Supervising Animal Care Technician

Description


THE POSITION:
Under direction of the Animal Care Manager, the incumbent reviews, plans and supervises the work of staff/volunteers assigned to shelter operations and the various programs within Animal Care, with a focus on the oversight and improvement of adoption counseling services including an emphasis on customer service, adoption matchmaking, animal evaluation, and enrichment of shelter animals to facilitate successful adoptions. Additionally, the incumbent provides intake and reunification counseling and services; quarantines, licensing, and clerical support; ensures adequate scheduling of staff and ensures kennel facilities are safe, sanitized, and equipped to meet operational standards; humanely euthanizes animals in accordance with established laws and departmental policies; performs other related duties as required.

THE IDEAL CANDIDATE:
The ideal candidate will have experience supervising kennel operations for a municipal shelter and will have experience training staff and/or volunteers in the care and humane handling of a variety of animal species, including those with special medical or behavioral needs. Bilingual skills in English and Spanish are preferred and experience with the shelter software program Chameleon as well as Crystal Reports is ideal.

The ideal candidate will be comfortable working in a fast-paced and emotionally charged environment with constant communication with multiple teammates as well giving direction and guidance to multiple departments, will have the ability to maintain accurate records, think creatively, supervise with compassion and understanding, schedule and deploy the team appropriately, and handle multiple demands while prioritizing the humane care of all animals.

EDUCATION/BILINGUAL INCENTIVE: Incumbents may be eligible for an educational incentive of 2.5%, 3.5%, or 5% based on completion of an Associate's, Bachelor's, or Master's degree that is not required for the classification. Incumbents may also be eligible for bilingual incentive depending upon operational need and certification of skill.

DEPARTMENT/AGENCY: Animal Services Agency Supervising Animal Care Technician is represented by the Services Employee International Union (SEIU) and is eligible for overtime compensation. The eligible list established from this recruitment may be used to fill current and future Regular (including Temporary and Fixed-term), Intermittent, and Extra Help vacancies for this position only. There is currently one (1) Regular vacancy.

TENTATIVE SCHEDULE
OPENING DATE: 3/19/2025
CLOSING DATE: 4/2/2025

Examples Of Duties

Duties may include, but are not limited to the following:

• Supervises, assigns, trains, and develops staff/volunteers assigned to shelter operations; ensures staff and volunteers are compliant with departmental policies and procedures, and state laws and local ordinances governing animal care (i.e. sanitation, animal adoption policies, enrichment of animals, identifying and recognizing illness, habits, behavior of various animals, superior customer service, etc.); reviews and approves time reported;
• Participates in other departmental programs to complete weekly oversite on the progress of animal inventory and pathways/flow available;
• Participates in selection interviews; prepares and conducts employee performance reviews/evaluations; resolves personnel matters and makes recommendations to management on disciplinary matters; meets with staff to discuss shelter operations updates; conducts training and orientation of new staff and ensures ongoing training for all staff;
• Assists management in budget recommendations and program budget requests;
• Updates and maintains policies and procedures pertaining to shelter operations; examines work results; ensures training standards are consistent to improve work performance and safety precautions;
• Handles the most difficult customer complaints; works closely with management, supervisors, and staff when dealing with sensitive cases;
• Works closely with staff assigned to various programs (i.e. rescue transfers, pet retention, dispatch, field services, foster care, adoptions, volunteer, and veterinary team);
• Ensures staff convey behavioral observations into the shelter management software;
• Ensure shelters (Camarillo and Simi Valley) are appropriately staffed and supported; aligns and redirects staff/volunteers to meet daily operational goals;
• Oversees inventory and flow of animals to ensure adequate space is available for newly impounded animals; promotes live release rate;
• Humanely euthanizes animals in accordance with established laws and departmental policies;
• Cleans, disinfects, and maintains sanitary conditions of all general kennel areas, onsite Veterinary Hospital, enrichments items, and laundry;
• Prepares food, feeds, enriches, and provides daily care to impounded animals;
• Utilizes departmental records management systems to process and track animal service activities such as kennel admission and departure dates animal information, contact records, photographs, behavior profiles, clinic operations, veterinary record-keeping, etc.;
• Mediates and de-escalates customer complaints; communicates and works closely with management, supervisors, and staff when dealing with sensitive cases;
• Investigates and responds to public inquiries/complaints concerning animal control laws, regulations, policies and procedures, license fees, reclaims, surrenders, animal behavior, vaccinations, animal cruelty, neglect, health issues, and adoptions;
• Provides adoption counseling services and responds to inquiries regarding adoptions; reviews and approves adoption applications; facilitates a positive interactive adoption experience for prospective adopters and animals;
• Prepares animal(s) for discharge and walks/carries to owner’s vehicle;
• Assists veterinarian with vaccinations and minor treatment of infirmed, injured, aged, immature, diseased, and feral animals;
• Administers treatments and special dietary supplements for the humane care of animals; observes animals for signs of illness or unusual behavior; documents observations and notifies peers and management; facilitates movement of injured or infirmed animals with veterinary hospital staff;
• Ensures kennel enrichment programs, playgroups, and rounds are conducted on a regular basis;
• May assist with front office and dispatch duties by responding to inquiries from the public regarding care and retention of animals; and
• Performs other related duties as assigned.

Typical Qualifications

These are entrance requirements to the examination process and assure neither continuance in the process nor placement on an eligible list.

EDUCATION, TRANING, and EXPERIENCE

Any combination of experience which has led to the acquisition of the required knowledge and abilities related to the area of assignment.
Five (5) years of experience (full-time regular employment) in caring and handling animals in an animal control/regulatory agency, animal hospital, or in a related animal care environment;

OR

Two (2) years as a Senior Animal Care Technician OR Animal Control Officer III assigned (deployed) to Animal Care in the County of Ventura.
Necessary Special Requirements:
• Possess and maintain a valid California Driver License.
• Must be able to drive assigned county vehicle when needed.
• Completion of a Department approved course that leads to a certification in Euthanasia by Injection after hire.
• Must be able to stand for long periods of time, bend, stoop, reach, and lift/carry animals and equipment weighing up to 50 lbs.
• Must be willing and able to work rotating shifts, including days, evenings, nights, weekends, holidays, stand-by for emergency calls, and work in all weather conditions.
• Must be willing and able to work in Simi Valley, Camarillo, and various locations throughout Ventura County.
• Must be proficient with the Department's shelter software program within the first six (6) months of hire.
• Incumbents may be required to wear a uniform during work hours.

Desired:
• Bilingual in English and Spanish

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:
Knowledge of: principles and techniques of supervision including the selection, training, direction, motivation, and evaluation of subordinates; departmental policies and procedures, rules and regulations, state laws and local ordinances governing the care and housing of animals; practices, methods, and materials used in cleaning and disinfecting equipment and animal facilities; records maintenance systems; physical and behavioral characteristics of common breeds of animals; euthanasia techniques; caring for, feeding, and safe handling of domestic and wild animals; causes and symptoms of common animal illnesses and zoonotic diseases; equipment utilized to restrain, feed, cares for, and groom, release, and transport various types of animals; best practices in superior customer service.

Ability to: to supervise staff in shelter operations; interpret, understand, and apply departmental policies and procedures, rules and regulations, state laws, and local ordinances governing care and housing of animals; utilize department’s shelter software programs; identify, understand, evaluate illnesses, habits, and behaviors of various animals; take action in maintaining herd health to prevent cross contamination; recognize signs and symptoms of zoonotic diseases; operate equipment used for handling, restraining, receiving, feeding, caring for, grooming, transporting, and releasing various types of small and large animals; assist veterinarian in treating injured animals; euthanize animals; understand and follow oral and written directions; recognize problems and exercise rational judgment in formulating solutions; speak and write effectively; establish and maintain effective working relationships with the public, department personnel, volunteers, and other agencies.

Supplemental Information:
Work is performed outdoors, regardless of weather conditions, requiring moderate to heavy physical activities and includes exposure to dangerous and/or diseased animals. Incumbents must be patient and tolerant of loud environments (barking), animal waste, odor, and hair.

Recruitment Process

FINAL FILING DATE: Applications must be received by County of Ventura Human Resources in Ventura, California, no later than 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday April 2nd, 2025.

To apply on-line, please refer to our web site at www.ventura.org/jobs. If you prefer to fill out a paper application form, please call (805) 654-5129 for application materials and submit them to County of Ventura Human Resources, 800 South Victoria Avenue, L-1970, Ventura, CA 93009.

Note to Applicants: It is essential that you complete all sections of your application and supplemental questionnaire thoroughly and accurately to demonstrate your qualifications. A resume and/or other related documents may be attached to supplement the information in your application and supplemental questionnaire; however, it/they may not be submitted in lieu of the application.

SUPPLEMENTAL QUESTIONNAIRE - qualifying: All applicants are required to complete and submit the questionnaire for this exam at the time of filing. The supplemental questionnaire may be used throughout the exam process to assist in determining each applicant's qualifications and acceptability for the position. Failure to complete and submit the questionnaire may result in the application being removed from consideration.

APPLICATION EVALUATION - qualifying: All applications will be reviewed to determine whether or not the stated requirements are met. Those individuals meeting the stated requirements will be invited to continue to the next step in the screening and selection process.

TRAINING & EXPERIENCE EVALUATION
A Training and Experience Evaluation (T&E) is a structured evaluation of the job application materials submitted by a candidate, including the written responses to the supplemental questionnaire. The T&E is NOT a determination of whether the candidate meets the stated requirements; rather, the T&E is one method for determining who are the better qualified among those who have shown that they meet the stated requirements. In a T&E, applications are either scored or rank ordered according to criteria that most closely meet the business needs of the department. Candidates are typically scored/ranked in relation to one another; consequently, when the pool of candidates is exceptionally strong, many qualified candidates may receive a score or rank which is moderate or even low resulting in them not being advanced in the process.

NOTE: The selection process will likely consist of an Oral Exam, which may be preceded or replaced with the score from a Training and Experience Evaluation (T&E), contingent upon the size and quality of the candidate pool. In a typical T&E, your training and experience are evaluated in relation to the background, experience and factors identified for successful job performance during a job analysis. For this reason, it is recommended that your application materials clearly show your relevant background and specialized knowledge, skills, and abilities. It is also highly recommended that the supplemental questions within the application are completed with care and diligence.

ORAL EXAMINATION - 100%: A job-related oral examination will be conducted to evaluate and compare participating examinees' knowledge, skills, and abilities in relation to those factors which job analysis has determined to be essential for successful performance of the job. Examinees must earn a score of seventy percent (70%) or higher to qualify for placement on the eligible list.

NOTE: If there are three (3) or fewer qualified applicants, an examination may not be conducted. Instead, a score of seventy percent (70%) will be assigned to each application, and each applicant will be placed on the eligible list.

INTERVIEW PROCESS: For more information about how to prepare for a selection interview, please click here.

BACKGROUND INVESTIGATION: A thorough pre-employment, post offer background investigation which may include inquiry into past employment, education, criminal background information, and driving record may be required for this position.

For further information about this recruitment, please contact Brett Ramirez by e-mail at Brett.Ramirez@ventura.org.

YOUR BENEFITS AS A COUNTY OF VENTURA EMPLOYEE

Service Employees International Union (LOCAL 721)

(SEIU)

To learn more about Benefits, Retirement, and the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA), see links below.

• Benefits website or you may call (805) 654-2570.
• Retirement FAQ's
• Memorandum of Agreement

Union Codes: UPA, UPC, UPE, UPH, UPI, UPJ,UPT, UWS

Closing Date/Time: 4/2/2025 5:00 PM Pacific

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• County of Ventura

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