeding, watering, and walking animals
• Caring and handling both healthy and unhealthy animals with a variety of temperaments
• Cleaning
• Communicating with kennel staff and citizens
• Assisting with theeuthanasia ofanimals
• Judging if an animal is aggressive, timid, scared, etc.
• Performing basic animal medical duties such as giving vaccinations, fluids and medications; drawing blood; replacing bandages, etc.
• Performing various maintenance tasks such as fixing a broken dog cage
• Using animal care and control equipment such as a catch-pole on a dog
• Customer service

Abilities (some combination of the following):

• Communicate
• Lift heavy objects
• Maintain professional composure during emotional situations
• Stand for long hours

Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of the job. Prospective and current employees are invited to discuss accommodations.

ENVIRONMENTAL HAZARDS:

Working conditions may include exposure to travel to other locations within the City of Richmond as well as outside of the City of Richmond; exposure to hazardous physical conditions such as mechanical parts, electrical currents, vibrations, etc.; atmospheric conditions such as fumes, odors, dusts, gases, animal dander, and poor ventilation; inadequate lighting; intense noise; and environmental hazards such as disruptive people, imminent danger, and a threatening environment.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS AND WORKING ENVIRONMENT:

Due to the nature of work assignments, incumbents must be able to perform detailed work on multiple, concurrent tasks, with frequent interruptions and under time constraint. The essential duties of this classification may require the ability to regularly balance, stoop, kneel, crouch, reach, stand, walk, push, pull, lift, finger, grasp, feel, talk, hear, and perform repetitive motions; frequently see and crawl; and occasionally climb. The working conditions may include environmental hazards. The working conditions may include environmental hazards. In terms of the physical strength to perform the essential duties, this classification is considered to be very heavy work, exerting in excess of 100 pounds of force occasionally, in excess of 50 pounds of force frequently, and in excess of 20 pounds force constantly to move objects.