Shelter Care Supervisor
About The Position
The Shelter Care Program is responsible for the direct animal care for all nine species of animal accepted for admission at Seattle Humane. This includes an astounding array of dogs, cats, rabbits, guinea pigs, chinchillas, hamsters, gerbils, rats, and mice. Each day the Shelter Care Team is responsible for feeding, cleaning, exercising, enriching, and medicating the animals in our care. In addition to the high level of care each animal receives, Shelter Care Leadership also supports pathway planning for each animal’s journey. This starts from intake to outcome with an emphasis on minimize length of stay and meeting each pet’s individual needs. In order to accomplish these duties, Shelter Care is comprised of a team of compassionate and skilled staff and volunteers. While the work during the day can be challenging, the team supports a culture of leaving work at work when the scheduled day is over. The Shelter Care Supervisor position is a staff supervisory role responsible for hiring, training, and supervision of the Animal Care Associates (ACAs), who are a unionized team. The supervisor is responsible for ensuring that the staff understand and follow all processes while also balancing appropriate, individualized animal care with personal skill development. Additionally, the Shelter Care Supervisor works alongside Volunteer Services and fellow Shelter Care Leadership to oversee Shelter Care Volunteers. This entails ensuring compliance with protocols and safe practices, and following up with Volunteer Services for elevated concerns. The Shelter Care Supervisor should be skilled in working with people and adapting to their personal styles and needs. The Supervisor is expected to split their time between providing hands-on training and coaching of ACAs, and filling in with ACA care duties. The Supervisor may also fill in for the Manager.
Requirements
- Must have 2 years of experience working in an animal shelter setting
- Must have excellent oral communication skills
- Must be able to write clearly and listen effectively
- Must possess organizational and planning skills to determine work priorities and schedules
- Must have experience working with volunteers
- Must have experience supervising staff or volunteers
- Basic knowledge of animal health, behavior and nutrition
- Basic knowledge of Microsoft Word and Excel
- Must be familiar with Outlook environment, internet use and e-mail
- College degree or related experience
- Communicates clearly and concisely, both orally and in writing
- Comfortable administering medications and injections
- Can solve problems and make clear decisions quickly
- Has good attention to detail
- Produces accurate work despite frequent interruptions
- Negotiates, organizes, and manages multiple and complex projects
- Focuses on strategic goals and objectives and how they impact daily work
- Is sensitive to other opinions, perspectives and/or cultures
- Offers excellent customer service both internally and externally
- Can have difficult conversations with staff and volunteers regarding placement and euthanasia in a sensitive manner
- Comfortable dealing with angry, confused, distraught and/or irrational people
- Exhibits initiative and motivation in performing all duties
- With or without accommodation has good sense of hearing, vision, and smell (to distinguish between various odors)
- With or without accommodation stands for long periods of time and walks quickly
- With or without accommodation exhibits good dexterity and reflexes especially when restraining or moving an animal
- Must be able to lift and carry at least 50 pounds with or without accommodation
- Must be able to crouch and bend at the waist and kneel
- Must be able to control dogs up to 200 pounds when on a leash
Nice To Haves
- Supervisory experience preferred
- At least one year employment at an animal shelter or related professional experience handling animals is preferred
- Experience with databases and data entry is helpful
Responsibilities
- Responsible for training, supervising, and coaching of Animal Care Associates
- Responsible for supporting Shelter Care volunteers as needed
- Fills in for Manager as needed
- Creates staff training materials and keeps track of progress
- Drafts and delivers performance evaluations
- Fills in on ACA tasks as needed to provide coverage
- Addresses staff concerns and/ or issues promptly and professionally
- Working with Shelter Care Manager to document and address unsatisfactory performance or behaviors
- Meets formally with ACAs for 1:1s on a monthly basis
- Oversees the staff training and specialization opportunities
- Works closely with Shelter Care Manager to implement department changes
- Provides input for staff schedules
- Actively participates in projects, groups, and management meetings
- In collaboration with Shelter Care Manager, creates and updates SOPs and processes documents as needed
- Capable of completing all key ACA tasks and functions
- Works with Volunteer Services to determine appropriate levels of volunteer support
- Ensures that the team is providing high quality individualized care in accordance with the Five Domains
- Focuses on disease prevention and safe working practices
Benefits
- Health, dental, vision and more
- 3 weeks paid time off + 10 paid holidays
- 403b with employer match
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Mid Level
Number of Employees
11-50 employees
