Seeking a savvy pet caregiver who is experienced at handling large and leash-reactive dogs, medicating dogs and cats, caring for other household pets like rabbits, birds, fancy rats, ferrets, guinea pigs, and able to handle all services for medically-needy dogs and cats.

Must live in Alexandria City and want to be a top professional pet sitter for our community.

Hourly,  W-2 employee, $19 – $21 per hour based on experience (time-and-a-half weekends and holidays: $28.50-31.50)

OVERVIEW

We hire experienced pet people, like fosters, pet rescue volunteers or staff, shelter volunteers, shelter adoption or behavior facilitators, wildlife rescuers, dog trainers, veterinary assistants, veterinary technicians, and other animal professionals.  Work with our highly-respected team to provide WOW service to our 800+ clients.

EXPERIENCE

The perfect fit will be a person who wants to visit pets in client homes, has over one year experience working professionally with dogs, cats and household pets, who likes every day at work to be a little different, who enjoys driving around town even in traffic, and who thrives on going the extra mile to help others.

• A 2-year associates degree in process or completed, or higher
• 1+ years paid or volunteer work experience in an animal-focused environment

 SKILLS REQUIRED

• Working in a diverse and inclusive virtual team: ability to bring positive and inclusive teamwork skills to our virtual team, supportive communications over email and in person, excellent advance planning and organizational skills
• Technical pet skills with cats, dogs, puppies and other small household pets: Provides excellent care for pets of all types, applies Fear Free certification in daily work and advocates with team and clients for FearFree concepts, identifies possible issues with pets, keeps all pets safe from harm, navigates unexpected situations in a calm and confident manner, seeks ongoing skills  improvement
  • Career experience with animals: from one year to fifty years of work experience in an animal-focused environment
  • Caring calmly and carefully for pets of all types (able to care for indoor pets: birds, cats, dogs, guinea pigs, hamsters, rabbits, exotics)
  • Restraining pets and administering medication: able to learn administering insulin, asthma inhalers, oral meds, pilling cats and dogs of all sizes and temperaments (experience with sub-q fluids not required)
  • Handling dogs on leash or dog training experience: knowledge in behavior management of anxious and leash reactive dogs, leash handling skills for all dogs especially of large breeds and dogs who pull,
  • Understanding behaviors and personalities of pets in order to know what’s unusual or worrisome for a particular animal and to know how to tailor your own behavior and actions
• Self-management of planning ahead, proactive schedule previews and management daily, weekly, monthly and quarterly, key inventory management and planning, timeliness of arriving at work, pace of work, reliability, accountability, positive mindset, self-motivation, completing administrating work and timesheet daily, preparedness for unexpected situations. 
• Client service that WOWs clients based on careful and thorough service delivery, understanding client expectations, following all client instructions, leaving each home better than you found it, able to identify and communicate suggestions of improvements for better client care, contributing energy and ideas for client retention and problem solving
• Teamwork & Communication that shows proactive action in asking questions, bringing up topics, checking in with teammates and manager, participation in team discussions, trainings, and social opportunities to connect with each other. Collaborates over email, at client visits, and in person; shares insights, opinions, what’s working, what’s not.  Updates client account online when new information or lessons learned need to be recorded.

WORK SCHEDULES

We work from 7 am to 10 pm, 365 days a year.  Pet professionals’ work hours are not in consecutive shifts; instead, we work in 30-minute increments when our clients need us. Every day is different, and every day’s schedule varies.

For example, an employee may have 30 minutes one morning between 8 and 9 am, 6 hours midday, and 1 hour after 6pm.  And the next day that employee may start at 7am, work until noon, and work again from 630 to 9:30 that night.  For full-timers, some days are 4-5 hours, some days are 8-10 hours depending on client demand.

WORKDAYS AND HOURS

Our most successful employees enjoy a build-your-own flexible schedule working in “chunks” of time between 7am and 10 pm, with chunks of free time during the day for their personal time and errands.

• Employees build their own 7-day schedules, by blocking out personal time and leaving open the times they can work
• Part-time is 10-29 hours per week.
• Full-time is 30+ hours/week
• Weekends and holidays are paid at time-and-a-half
• Evening, weekend, and holiday hours are required
• Must work Thanksgiving week & day and/or Christmas week & day
• Vacations and time off are severely restricted during our busiest work periods including the months of June, August, November, and December

OTHER REQUIREMENTS

• Lives in one of the zip codes we serve, or a mile close by: 22301, 22302, 22303, 22304, 22305, 22306, 22307, 22308, 22309, 22311, 22312, 22314
• Physically able to handle demanding work and have day-long stamina
• Must be able to walk several miles a day, walk 5 flights of stairs several times a day, and able to lift 40 lbs. easily
• Able to handle two strong dogs on leash simultaneously
• Pays close attention to detail and work from extremely precise client instructions
• Comfortable in a virtual team, fostering close and trusting team relationships without working in a physical location
• Has the maturity to care for client homes, to handle pet emergencies, to think proactively, to ask questions, and to seek clarification
• Works well independently as well as in a client team environment where virtual teamwork and constant communication are essential
• Uses technology apps, email, and phone easily
• Works accurately from multiple sources of written instructions
• Retains verbal and written detail
• Has a thorough knowledge of pet behaviors and body language
• Has a proven ability to handle pet health emergency situations
• Passes a complete background check and provide references
• Must be able to drive in the dark, and easily handle traffic with patience.
• Has reliable transportation (all-wheel drive preferable), an excellent driving record, a valid driver’s license and current auto insurance, email, and smartphone

BENEFITS

All employees have access to the same perks and benefits:

• Paid certification in Pet First Aid and CPR
• Paid training as a Fear Free Certified® Professional
• Paid time off
• Paid breaks
• Paid driving time
• Mileage reimbursement
• 50% off our services for pet care inside our service area
• Paid time for ongoing company trainings and team meetings each month
• Reimbursements for approved job gear, client errands, meals, parking, rideshare or car rental during your car’s mechanic visits
• Health/dental/vision insurance bundle for eligible employees who work 17.5 hours per week or more
• 401(k) Retirement Plan with company match for eligible employees for eligible employees following 1 year of service and 1,000 hours worked, and
• A super supportive team environment where you’re greeted at work with wiggles, wags, and purrs!

ABOUT US

Alexandria Pet Care is a specialized in-home pet caregiving company providing personalized pet sitting and dog walking for over 1,000 pets in local households.

After two decades serving our community, we’re known as the most trusted and most experienced team in town. We’re the only local service with every employee Fear Free Certified® and Pet CPR/Pet First Aid certified.

Alexandria Pet Care is committed to providing a safe, inclusive, diverse, and affirming workplace in order to protect all our employees and to encourage them to be the best they can be at work. We are committed caregivers. Our team of experienced and deeply caring people takes great pride in their expertise and their work.