Overview
Shelter caregivers work closely with shelter management to ensure quality animal care, proper handling, proper disease diagnosis, and maintenance of all animal feeds and watering schedules.
Responsibilities
- Animal feeding/watering and maintaining animal feeds schedule
- Daily animal health care and treatments
- Weekly animal health checks/individual checks of each species
- Animal health care projects as assigned, including feed ordering, medications and medical supply ordering, database, and animal charting
- Shelter cleaning projects; maintaining hospital/treatment areas
- Training and supervising animal caregiver assistants, shelter interns, and volunteers
- Reporting animal health and/or other shelter problems directly to shelter manager
- Research new treatment options for various conditions
- Work with veterinarians to develop treatment protocols, etc.
Qualifications
- Excellent animal behavior observation skills
- Able to work in all weather conditions
- Able to perform strenuous physical labor and lifting
- Must be able to follow detailed instructions and maintain animal care schedules as assigned
- Ability to work well with variety of people
- Team player and able to monitor and report on all shelter staff duties
- Very reliable and dependable
- Positive attitude
- Commitment to Farm Sanctuary’s animal care policies
- Commitment to Farm Sanctuary’s organizational programs and goals
- Previous animal experience is required
- Minimum two years’ experience at animal care facility; volunteer history at animal advocacy organization(s)
- Valid driver’s license with clean driving record required
Shelter Caregivers should have a strong desire and ability to do hands-on shelter work and a person commitment to rescuing and protecting farm animals. Caregivers are vital team leaders of our shelters, where providing quality animal care is the number one priority.
Specifications
- Full-time, non-exempt position
- Work schedule varies; regular weekend and holiday availability required
- Some evening hours required during summer months
- Occasional travel may be required to assist with transport for animal adoptions or rescues
- Competitive benefits package, including paid holidays; personal days; vacation and sick leave; health, dental, vision, and life insurance; 403(b) plan; flexible spending accounts; and long-term disability insurance
- Eligible for on-site housing consideration based on housing availability at time of hire
Farm Sanctuary is committed to a diverse and inclusive workplace. We are an equal opportunity employer and do not discriminate on the basis of race, national origin, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, protected veteran status, disability, or age.
About Farm Sanctuary
Farm Sanctuary was founded in 1986 to combat the abuses of factory farming, advocate for institutional reforms, and encourage a new awareness and understanding of farm animals and the benefits of cruelty-free, plant-based living. In recent years, science has confirmed the inhumane and destructive impact of animal agriculture — a food system based on interrelated oppression and injustice.
As the founding farm animal Sanctuary in the U.S., Farm Sanctuary has rescued and provided refuge for countless survivors of the animal agriculture system. Today, at Farm Sanctuary’s Los Angeles, CA and Watkins Glen, NY Sanctuaries you will find nearly 1,000 rescued animals—each with an individual story to tell. These survivors are ambassadors, representing the billions of farm animals currently in the system. They, and others like them, have changed the hearts and minds of a generation.
