Animal Behavior Jobs in Iowa (NOW HIRING)

Required for this position: The ability to follow directions with and without supervision; the ability to lift objects or pets of at least 50lbs; the ability to control large, anxious, or angry pets; the ability to recognize certain behaviors in animals; the ability to learn and understand medical terminology and procedures; the ability to admit or ask questions when a task is unclear; the ability to show leadership towards other techs, assistants, and volunteers; ability to adapt to the needs and styles of other technicians and doctors; the ability to work with computers and other office equipment; the ability to spell, alphabetize, and perform basic mathematics; and the ability to provide exceptional customer service.

Persons to report to: Practice Manager and Associate Veterinarian.

Task Descriptions: As a veterinary technician, your job entails several important aspects of our clinic; animal care and treatment, customer service, and clinic cleanliness.

Animal Care and Treatment Responsibilities - restraint; blood draws; setting IV catheters (in multiple areas); vaccine preparation; TPRs; setting up x-ray and taking difficult films; troubleshooting and correcting poor x-ray films; subcutaneous, intravenous, and intramuscular injections; fecal, fungal, urinalysis, cytology, culture and histopathology preparation; reading fecal, cytology, fungal, urine and blood smear samples; in- house lab tests (including heartworm tests, in house chemistry panels & CBCs); outside lab preparation; culture preparation; toe nail trims; ear cleanings; anal gland expressions; placing urinary catheters; suture removals; applying minor bandages; troubleshoot and maintain anesthesia machines; critical care monitoring; maintaining emergency kit; bladder expression for urine samples; skin scrapes (with doctor direction); corneal staining, Schirmer tear tests; anesthesia induction (with doctor direction); intubation and extubation; enemas; minor bathing; mathematics (including % solutions, mEq in solution, manual drip rates); sterilization of surgical equipment; maintenance of autoclave; changing O2 tanks; surgical patient monitoring during minor (dentals, spays, neuters) and major (pyometras, exploratory, GDV) procedures; assistance of doctor during major surgical procedures (including scrubbing and gowning in); cleaning, polishing and charting teeth during dental prophylaxis; extracting minor teeth (with doctor approval); maintaining inventory; maintaining surgery, controlled drug and x-ray logs; maintaining supply order board; knowledge of fluids and rates; knowledge of drugs, dosages and their usages; always maintaining a high standard of patient care; and assisting the other technicians and doctors in any way asked to do so.

Customer Service Responsibilities - assisting receptionist in answering phones; taking and passing messages on to appropriate staff member; minor (puppy/kitten, heartworm talks) and major (subQ fluid demonstration, reasons for not filling prescriptions, blood testing) client education; invoicing and checking out clients; prepping client and exam rooms for doctor; obtaining appropriate patient history; filing and maintaining charts correctly; appropriate record keeping; knowledge of computer system; filling prescriptions; prepping electronic charts; preparing rabies; health and other certificates for clients; checking in surgeries, drop offs, and procedure patients; discussing procedure quotes with owners; discharging surgery and procedure patients; calling owners with normal bloodwork results; assisting in client-present euthanasia’s; assisting clients with multiple pets or large purchases; providing information for over-the-counter, prescription food, and nutritional products; maintaining compassion, sympathy and professionalism during high-stress situations.

Clinic Cleanliness Responsibilities - vacuuming; mopping; changing garbage; dusting; stocking exam rooms; following daily, weekly and monthly task lists; changing cold sterile trays; filtering cytology stains; cleaning surgical instruments; cleaning surgery table and trays; cleaning and maintaining all sinks; maintaining lab equipment (including CBC machine, blood machine and microscope); maintaining litter boxes and hospitalized cats; laundry; kennel cleaning; proper dilutions for cleaning solutions; maintaining cleaning supplies; cleaning windows and doors; replenishing supplies (including paper towels, garbage bags, air fresheners); cleaning kitchen/break area; knowledge of patient isolation protocols; and overall maintenance (both inside and outside the hospital) of the sights, smells and sounds of the hospital.

**This is by no means a complete list. Some tasks may be assigned to a specific staff member to complete. Some tasks may be added or removed from this list as deemed necessary for the safety and well-being of our patients.

Emergency Situations: During an emergency situation, the veterinary technician's job is to help the patient with chest compressions, mechanical breathing, and act as the "Drug Pusher" alongside other technicians should the doctor give the orders. The ability to place an IV catheter unaided and performing the emergency duties of a veterinary assistant (should one be unavailable) are also required. This requires a strong knowledge of how to perform CPR, knowing the signs of impending cardiac and respiratory arrest, and the different routes to give emergency drugs (including blood products), as well as the ability to respond calmly and quickly, especially with clients.

Opportunities for Growth: There are several areas of potential growth as a veterinary technician in our Clinic. By demonstrating the desire to perform and/or learn additional tasks, this position can be upgraded to Head Technician or Manager should the position become available. These are just a few tasks that we feel would demonstrate the desire of a certified veterinary technician to learning and growing more in our clinic: setting and maintaining jugular (long) catheters; knowing protocols for several different emergency situations; being proficient in providing critical care monitoring; being proficient in understanding body systems, their diseases, and how their treatment will affect the outcome; knowledge of transfusion medicine; being proactive in putting together treatment plans (including type of fluids, medication doses) alongside the doctors; ability to read cytology’s and blood smears; ability to perform more difficult mathematics; showing strong leadership and training abilities towards other staff members; loyalty towards hospital and dependable in emergencies; and absolute confidence in required skills and duties.

How this position is part of the team: By assisting the doctors, we can maintain the high standard of care for our patients that is extremely important. Utilizing our skills for patient treatments, client phone calls and client education gives the doctors the opportunity to diagnose and care for more patients. Every aspect of the patient's care rolls over into customer service as well. By educating our clients, we can give them the opportunity to provide optimum care for the life of their pet. Serving the clients beyond their expectations with our animal care, customer service, and clinic cleanliness will enable us to forge strong bonds with our clients and their pets.