Animal Care Associate
Description:
Summary of Responsibilities
The Animal Care Associate is responsible for cleaning and sanitizing animal housing areas as well as feeding and providing enrichment for animals in our care. Animal Care Associates ensure a healthy and comfortable living environment for our animals by monitoring their health and behavior daily, reporting any issues to appropriate staff and by keeping housing areas organized and stocked. This position is a great first step into the world of animal welfare. The ideal candidate for this position is hard-working, efficient, team-oriented and adapts eagerly to changing daily circumstances.
Essential Duties
• Understands diversity is a strength, equity is non-negotiable, inclusion is our obligation, and embodies this understanding in all interactions with internal and external stakeholders
• Cleans and sanitizes kennels, cages, equipment, rooms, and common spaces according to MHHS protocols
• Completes monitoring sheets on a daily basis to help ensure pets' needs are met
• Provides ongoing behavioral and medical feedback to appropriate staff
• Feeds, grooms, exercises, socializes, and trains the animals in our care
• Prepares and delivers daily enrichment to animals throughout the shelter
• Washes laundry and dishes throughout the day
• Keeps kitchen and animal areas organized and stocked
• Other duties as assigned
Qualifications
• Alignment with MHHS Core Values: Compassion, Advocacy, Respect, Excellence, Stewardship
• Prior Experience: None required; Animal Welfare experience is a plus!
• Education: High school diploma or equivalent
• Credentials: Valid NYS driver’s license or government ID
• Skills: Emotional regulation; teamwork focused; flexible; effective written and oral communication skills; computer literacy, including familiarity with Microsoft Office Suite
• Other: 18 years or older; no medical restrictions to animal contact; authorized to work in the United States of America
Physical Requirements
The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of the job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. The person in this position is regularly required to:
• Use hands and fingers
• Talk and hear
• Stand, walk, sit, reach with hands and arms, stoop, kneel, and crouch repetitively
• Ability to work on feet for long periods of time, including frequent mobility throughout the shelter and outdoors
• Lift and/or move up to 30 Lbs.
• See clearly, with or without corrective lenses, up close, at a distance, peripherally, and perceive depth and color
Working Conditions
• The hours for this position are normally 8:30AM-6PM (Mon-Fri) and 7AM-5PM (Sat &Sun)
• The ability and willingness to work on holidays is required, as animals require daily care.
• Work will take place in a variety of environments including medical offices, administrative offices, operational areas, and offsite, including outdoors
• The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate, and hearing protection is available where noise exceeds acceptable levels
• While performing the duties of this job, the position will be exposed to animal odors, animal wastes, chemical cleaning agents, and airborne particles
• While performing the duties of this job, the position can be exposed to wet floors, extreme weather (such as rain, snow, cold, and heat).
• This position does require the handling of animals in stressful conditions and animals that are potentially dangerous.
• This position does require exposure to animals who may have infectious or zoonotic diseases