Kennel Assistant

DoveLewis Veterinary Emergency & Specialty Hospital; Portland (OR); On-site; USD 23,000 - 25,000; Full time

Job summary

DoveLewis Veterinary Emergency and Specialty Hospital in Portland, OR is seeking a full-time Kennel Assistant to support the medical team and care for patients in the hospital.

Duties include laundry, kennel cleaning, exam room cleaning, stocking supplies, and assisting with animal restraint and transport within the facility.

A genuine love of animals is required; weekend and holiday availability is necessary due to a 24/6 schedule; driver’s license for Oregon or Washington is preferred.

Qualifications

• A valid driver’s license in Oregon or Washington is preferred.
• Ability to communicate courteously with coworkers, clients, and vendors.
• Understanding of animal behavior and safe handling.
• Experience or education equivalent to a high school diploma.

Responsibilities

• Laundry, garbage, kennel cleaning, and maintaining a clean work environment.
• Care for patients such as walking and providing water; assist with restraint and transport within the hospital.
• Maintain supply levels and assist with exam room and isolation cleaning.
• Pre-employment background checks and drug screening are required.

Skills

Communication

Animal handling

Safety protocols

Teamwork

Education

High School diploma or equivalent

Job description

DoveLewis Veterinary Emergency and Specialty Hospital is seeking full-time Kennel Assistants to join our team.

As a Kennel Assistant, you will be responsible for assisting the medical team by maintaining a clean and well stocked work environment and providing general care for patients while they are in the hospital. Daily tasks include laundry; garbage; kennel cleaning; exam room and isolation protocol cleaning; maintaining supply levels throughout the hospital, animal care for patients such as walking and providing clean water; assisting with animal restraint; transporting supplies and patients within the hospital, parking lots, and between buildings, including potentially driving the patient transport van; and other similar tasks as needed.

A genuine love of and respect for all animals is required, as is an appreciation of the human-animal bond.

Wage: $16.80-18 hourly, plus additional pay for qualifying shifts (such as overnight shifts)

Schedule: This position will work a 3/4 rotating schedules, which means you work three 10-hour shifts one week and four 10-hour shifts the next, rotating back and forth. That averages 35 hours per week for full-time and gives you 3-4 days off every week! As a 24/6 hospital, all available positions require weekend and holiday availability.

What You Can Look Forward To At DoveLewis

• As a nonprofit with community-focused services your work makes a difference to the animal-loving community and to individual pet owners on a daily basis.
• Student debt repayment assistance (qualify in your first month!)
• Equitable benefits, including medical, dental, vision, $0 mental health copays, preventative care, LGBTQIA-friendly providers, and options for families.

What are we looking for in a candidate?

• A driver's license in Oregon or Washington is highly preferred for this role and would be required before being eligible for future promotion.
• Ability to communicate with co-workers, clients, and vendors in a courteous and professional manner both verbally and in writing.
• General understanding of animal behavior and knowledge of safe animal handling and transport practices, especially for cats and dogs.
• Knowledge of veterinary or other medical practice safety measures highly preferred.
• Ability to work the available schedule, including at least 1 weekend day per week, holidays, and on-call responsibilities is required.
• Experience or education equivalent to a High School diploma

DoveLewis is an equal opportunity employer dedicated to workforce diversity and a drug-free workplace. Pre-employment background check and drug screen for illegal substances is required.