Animal Protection Field Supervisor – Denver Animal Protection

City and County of Denver • Denver, CO

23h • Onsite

About The Position

Denver Animal Protection (DAP) protects the safety and welfare of Denver’s animals and residents by fostering the human animal bond. DAP emphasizes public and animal safety and health, encourages responsible pet ownership through education and enforcing compliance with animal-related municipal code requirements, and cares for animals at the Denver Animal Shelter (DAS). We foster an inclusive culture by respecting the values, customs, and authenticity of everyone and by implementing equitable public health strategies so Denver communities can thrive. Denver Animal Protection is seeking an Animal Protection Field Supervisor to supervise animal protection employees who enforce local and regional laws concerning the care and treatment of animals, investigate complaints of non-compliance with animal ordinances and laws, perform facility compliance inspections, perform court liaison duties pertaining to the issuance of legal summonses, and provide education to the public regarding public health, animal care, safety, and welfare. Additionally, the Animal Protection Field Supervisor: Provides day-to-day leadership and works with staff to ensure a high-performance service environment that enforces local and regional laws concerning the care and treatment of animals and recommends process improvements and changes in practices and procedures to increase operating efficiency and expedite work flow Plans, assigns, and evaluates the work of animal protection staff members, provides technical expertise to staff, and establishes unit and staff work goals and objectives Trains staff members on local and regional laws and ordinances, testifying in court, and providing training to the public on the responsibilities of pet ownership and proper pet care and orients new staff with policies, procedures, and practices Supervises the issuance of legal summonses regarding various animal control violations and testifies in court on law violations involving cases of animal cruelty, neglect, abuse, and/or abandonment Maintains detailed daily reports of protection activities and animal inspections, ensures that staff prepare comprehensive records, reports, and documentation that complies with standards and requirements Implements safety standards and develops procedures to ensure compliance Develops or modifies work plans, methods, and procedures and determines work priorities Assigns and distributes work, reviews work for accuracy and completeness, and returns assignments with recommendations for proper completion Resolves problems encountered during daily operations and determines standards for problem resolution including escalations from clients Develops performance goals, documents performance, provides performance feedback, and formally evaluates the work of employees Responds to formal and informal employee grievances and prepares written responses Documents cause for disciplinary action and initiates letters of reprimand and formal recommendations for disciplinary action Provides work instruction and assists employees with difficult and/or unusual assignments Performs humane euthanasia on animals Operates vehicle and two-way radio in performance of duties Assists in the development of departmental budgets Reviews "problem inspections" of establishments and ensure compliance with municipal ordinances, laws, regulations, and contracts. Along with all department staff, this position will actively participate on an emergency preparedness and response team to support DDPHE’s responsibilities outlined in the City’s Emergency Operations Plan. This may require being ‘on-call’ from time to time to help respond to emergencies. Additional training commensurate with assigned duties will be provided. Other duties as assigned. This position requires availability to work a variety of shifts, including mornings, evenings, overnights, weekends, and holidays. While this position does not work mandatory on-call shifts unless there are severe staffing shortages, it does supervise staff working mandatory on-call and may be routinely called upon during those shift hours to answer operational questions and must maintain availability for the team. Shift work and on-call availability are core, essential functions of this role. While officers and their supervisors currently work a 4-day per week, 10-hour per shift schedule, scheduling and shift configurations are subject to change based on the operational needs of the agency. This position is physically demanding, requiring intermittent periods of intense physical activity broken up by periods of driving or administrative work. Physical demands include lifting large animals into trucks or vans, running both short and longer distances, climbing, pulling, pushing, and sometimes awkward physical movements.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Animal Science, Criminal Justice, Public Health, Environmental Health, or related field.
• Superior customer service skills.
• Experience designing, planning, and implementing major projects.
• Bilingual proficiency in Spanish.
• Availability and willingness to work evenings, weekends, and holiday shifts.
• Availability and willingness to work outside and be exposed to inclement weather.
• Availability and willingness to handle sick and/or aggressive animals and train staff in performing animal euthanasia.
• Availability and willingness to clean animal excrement/secretions.
• Bachelor's Degree in Public Health, Environmental Health, or in a related field based on a specific position.
• Three (3) years of experience performing professional level environmental or public health scientific analysis or inspections.
• One (1) year of the appropriate type and level of experience may be substituted for each required year of post-high school education.
• Additional appropriate education may be substituted for the minimum experience requirements.
• Valid Driver's License at the time of application.
• Licenses and certifications must be kept current as a condition of employment.
• Expandable Baton Certification, OC Spray Certification, and Euthanasia by Injection Certification (to be obtained within 6 months of hire).
• Animal Welfare Association of Colorado (AWAC) State Certification for Animal Control Officers (to be obtained within 12 months of hire).

Nice To Haves

• Experience designing, planning, and implementing major projects.
• Bilingual proficiency in Spanish.

Responsibilities

• Supervise animal protection employees who enforce local and regional laws concerning the care and treatment of animals.
• Investigate complaints of non-compliance with animal ordinances and laws.
• Perform facility compliance inspections.
• Perform court liaison duties pertaining to the issuance of legal summonses.
• Provide education to the public regarding public health, animal care, safety, and welfare.
• Provide day-to-day leadership and work with staff to ensure a high-performance service environment.
• Recommend process improvements and changes in practices and procedures to increase operating efficiency and expedite work flow.
• Plan, assign, and evaluate the work of animal protection staff members.
• Provide technical expertise to staff and establish unit and staff work goals and objectives.
• Train staff members on local and regional laws and ordinances, testifying in court, and providing training to the public on the responsibilities of pet ownership and proper pet care.
• Orient new staff with policies, procedures, and practices.
• Supervise the issuance of legal summonses regarding various animal control violations and testify in court on law violations involving cases of animal cruelty, neglect, abuse, and/or abandonment.
• Maintain detailed daily reports of protection activities and animal inspections.
• Ensure that staff prepare comprehensive records, reports, and documentation that complies with standards and requirements.
• Implement safety standards and develop procedures to ensure compliance.
• Develop or modify work plans, methods, and procedures and determine work priorities.
• Assign and distribute work, review work for accuracy and completeness, and return assignments with recommendations for proper completion.
• Resolve problems encountered during daily operations and determine standards for problem resolution including escalations from clients.
• Develop performance goals, document performance, provide performance feedback, and formally evaluate the work of employees.
• Respond to formal and informal employee grievances and prepare written responses.
• Document cause for disciplinary action and initiate letters of reprimand and formal recommendations for disciplinary action.
• Provide work instruction and assist employees with difficult and/or unusual assignments.
• Perform humane euthanasia on animals.
• Operate vehicle and two-way radio in performance of duties.
• Assist in the development of departmental budgets.
• Review "problem inspections" of establishments and ensure compliance with municipal ordinances, laws, regulations, and contracts.
• Actively participate on an emergency preparedness and response team to support DDPHE’s responsibilities outlined in the City’s Emergency Operations Plan.
• May be routinely called upon during shift hours to answer operational questions and must maintain availability for the team.

Benefits

• A guaranteed life-long monthly pension, once vested after 5 years of service
• 457B Retirement Plan
• 140 hours of PTO earned within first year
• 12 paid holidays, 1 personal holiday, 1 Wellness Day and 1 volunteer day per year
• Competitive medical, dental and vision plans effective within 1 month of start date

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Manager