Veterinary Assistant II

City of Indianapolis; Indianapolis (IN); On-site; USD 32,000 - 52,000; Full time

Job summary

City of Indianapolis Animal Care Services is seeking a veterinary assistant to support shelter health, triage medical needs, and assist with medical duties. The role requires strong animal health knowledge, experience in a clinic or shelter, and the ability to work with a diverse team.

Weekend/evening hours may be required, and handling of large or potentially aggressive animals is essential. Responsibilities include administering medications, assisting veterinarians, performing diagnostic

Qualifications

• Minimum 2 years veterinary assistant experience in clinic or shelter.
• Strong knowledge of animal health and diseases.
• Ability to work with diverse staff and public; professional demeanor.
• Weekend and evening hours may be required.
• Ability to safely handle potentially aggressive animals over 50 lbs.

Responsibilities

• Administer medications to animals.
• Assess animal health in the shelter.
• Assist the veterinarian during rounds.
• Provide input on euthanasia decisions for medical reasons.
• Perform animal euthanasia.
• Perform diagnostic skin scrapes.
• Perform diagnostic fecal parasite tests.
• Use equipment for diagnostics including bloodwork and x-rays.
• Clip and clean wounds.
• Assess animals for pregnancy and parasites.
• Update medical records.
• Groom severely neglected animals.
• Monitor medical supply inventory.
• Transport animals to clinics for procedures.
• Prepare medications.
• Assist with procedures (ear/dental cleanings, IV, bandages).

Skills

Animal health knowledge

Diagnostics & exams

Communication

Animal handling

Team collaboration

Tools

Shelter management software

Medical equipment operation

Job description

Overview

Agency Summary The purpose and mission of Animal Care Services is advocating animal welfare, adoption, and rescue. The agency does this by protecting and promoting the health, safety, and welfare of pets and livestock in Marion County. The agency is able to do this by cultivating a productive, collaborative, and compliant work environment in order for our workforce to meet the needs of the constituents of Indianapolis and Marion County.

Job Summary

Positions is responsible for assessing health of animals, triaging medical needs and assisting with medical duties as required.

Equal Employment Opportunity

The City of Indianapolis Marion County is an equal opportunity employer. All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran, or disability status. We value diversity in perspectives and experiences among colleagues and the residents of this city of whom we serve.

Position Responsibilities

• Administer medications to animals
• Assesses the health of animals in the shelter
• Assists the veterinarian during shelter rounds
• Provides input on euthanasia decisions for medical reasons
• Performs animal euthanasia
• Performs diagnostic skin scrapes on animals
• Performs diagnostic fecal parasite tests on animals
• Utilizes equipment to perform diagnostics including bloodwork and x-rays
• Clips and cleans wounds
• Assesses animals for pregnancy
• Assesses animals for fleas, ear mites, and other external parasites
• Enters and updates animal medical records
• Grooms severely neglected animals
• Monitors medical supply inventory
• Transports animals to veterinary clinics for spay‑neuter surgery or other medical treatments
• Prepares medications
• Assist with procedures including but not limited to ear cleanings, dental cleanings, iv catheter placement, and bandage changes

Qualifications

Must have at least two (2) years working experience as a veterinary assistant in a veterinary clinic or animal shelter. Must be able to communicate with a culturally diverse staff and public and always display professional and courteous behavior. Must be able to write legibly and learn to use the shelter management computer system. Weekend and evening hours may be required. Must have a strong knowledge of animal health and diseases.

Must have strong knowledge of veterinary medicine, preferably in a shelter setting. Must have skills such as performing diagnostic tests and physical examinations on animals. Must be able to effectively communicate with veterinarians, managers, kennel and field staff in a professional and courteous manner. Must be able to safely and humanely handle and control potentially aggressive animals in excess of 50 lbs.

Working Conditions

Work is performed with potentially dangerous dogs, cats, and other animals. Work is also performed in a kennel area where the incumbent is exposed to dust, noise, bending, lifting, and other hazards of a kennel environment. Also includes handling of animal waste, fur/dander, and blood. Some tasks are performed in an office environment.

Physical Conditions

• Sitting at a desk as well as standing and walking for long periods of time
• Some lifting, carrying, pushing and/or pulling of objects and materials 50 pounds
• Tasks may involve extended periods of time at keyboard or workstation
• Tasks require the ability to perceive and hear sounds and see visual cues or signals
• Tasks require the ability to communicate orally

All rates are bi-weekly.

2026 Rate Sheet - To view our rate sheet, please copy and paste this link into your web browser: https://acrobat.adobe.com/id/urn:aaid:sc:VA6C2:67382b58-4d1a-4519-89d7-8453f91e19a1

Life Insurance Employee Only (rates per $1,000 per month):

Basic: Employer Paid

Optional Life Insurance Employee Only (rates per $1,000 per month)

Additional

• 25-29 $0.058
• 30-34 $0.083
• 35-39 $0.099
• 40-44 $0.132
• 45-49 $0.223
• 50-54 $0.363
• 55-59 $0.600
• 60-64 $0.795
• 65-69 $1.329
• 70 + $2.054

Important Perf Update

• For more information on eligibility options, refer to Proposal 21-288 https://bit.ly/3exq8yR
• All employees hired/rehired after 1/1/2022 have a choice to select the PERF Hybrid plan (3% + Pension) or the INPRS My Choice: Retirement Savings plan (3% + 1% Contribution). The Hybrid plan consists of two components:

Annuity Savings Account (ASA) -This consists of the mandatory employee contribution of three (3%) percent of compensation (made for the employee by the City), plus interest credits or earnings. You're always vested in your ASA portion - it's always yours.

Pension - The pension portion of the retirement benefit is funded by contributions made by the employer over the course of the employee's career and separate from the annuity savings account. Employees enrolled in the PERF Hybrid plan are eligible for retirement benefits at age sixty-five (65) if they have ten (10) or more years of creditable service. After June 30, 1995, employees may retire at age sixty (60) with at least fifteen (15) years of credible service or if the member's age in years plus the years of credible service equals at least 85 and the member is at least fifty-five (55) years of age. With fifteen (15) or more years of creditable service, the employee may retire as early as age fifty (50) with a reduced pension.

• Employees hired/rehired by the City and County between 1/1/2017 and 12/31/2021 will be automatically enrolled in the PERF My Choice: Retirement Savings plan. This plan is an annuity savings account (ASA) only plan and does not have a pension component. Any service that an employee has in the My Choice: Retirement Savings Plan will not count toward the service time requirements for pension eligibility in the Hybrid Plan.

With the PERF My Choice: Retirement Savings Plan, the ASA is split up into two parts:

Part one - This consists of the mandatory employee contribution of three (3%) percent of compensation (made for the employee by the City), plus interest credits or earnings. You're always vested in your ASA portion - it's always yours.

Part Two - This Consists Of An Additional Variable Rate Contribution Paid By The City Toward Your ASA. This Variable Rate Contribution Is Currently 1% Of Your Gross Wages. Vesting In The Value Of The Variable Rate Employer Contribution Will Vary By Length Of Participation. You Are

• 20 percent vested after 1 full year of participation
• 40 percent vested after 2 full years of participation
• 60 percent vested after 3 full years of participation
• 80 percent vested after 4 full years of participation
• 100 percent vested after 5 full years of participation
• All employees hired/rehired prior to 1/1/2017 are grandfathered into PERF Hybrid plan. The Hybrid plan consists of two components:

Annuity Savings Account (ASA) -This consists of the mandatory employee contribution of three (3%) percent of compensation (made for the employee by the City), plus interest credits or earnings. You're always vested in your ASA portion - it's always yours.

Pension - The pension portion of the retirement benefit is funded by contributions made by the employer over the course of the employee's career and separate from the annuity savings account. Employees enrolled in the PERF Hybrid plan are eligible for retirement benefits at age sixty-five (65) if they have ten (10) or more years of creditable service. After June 30, 1995, employees may retire at age sixty (60) with at least fifteen (15) years of credible service or if the member's age in years plus the years of credible service equals at least 85 and the member is at least fifty-five (55) years of age. With fifteen (15) or more years of creditable service, the employee may retire as early as age fifty (50) with a reduced pension.

• City Employees hired/rehired between 1/1/2017 and 12/31/21 that are members of the City AFSCME labor union can choose to enroll in either the PERF My Choice: Retirement Savings plan or the PERF Hybrid plan. Both plans are described above. Employees have 60 days to choose which option they want, and by state law this cannot be changed. If no choice is made, the employee will then be automatically added to the PERF My Choice: Retirement Savings plan.

The Indiana General Assembly has enacted a provision that allows public employees to make voluntary contributions in addition to the mandatory three percent (3%) contributions. Employees may contribute up to an additional ten- percent (10%) of their compensation per pay period to the annuity savings account. This means that the maximum level of contributions to the annuity savings account under this new provision is thirteen percent (13%) of an employee's compensation per pay period.

Employees who separate from the city within their first ten (10) years of employment need to contact INPRS - PERF regarding their ASA account.

Questions relating to PERF may be directed to INPRS - PERF at:

Indiana Public Retirement System

Public Employees' Retirement Fund

One North Capitol, Suite 001

Indianapolis, Indiana 46204

[phone]