Animal Lab Tech I (Per Diem) - Comparative Medicine

Primary Duties and Responsibilities

• Sanitizes primary enclosures either by cage changing (e.g. rodents) or enclosure wash and disinfection (e.g. swine and canine) including high pressure washing, disinfectant handling and waste management.
• Assists in routine and special feeding, watering, handling (safely transferring animals from one enclosure to another) and changes cages and sanitizes primary enclosure for all species housed in the vivarium.
• Follows written and verbal instructions to provide special diets and medicated water to animals in the vivarium.
• Provides care for both immune-competent and immune-compromised animals, which may also be designated as biohazardous or chemically hazardous.
• Provides a basic assessment of animal general appearance, clinical signs, and behavior to recognize normal vs abnormal conditions in animals.
• Reports abnormal conditions in animals to the clinical team for further assessment, including overcrowding and non-compliances related to animal welfare and health.
• Aids clinical and research staff with animal handling and basic treatments of all rodents (teeth trimming, separation, euthanasia).
• Performs veterinary related tasks post training by Clinical Staff and maintains clinical records as required; rodent breeding tasks may be performed as needed.
• Provides species-specific environmental enrichment to animals according to Comparative Medicine standards.
• Aids with animal receiving as instructed by the Animal Care Coordinator.
• Maintains animal room environmental parameters (e.g. temperature, photoperiods, and humidity), accurately records environmental data and reports abnormalities to ALTIII or Supervisor.
• Aids the ALTIII and/or area Supervisor with vivarium support tasks including but not limited to Reverse Osmosis/Deionized water system checks, Individual Ventilated Cage rack cycling, and Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and feed and bedding inventory audits.

Qualifications

• A High School Diploma/GED is required. A bachelor's degree in laboratory animal sciences is preferred.
• A valid and current driver's license is required.
• One (1) year of animal husbandry experience is preferred.
• Ability to learn, apply and maintain compliance with the rules and regulations governing the care and use of animals in research.
• Ability to provide and/or support a level of work excellence and accuracy; recognize and address flaws or errors that others may overlook.
• Ability to document tasks in an orderly, timely, and accurate manner.