How to Apply

Send an updated Resume/Cover Letter to nashvillehumane1@gmail.com to apply.

Animal Care/ Kennel Tech – PT

Job Summary:

An Animal Care/Kennel Tech at Nashville Humane loves animals. This is a Direct Animal Care position at the shelter. This means an Animal Care Tech spends their days at Nashville’s favorite animal shelter helping tend to the needs of the most amazing shelter dogs and cats ever. They love and care for them until the pets find their forever homes.

This Animal Care/Kennel Tech position is a Part-Time position at NHA, which means 29 hours/week. We’re looking for someone who is able to work flexible hours, including some early evenings (the shelter closes at 5 p.m. daily), weekends, and sometimes holidays.

Who You Are:

• First and foremost, you’re a hard worker. You’re diligent. You see things through. You care about doing the job, and ensuring that the job is done right. Also, you’re a self-starter.
• You’re someone who loves pets of all kinds, and wants to be part of something special. NHA is a mission based organization that has been working to help end pet homelessness for 75 years.
• You have good energy and like to be on your feet. This isn’t a desk job. You’re caring for dogs and cats. You’re feeding. You’re playing. You’re giving treats. You’re walking. You’re cleaning. You’re training. But you’re not doing a lot of sitting.
• You’re a problem solver. When you see an issue you don’t run from it, you want to fix it.
• You’re a team player. Nashville Humane is a big team and every part works together to help get pets adopted. The Animal Care team works together to ensure that all the pets in the shelter are cared for and attended to. That’s priority number one.

Who We Are:

Since 1946, Nashville Humane Association has been helping homeless and adoptable pets find forever homes and is one of Nashville’s oldest and most beloved not-for-profit organizations. Nashville Humane is committed to promoting humane education, controlling pet overpopulation and finding responsible homes for the homeless and adoptable pet community in Nashville, throughout Tennessee, and all across the globe. NHA has been voted “Best Shelter” and “Favorite Not-For-Profit” year over year, and is proud to have an annual save rate of 99%.

Job Responsibilities:

Here’s a bit more detail about the day-to-day work tasks that a Animal Care/Kennel Tech will be asked to perform on a regular or semi-regular basis:

POSITION SUMMARY:

An NHA Animal Care/Kennel Tech is responsible for maintaining the day-to-day care of NHA’s shelter pets including a safe and sanitary facility for animals and people, as well as providing humane handling and care for all shelter animals. Animal Care Techs should enjoy spending time with animals of all shapes and sizes, dogs and cats, as their main job function is direct animal care.

• Job duties include: handling, care, feeding, enrichment, basic training, and cleaning of kennel areas.
• Must be physically active, reliable, compassionate and willing to learn and follow NHA protocols for cleaning, sanitation, animal handling, and all shelter policies and procures.

KENNEL ADMINISTRATION (80% job tasks/time) – The majority of an NHA Animal Care/Kennel Tech’s job responsibilities fall under the category of Kennel Administration.

• A Kennel Tech will work with their Supervisor to determine the area of greatest need and be designated that area(s) of responsibility.
• Kennel tasks include maintaining the kennel facility, animal holding areas, warehousing and storage areas to ensure they are clean, safe and sanitary, while also providing the humane handling, management and care for all shelter animals.
• In addition to regular feeding, watering, bathing, grooming, exercise and enrichment of shelter pets, Kennel Tech’s are responsible for ensure that the day-to-day needs of all shelter pets are accounted for and met.

ANIMAL ASSESSMENT (20% job tasks/time) – Kennel Techs are responsible for observing and evaluating animals for behavior, personality and signs of illness, etc. Techs are also expected to record information in behavior and shelter notes, regular status updates, medical notes, and share at daily team and regular staff meetings. Techs will facilitate adoptions by answering questions from potential adopters regarding behavior and other observations made during day-to-day animal care, and overall assist with the animal adoption process.

Qualifications:

Basic computer experience including shelter operations software (Shelterluv), MS Office Suite, email and calendar. Able to work flexible hours including some nights, weekends, holidays.

Should be friendly, customer service oriented, dependable, a hard worker, dedicated to service, able to work individually and as a member of a team, able to be on your feet for extended periods of time, have a strong affinity toward pets (dogs and cats mostly), and willing to go the extra mile to help shelter pets in need.

Provides quality animal and people care in accordance with the NHA mission, goals and management philosophy. Must be physically active, reliable, compassionate, and willing to learn and follow NHA protocols for cleaning, sanitation, animal handling, and maintaining confidentiality. Experience with animals a plus but not required. Other duties may be assigned. Ability to complete tasks easily and repeatedly like mopping, scrubbing, bending, and lifting up to 50 lbs. Ability to work in inclement weather. Ability to work with varied animal species. Self-motivation, teamwork, strong communication skills & ability to handle stress in a calm, respectful manner. Ability and willingness to work a varied work schedule including weekends and holidays. NHA is a drug free environment. Reliable transportation is a must and the responsibility of the employee. Able to successfully travel and maneuver within the day-to-day workspace. Valid Driver’s License. All positions require working with, and in direct contact to, shelter animals and various other wildlife.

Additional Information:

How to Apply

Send an updated Resume or Job History plus a Cover Letter to nashvillehumane1@gmail.com to apply. Cover letter: sell us on how you’re a hard worker, how are you reliable, and dependable. Set yourself apart.

Compensation for this position starts at $15/hour for 29 hours a week, plus unlimited puppy and kitten kisses. And the satisfaction of knowing that you work in a place where lives are saved every day.

Additionally, this position may be responsible for other duties as assigned though not specifically numerated above.