Animal Caretaker

Glimpse of the Job

Are you passionate about animal care and ready to use your skills to support the well-being of large animals? As an Animal Caretaker I, you will be essential to the daily operations of the Texas A&M Large Animal Hospital. In this role, you will provide routine care, handle and restrain animals, and maintain the cleanliness of the facilities. Your role is crucial in supporting clinical teams and ensuring the health and safety of our animal patients. Join us in delivering exceptional care and service!

What you need to know

Salary: $15.85/hour.

Schedule:

• Part-time (non-benefits eligible): Monday through Friday 3pm to 7pm

• Full-time (benefits eligible): Thursday through Monday OR Friday to Tuesday 7am to 3:30pm

Please Note: Persons in this position are considered essential when the University declares an emergency, campus closure, class cancellations, etc., and are therefore required to report to work and remain on duty unless/until relieved by the direct supervisor.

Minimum Required Qualifications

Education: High School diploma/GED or equivalent combination of education and experience.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities: Oral and written communication skills. Ability to multitask and work cooperatively with others.

A well-qualified candidate for this position will also possess:

• 1 year of experience in handling and care of large animals, including, but not limited to, horses, cattle, sheep and goats.

• 1 year of large animal handling and/or husbandry experience.

• Knowledge of the different kinds of patients feeds.

• Usage and knowledge of different types of disinfectants.

• Knows the PPE protocols for the different hospital wards.

• Bio security awareness.​

What you need to do

Apply! A cover letter and resume are strongly recommended and will help in our review. You may upload them on the application under the CV/Resume section. 

Responsibilities Include:

• Patient Care: Checks inventory of feed, cleaning supplies, buckets, and bowls. Cleans stalls and animal holding areas with unrestrained patients in them. Maintains barn, feed room, and shavings room cleanliness. Cleans and disinfects treatment rooms, windows, ceilings, and cabinets. Observes and reports concerns with patients in the wards. Assists in feeding and watering patients. Transports animals and supplies. Handles and restrains animals as needed. Assists veterinary technicians as needed. Operates a forklift and university vehicles. Empties manure cans and trash receptacles daily (scrubbing and disinfecting). Turns out TAMU owned animals to their paddocks.

• General/Universal Job Duties: Communicates regularly with other services in the hospital and team members. Provides safe patient handling and husbandry. Reads and responds appropriately to animal behavior (aggressive, frightened). Maintains care and service of equipment.

• Teaching and Clinical Research: Helps DVM students and student workers understand the cleaning and disinfecting protocols of each hospital ward.

• Required Training, Compliance, And Administrative: Remains current with various TAMU and department specific procedures and completes training courses. Maintains appropriate rabies prophylaxis. Assists in other departments as needed.

Why Texas A&M University?

We are a prestigious university with strong traditions, core values, and a community of caring and collaboration.  Amenities associated with a major university, such as sporting and cultural events, state-of-the-art recreation facilities, the Bush Library and Museum, and much more await you.  Experience all that a big city has to offer but with a reasonable cost-of-living and no long commutes.  

• Medical, prescription drug, dental, vision, life and AD&D, flexible spending accounts, and long-term disability insurance with Texas A&M contributing to employee health and basic life premiums 

• 12-15 days of annual paid holidays  

• Up to eight hours of paid sick leave and at least eight hours of paid vacation each month 

• Automatic enrollment in the Teacher Retirement System of Texas 

• Health and Wellness: Free exercise programs and release time 

• Professional Development: All employees have access to free LinkedIn Learning training, webinars, and limited financial support to attend conferences, workshops, and more  

• Educational release time and tuition assistance for completing a degree while a Texas A&M employee 

• Living Well, a program at Texas A&M that has been built by employees, for employees 

Instructions to Applicants: Applications received by Texas A&M University must either have all job application data entered, or a resume attached. Failure to provide all job application data or a complete resume could result in an invalid submission and a rejected application. We encourage all applicants to upload a resume or use a LinkedIn profile to pre-populate the online application.