Canine Behavior Assessor

ANIMAL CARE & CONTROL OF NYC • New York, NY

6d • Onsite

About The Position

The Canine Behavior Assessor is a member of the Canine Behavior Team who focuses on performing handling assessments and completing behavior evaluations on all dogs in Animal Care Centers of NYC (ACC)’s care, and on providing in- and out-of-kennel enrichment to maintain a high quality of life and to meet each dog’s behavioral needs. The Canine Behavior Assessor position will work hands-on with dogs in our care to complete in-shelter handling assessments and to synthesize all known and observed behaviors to make final behavior determinations. You will be responsible for learning and performing ACC’s handling assessment, daily record keeping and reporting, thorough evaluation write ups, and identifying potential challenges and recommendations for rehoming. You will also participate in daily playgroup, in-kennel enrichment, socialization sessions, cue training, and behavior modification opportunities. Our ideal candidate is comfortable handling dogs showing a range of behaviors, including aggression and high levels of fear, while keeping yourself, your colleagues, and the dogs safe. You understand the concept of behavioral thresholds and trigger stacking, and you feel comfortable exploring behavioral repertoires to see what a dog will offer without pushing a dog into aggressing.

Requirements

• High School Diploma or GED required.
• Minimum 1-year experience working with dogs in a shelter environment is required.
• Must have excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Familiarity with and understanding of in-shelter behavior assessments.
• A thorough understanding of positive reinforcement and a training methodology rooted in a scientific understanding of how canines learn.
• Ability and understand canines are individuals and making sound educated assessments based on facts provided.
• Comfortable making sound and reasonable judgments when weighing out risk and reward in a stressful environment.
• Must be able to lift and move up to 50 lbs.

Nice To Haves

• Bachelor’s degree or comparable work experience preferred.
• Ability to work independently in a fast-paced environment with demonstrated ability to juggle multiple competing tasks and demands.
• Ability to foster a cooperative, encouraging, and positive work environment with staff as well as volunteers.
• Strong communication skills, both verbal and written.
• The ability to remain pleasant, calm, and objective in all situations.

Responsibilities

• Conduct multiple-item handling assessments and keep track of updating assessment as needed.
• Synthesize all known and observed behaviors to make final behavior determinations based on scientifically sound methods.
• Identify potential challenges and recommendations for rehoming.
• Accurately and thoroughly complete Behavior Assessment write ups in Shelter Buddy.
• Adhere to all safety guidelines to minimize incidents of aggression and fear.
• Participate in daily playgroup, in-kennel enrichment, socialization sessions, cue training, behavior modification, and any other in- and out-of-kennel enrichment requested.
• Run Shelter Buddy reports to determine which dogs are in the assessment window each day.
• Assist various other departments with additional tasks as directed.
• Fear Free certification within 30 days of hire.
• Complete other duties as assigned by supervisor.

Benefits

• Generous paid-time-off (PTO) package that includes vacation time, birthdays off, personal days and sick pay.
• Open access Cigna medical, dental and vision insurance at a low premium to our employees.
• 401K and Pension.
• Life Insurance.
• On-the-job training for 2-4 weeks.
• Periodic all staff trainings to include safety, DEI, cross training, and other growth opportunities.
• Eligibility for loan forgiveness, cancellation, and/or consolidation under the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program (PSLF).

What This Job Offers

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