Animal Services Officer I/II, Grade 17/18

Montgomery County • 7315 Muncaster Mill Rd Derwood MD 20855 USA, MD

1d • Onsite

About The Position

The Montgomery County Animal Services & Adoption Center is responsible for providing animal-related services to the citizens of Montgomery County, MD. This position is recruiting full-time Animal Services Officers (ASOs) who are passionate about providing a high standard of service to the community. The ideal candidates will possess excellent oral and written communication skills and demonstrated attention to detail. They must be able to work independently and manage multiple tasks simultaneously while always maintaining a professional demeanor, especially when interacting with the public. Additionally, candidates should be knowledgeable about State and County laws and regulations relating to animal cruelty, animal neglect (including domestic animals, horses, and livestock), wildlife, and other animal-related public safety or nuisance issues. To ensure a positive workplace and comply with Federal, State, and County laws, the incumbent is responsible for completing various mandatory training programs within the first 3 to 6 months of hire. Multilingual candidates are strongly desired but not required.

Requirements

• Graduation from High School or High School Certificate of completion recognized in the State of Maryland.
• Possession and maintenance at all times of a valid Class "C" (or equivalent) driver’s license from the applicant's state of residence.
• If filled at the Animal Services Officer I, Grade 17 level: Two (2) years of experience in animal-related work in caring for and handling of animals in a facility such as animal shelter, veterinary clinic, pet store, research lab, or similar facility; OR Two (2) years of experience in either code enforcement, law enforcement or work involving public contact, interpreting, explaining, enforcing rules and regulations.
• If filled at the Animal Services Officer II, Grade 18 level: Three (3) years of experience in one or more of the following areas: animal services code enforcement, law enforcement work, animal sheltering, or veterinary work; AND One (1) year of code enforcement work directly related to animal services activities.
• Equivalency: An equivalent combination of training and experience that provides the required knowledge, skills, and abilities.

Nice To Haves

• Experience with animal control laws, animal care, and behavior.
• Experience in capturing, handling, and transporting fractious animals.
• Experience using animal control or law enforcement systems and applications, including dispatch and call-taking operations.
• Experience in preparing and testifying at administrative and other legal proceedings.
• Multilingual candidates are strongly desired but not required.

Responsibilities

• Investigating complaints concerning public nuisance and dangerous animals.
• Investigating allegations of animal cruelty and neglect.
• Investigating animal bites and placing animals in quarantine and preparing animals for laboratory analysis.
• Coordinating call responses with dispatchers, ensuring a complete record of each call for service.
• Communicating effectively and persuasively with the public, employees, management, government agencies, and public officials to explain numerous County and State ordinances, statutes, violations, and required corrective action about animal care, control, and licensing.
• Explaining problems, gathering information, and gaining voluntary compliance to resolve complaints.
• Responding to inquiries and providing information regarding various animal-related programs, i.e., feral cats, spay/neuter, rabies, vaccinations, etc.
• Handling a high volume of cases, often including stressful situations, and interacting with confused, upset, insulting, and argumentative people in a calm and rational manner.
• Issuing warnings and citations, applying for warrants, writing statements of charges, and preparing accurate and detailed written documents.
• Documenting call responses, violations, animal bite information, and animal impound, concisely and entirely in the OAS computer database.
• Gathering evidence pertinent to an investigation and providing testimony in District Court, Circuit Court, and other administrative proceedings on behalf of the County and State.
• Inspecting animal-related businesses such as commercial and fancier animal facilities, exotic bird facilities, and riding stables yearly.
• Capturing and transporting animals, both domestic and wild, to the appropriate facility safely and without harm to the ASO, staff, public, and animals.
• Performing other job-related duties as assigned.

Benefits

• The salary range above represents this position’s earning potential. The anticipated hiring range for this position will be based on the candidate’s qualifications and experience.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Education Level: High school or GED