Reports to: Animal Welfare Manager

Classification: Hourly, Non-Exempt; Full-Time

Salary: $11.00/hour

Position Summary: Responsible for daily animal care and enrichment, kennel and facility sanitation, and providing customer service to shelter clients and volunteers.

Animal Care Duties:

• Ensure animals have access to appropriate types and amount of food and water
• Monitor animal health, including identifying and reporting illnesses and injuries
• Monitor animal behavior and immediately report signs of aggression or stress
• Ensure animals are collared and tagged as needed
• Provide animals with appropriate kennel enrichment and exercise
• Become familiar with animals and their personalities to aid in getting them adopted
• Promote humane animal treatment and positive reinforcement training techniques

People Care Duties:

• Assist owners looking for lost pets
• Train and support volunteers and community service workers in the execution of their duties

Cleaning Duties:

• Must be able to work in all areas of the shelter (Cats, Dogs, Isolation, etc.)
• Clean and disinfect kennels and cages thoroughly and in a timely manner
• Wash and disinfect dishes
• Process laundry until complete, cleaning machines as needed
• Clean, disinfect, and organize workrooms
• Empty trash cans and put trash in the dumpster
• Maintain inventory of supplies and unload/stock donations and supplies
• Perform general housekeeping duties and help maintain the facility and grounds
• Follow all disease control protocols

Record-Keeping Duties:

• Ensure kennel signage is complete, visible, and neatly arranged
• Ensure animals’ online records are up-to-date
• Ensure records such as feeding and behavior charts are complete
• Add notes about animals’ behavior to their records to assist in finding the right placements

General Duties:

• Represent Lawrence Humane Society in a courteous and professional manner at all times
• Provide excellent customer service to external and internal customers (colleagues)
• Promptly report lost or broken equipment to supervisor
• Promptly report when supplies are running low so they can be ordered
• Actively promote a safe work environment by following all workplace safety rules, taking immediate action to prevent or address any safety hazard, and promptly reporting workplace injuries and near-misses
• Respond promptly to radio and in-person requests for assistance in all areas of the shelter, including acknowledging the request and your ability to address it
• Follow all policies and procedures in the LHS Personnel Practices employee handbook as well as other procedures communicated by management

Required:  High School Diploma or completion of G.E.D. equivalency; Effective written and verbal communication skills; No allergies to animals or chemical cleaning agents; Strong work ethic and ability to accurately follow detailed cleaning and animal care procedures

Skills/Abilities/Knowledge:  Experience in veterinary hospital, animal shelter, or kennel field; Experience working for a nonprofit or Associate’s or Bachelor’s Degree in related field; Knowledge of basic animal handling, behavior and health; Basic knowledge of Windows-based computer software; Basic knowledge of Google applications and/or Chameleon Software; Proven ability to work in a team environment with a variety of people; Strong customer service skills.

Physical Demands & Work Environment: Work is performed in a kennel environment with regular exposure to high noise levels, chemical cleaning agents, animal dander, wet floors, the elements (when working outdoors), potentially aggressive and dangerous animals and animal bites and scratches. Work requires walking, standing, bending, scrubbing, and reaching up to 10 hours a day, plus moving/walking dogs and occasionally lifting up to 50 pounds without assistance. Daily duties require reading and following instructions, using a computer workstation, and wearing a portable radio. Driving may be required. 

This job description provides a general understanding of the position and nature of work, but is not intended to be an exhaustive list of qualifications, skills, efforts, duties, responsibilities, or working conditions related to this position. Lawrence Humane Society is an at-will employer. The employee or employer  may terminate employment at any time, without cause.

To apply for this position, please click the button below. 

Job Title:  Community Caseworker

Department:  Pet Resource Center
Classification:  Non-Exempt (hourly), Full-Time

Reports to:  Community Caseworker Supervisor

Position Summary:

The mission of the Lawrence Humane Society is to nurture the human-animal bond by providing shelter, care, and advocacy for homeless and vulnerable animals, as well as resources for the people and pets in our community. The Lawrence Humane Society realizes pet homelessness affects our entire community and as part of the mission, seeks to support pet owners in crisis.

The Pet Resource Center (PRC) is an integral component of achieving this mission. The PRC is staffed by three Community Caseworkers who report to the Community Caseworker Supervisor, and is led by the Senior Manager of Social Work. We believe in respecting and supporting the pet and pet owner and seek to create a work culture that promotes compassion, innovation, and excellence. Community Caseworkers are responsible for all animals entering the shelter through law enforcement, Animal Control, transfers, stray pets found, and at times, owner surrenders. Community Caseworkers process incoming requests for pet surrenders, work with pet owners to keep pets in the home, work with community partners and human service organizations to create solutions for pets and owners, and counsel the public on animal care.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

• Process all incoming animals, including stray, surrendered, and transferred animals. Support colleagues in managing animal flow. Employ the use of lower stress animal handling techniques.
• Deliver services and programs with an open-minded and inclusive attitude. Treat each community encounter with respect, kindness, and compassion.
• Respond to pet owners requesting assistance.
• Become familiar with community resources such as food banks, medical services, housing assistance, and other human services programs. Connect pet owners to community resources that they may need.
• Offer information and counseling on spay/neuter, animal behavior, basic veterinary care, and general pet care.
• Offer owners food, crates, carriers, and other supplies that may be available.
• Understand and abide by all federal, state, and local ordinances, as well as state regulations.
• Diligently enter communication and information into shelter management software, retrieve and report on data collected, and offer solutions based on data collected.
• Keep records of all communications and assistance provided to pet owners and community members. Track data with care and diligence.
• Provide re-homing packets to owners who wish to rehome their pets privately. Include adoption information, meet and greet instructions, questions to ask future owners, etc.
• Communicate critical information to colleagues as needed to ensure the highest standard of animal care and customer service.
• Follow all workplace safety rules, actively promoting a safe work environment and taking immediate action to prevent and address hazards.
• Follow all LHS disease transmission prevention protocols.
• Participate in interdepartmental discussions to support and develop LHS initiatives.
• Other duties as assigned.

Skills and Qualifications:

• To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily.
• Compassion for animals and pet owners, sometimes in emotionally difficult and complex situations, without judgment.
• Passion for serving the community as a whole and individual people.
• Highly collaborative with colleagues and community partners.
• Demonstrably sound judgement in dealing with the public and handling sensitive and confidential information.
• Highly developed critical thinking skills, a commitment to ongoing learning and growth, and a willingness to consistently address process improvement.
• Skilled at conflict resolution and dealing with challenging individuals.
• Ability to prioritize, multi-task, and endure a fast pace.
• Effective written, verbal and interpersonal communication skills with a diverse range of individuals, sometimes in an emotional, fast-paced setting.
• Proficiency with computers and able to quickly learn new software.
• General animal behavior and care knowledge.
• Attention to detail and accuracy in documentation and data entry.

Position Requirements:

• At least 18 years of age;
• High School Diploma or GED;
• Community outreach, customer service, or advocacy experience;
• No allergies to animals or chemical cleaning agents; and
• Able to work holidays and weekends as needed.

Preferred Skills/Knowledge:

• Experience in animal welfare and/or animal handling;
• Experience in human services and/or social welfare; and
• Fluency and/or proficiency in Spanish.

Work Environment and Physical Demands:

• Considerable time communicating with the public;
• Regular contact with upset and emotional individuals, potentially dangerous animals, and deceased animals can occur;
• Exposure to animal bites, scratches, dander, parasites, infectious diseases, strong odors and fumes from caustic chemicals, and animal waste;
• Exposure to high noise levels;
• Work in a stationary position for extended periods of time using a computer;
• Traverse the facility and grounds for extended periods of time performing labor that may include walking (with and without animals weighing up to 150 pounds), reaching with hands and arms, climbing and balancing, stooping, kneeling, crouching and/or crawling, lifting up to 50 pounds without assistance and operating various tools and equipment;
• Exposure to wet, cold, and/or humid conditions if working outdoors.

The Lawrence Humane Society believes that our organization is strengthened by the diversity of our staff, and welcome such diversity including race, gender identity or expression, educational attainment, disability, veteran status, and personal experiences. The Lawrence Humane Society encourages applications from people of all cultures, backgrounds, and experiences. 

To apply for this position, please click the button below.

To apply for this position, please click the button below.

Reports to: Customer Care Supervisor

Classification: Hourly, Non-Exempt; Full-Time

Salary: $11.00/hour

Position Summary: Assists in finding quality, caring homes for adoptable animals based on information obtained through discussion and counseling of potential adopters.

Key Duties:

• Providing extraordinary service to the Lawrence Humane Society customers that visit or call to inquire about our services and programs.
• Actively engaging members of the public from the moment they arrive or call, assisting and answering any questions.
• Counseling prospective adopters to match the appropriate animal to the adopter(s) and educating them on proper care for that species in general.
• Informing customers of the medical treatment the animals have received: i.e., shots, deworming, spay or neuter surgery, etc., educating them on necessary future veterinary care, and encouraging them to opt-in to available programs and services.
• Handling dogs, cats, and occasionally other animals of all sizes, ages, temperaments and needs safely and appropriately.
• Providing all animals with appropriate housing, food, water, bedding, toys and other mental stimulation and enrichment.
• Cleaning kennels and adoptions area daily to ensure the facility is clean and sanitized at all times.
• Monitoring health of animals and rapidly identify any health issues and report to medical staff immediately.
• Fielding calls using a multi-line phone system and transfer calls to proper departments.
• Counseling callers or in-person patrons in regards to their situations with the utmost respect and understanding.
• Fielding inquiries from public regarding animal behavior, training, and providing options as necessary.
• Displaying strong organizational skills and follows through on job assignments.
• Exercising good judgement when it comes to handling multiple tasks, ensuring the immediate tasks take priority.
• Participating in stress and disease reduction efforts through adherence to Standard Operating Procedures.
• Ensuring all animals are clearly and consistently marked with accurate, up-to-date, easy to read information.
• Using shelter database and employee communication systems to keep accurate animal inventory, write animal behavior and other memos, submit medical exam requests, place holds on animals.
• Processing adoptions and related paperwork on a daily basis, collecting adoption fees, issuing receipts for the collection of fees, and maintaining records of adoption sales transactions, with a positive attitude.
• Offering help to team members when needed.
• Other duties as assigned.

Required: High School Diploma or completion of G.E.D. equivalency; Effective written and verbal communication skills; No allergies to animals or chemical cleaning agents

Skills/Abilities/Knowledge: Experience in customer service preferred; knowledge of basic animal handling; basic knowledge of Windows-based computer software; basic knowledge of google applications; proven ability to work in a team environment with a variety of people

Physical Demands & Work Environment: Work is performed in a kennel environment with regular exposure to high noise levels, chemical cleaning agents, animal dander, and wet floors. Exposure to the elements when working outdoors. Exposure to potentially aggressive and dangerous animals and animal bites and scratches. Work requires walking, standing, bending, scrubbing, and reaching up to 10 hours a day, plus moving/walking dogs and lifting up to 40 pounds without assistance. Daily duties require reading and following instructions; using a computer workstation; wearing a portable radio and headset. Driving may be required.

This job description provides a general understanding of the position and nature of work, but is not intended to be an exhaustive list of qualifications, skills, efforts, duties, responsibilities, or working conditions related to this position. Lawrence Humane Society is an at-will employer. The employee or employer may terminate employment at any time, without cause.

To apply for this position, please click the button below.