Dog Placement Specialist

Austin Pets Alive•Austin, TX

11d•Onsite

About The Position

Austin Pets Alive! (APA!) is a nonprofit animal welfare organization that rescues, treats, and adopts out homeless dogs and cats, supports no-kill initiatives, and shares its lifesaving model through national programs. The Dog Placement Specialist helps clients find dogs suited to their homes while advocating for dogs who may be overlooked in a shelter environment. The role uses knowledge of individual dogs, behavior training, and rescue practices to improve placements and reduce length of stay, especially for adult large-breed dogs. This is a full-time, nonexempt, hands-on position reporting to the Dog Placement Manager. The Specialist supports APA!’s Dog Placement Team and its mission to increase live release rates across Texas through reliable, organized, and high-quality adoption coordination. The role works closely with volunteers, helps recruit, onboard, guide, and retain them, and contributes to an inclusive, collaborative environment. Work is normally performed onsite at APA! locations, with travel to offsite locations as needed. Schedule flexibility is required, including evenings, weekends, and holidays as needed; the weekly schedule may change. The position involves active customer service throughout shifts, advising clients and fosters, maintaining accurate dog information and records, coordinating safe introductions, and supporting dog behavior and training. It also develops and maintains initiatives to increase placements, particularly for adult large-breed dogs. The work takes place in a busy animal shelter environment with exposure to animals, noise, odors, weather, animal waste, disinfectants, and potential animal-related hazards. Starting pay is $17.00 per hour, with eligible employees able to receive a discretionary stipend of up to $2 per hour after completing applicable internal certifications.

Requirements

Experience working with dogs and ability to safely handle large dogs.
Customer service experience.
Leadership experience or comparable experience.
Proficiency with email, word processing, and spreadsheets.
Availability to work weekends and holidays, with flexibility for evenings and schedule changes as needed.
Commitment to working effectively with volunteers and staff in all roles and supporting volunteer engagement.
Effective written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to interpret rules, procedures, and instructional materials.
Strong time management and ability to work independently and collaboratively with minimal oversight.
Strong interpersonal skills and ability to maintain a calm, professional presence.
Attention to detail and high standards for quality.
Adaptability and good judgment in a high-volume, fast-paced, high-stress environment.
Commitment to APA!’s values and customer experience expectations, and to an inclusive experience for staff, volunteers, and customers.
Ability to work around animals, including diseased, injured, or potentially aggressive animals; loud noises; chemicals; and inclement weather.
Ability to walk large dogs that pull and jump, remain on one’s feet for long periods, and work outdoors in varied weather.
Ability to pass all required dog-handling training.
Ability to routinely lift 40–50 pounds; also able to lift or carry up to 30 pounds and push or pull up to 50 pounds for moving supplies and event setup.
Ability to focus amid distractions in a loud, busy environment and to walk on uneven ground around the shelter.
Ability to visually observe people and animals from up to 150 feet away and hear normal speech nearby, shouting from up to 150 feet away, and dog vocalizations.
Ability to sit, stand, walk, talk, hear, stoop, bend, stretch, squat, kneel, grasp, grip, reach above and below shoulder level, use a computer repetitively, flex and twist the neck and waist, and perform related physical tasks.
Ability to use personal transportation for travel and transport.

Nice To Haves

Experience in dog behavior training.
Bilingual ability in English and Spanish.

Responsibilities

Partner with volunteers during shifts and help create an inclusive, welcoming, collaborative environment.
Work alongside volunteers to complete daily tasks; welcome and orient new volunteers; provide guidance, encouragement, feedback, and recognition; and recommend volunteers for specialized roles.
Support volunteer recruitment, onboarding, training, engagement, and retention, including recruiting and training new Matchmaking volunteers.
Greet customers and provide a welcoming, guided experience, maintaining customer service in person and by text and phone throughout the shift.
Help clients select dogs suited to their homes and explain behavioral, health, training, and introduction information in clear language.
Keep current on onsite and foster dogs and update appropriate documents, compatibility scores, internal notes, and online profiles when information changes.
Ensure adopter and foster paperwork is completed accurately and educate adopters and fosters to support successful placements, including lower-level behavioral and medical needs.
Create personalized kennel cards for onsite dogs and communicate with the Matchmaking department and other departments to help clients efficiently.
Respond professionally and promptly to client email inquiries about onsite dogs and Matchmaking services.
Ensure safe and productive dog-client introductions and conduct and attend hands-on training sessions with onsite dogs.
Learn and follow APA’s dog behavior training methods under the guidance of APA Behavior Team members, and confidently discuss and demonstrate training and behavior-management methods to clients.
Develop, implement, and maintain Matchmaking initiatives to increase adult large-breed dog placements into adoptive or foster homes.
Build positive working relationships with volunteers, advocates, and dog-walking volunteers; discuss notes for marketing dogs and participate in proactive outreach to potential adopters and fosters.
Track appointments and initiatives and use time-management, reasoning, and judgment to complete responsibilities.
Attend required training sessions and meetings and maintain consistent communication with the Program Manager or designee, supervisor, colleagues, and Volunteer Managers.
Adapt to changing needs and perform other related duties as assigned.

Benefits

Subsidized employer-sponsored medical coverage, effective the first day of employment.
Subsidized and voluntary life insurance, effective the first day of employment.
Voluntary dental, vision, and short-term disability options, effective the first day of employment.
Voluntary wellness and emergency sick plans.
Up to 2% match on the 401(k) retirement plan.
Supplemental benefits and flexible spending accounts.
Additional life coverage.
10 paid holidays for full-time employees.
10 days of accrued paid time off during the first year, with an additional 5 days of PTO accrual upon completion of 12 months.
Professional development opportunities through APA!’s ongoing work to advance animal welfare professionals.
Eligible employees may receive a discretionary stipend of up to $2 per hour after successfully completing applicable internal certifications.