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Exotic Pet Caretaker
House of Guineas LLC — In-Home Care, San Francisco & The Peninsula
Location: We are San Francisco based and are looking for caretakers who reside in the city. Visits run throughout SF and down the Peninsula.
Position Type: Permanent, part-time (W-2). This role has two components:
Guaranteed hours (3–5/week): Paid non-visit work — new client meet and greets, intake, and care coordination with our Client Coordinator. These hours are yours regardless of booking volume.
Client visit hours: Variable, scaling with booking demand. Client visit hours are in addition to the 3-5/week guaranteed hours. Visit hours increase substantially October through mid-January, our busiest season, and every 30-minute drop-in is paid as a full 1-hour block.
Most caretakers combine this role with other work. We schedule in blocks and do our best to confirm visits as far in advance as we can; though some bookings do come in on short notice.
Target Start Date: Mid-September 2026 at the latest.
Schedule: Our work runs in three daily blocks: morning, midday, and evening. Daytime coverage is the core of this role.
We're looking for someone available for morning and midday blocks at least 3 days per week.
Evening availability is a plus and candidates who can offer it will be prioritized.
Weekend availability is also a strong plus.
Holiday availability is required for this role. Our busiest dates are Thanksgiving, December 24–26, and December 31–January 1.
Major holidays are paid at time-and-a-half.
Pay: Tiered Performance Progression ($25.00 – $30.00 / Hour)
Phase 1 (First 30 Days): $25.00/hour: training and shadowing in the field with our team
Phase 2 (Days 31–90): $28.00/hour: active caretaking duties with regular check-ins
Independent Caretaker (Day 90+): $30.00/hour: based on performance, reliability, and earning full trust as an independent provider
ABOUT US
House of Guineas LLC provides high-standard care in clients' homes for a wide variety of small mammals, reptiles, and birds across San Francisco and the Peninsula. Founded by a former Engineer and Exotic Veterinary Assistant, our company was born from a profound love for unique pets. We believe that to give the best care to the animals, you need to feel your best.
While this role requires independence in the field, we are a deeply connected team that values genuine camaraderie, whether we are coordinating our next team escape room, talking about our latest video game and D&D campaigns, or sharing updates about our own pets. We want your work here to be fun, rewarding, and full of exciting challenges!
THE POSITION
We're looking for a meticulous, reliable caretaker to join our field team.
The heart of this role is hands-on animal husbandry; the daily upkeep and wellbeing of the animals we look after. Enclosure cleaning, species-specific feeding, fresh water, environmental checks, and enrichment that actually improves an animal's day. You'll thrive here if you take real pride in that work, can operate independently with minimal supervision, and find genuine satisfaction in the routine care that keeps animals healthy.
You do not need a veterinary background for this job. What you need is genuine hands-on experience with exotic pets, a high standard for cleanliness and detail, the observational instinct to notice when something is off, and the reliability to be exactly where you said you'd be, when you said you'd be there.
If husbandry isn't where you want to spend most of your time, this likely isn't the right fit.
HOW IT WORKS: BUSY VS. SLOW MONTHS
Our schedule naturally follows holiday and travel trends, while your day-to-day focus adapts to the season:
Busy Months (Summer & Winter Holidays): You will be out in the field as part of our team effort, caring for pets and identifying areas to improve their quality of life. When demand surges, you will earn time-and-a-half on major holidays.
Slow Months (Fall & Spring): During these periods, you will focus on optimizing care processes, writing educational articles, and other professional projects to support the team.
PRIMARY DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
Animal Husbandry (the core of the job): Provide meticulous daily care and habitat upkeep for small mammals (guinea pigs, rabbits, chinchillas, hamsters), reptiles, and birds, including enclosure cleaning, bedding changes, environmental monitoring, and enrichment.
Dietary Management: Prepare and manage species-specific nutrition. For reptile clients, this includes the safe handling and storage of live or frozen feeder insects and small feeder mammals.
Medication Support: Administer oral and topical medications when a client's pet is on a prescribed course. Comfort with subcutaneous (SQ) injections is a nice-to-have, not a requirement.
Observation & Reporting: Notice and report changes — appetite, droppings, activity level, breathing, posture. You don't need to diagnose anything. You need to notice it and tell us.
Client Communication: Deliver detailed photo and video updates that give clients genuine peace of mind while their animals are in our care.
WHEN SOMETHING GOES WRONG
Most days, nothing does. But this is care for living animals, and we want to be straightforward with you about the rare days.
Your job is to notice and escalate.
If you see a red-flag symptom, you contact us immediately. We, as a team, make the call on what happens next. You are never expected to make a medical judgment on your own.
Transport: If a pet needs to be seen, you may be asked to safely transport them to a veterinary hospital and act as the communication link between hospital staff and the client.
Rare, serious situations: Occasionally an animal in our care is elderly or seriously ill, and a difficult situation unfolds while their family is away. These moments are handled strictly through veterinary guidance and explicit client consent. You will never navigate one of these alone.
WHO YOU ARE
Meticulous and reliable. You hold a high standard for cleanliness and detail, and you show up when you said you would. This matters here more than any credential on this list.
Available for daytime blocks at least 3 days per week. Morning and midday coverage is the core of this role. Evening and weekend availability is a plus, and candidates who can offer more days or more blocks will be given priority.
Experienced with exotic pets, hands-on. This can come from many places: years of keeping and caring for your own reptiles, rabbits, birds, or small mammals; volunteering or working at a rescue, shelter, boarding facility, or breeder; or previous experience in a veterinary setting. A clinic background is welcome but is not required.
Comfortable with the real parts of the job. Handling feeder insects and feeder animals, cleaning soiled enclosures, and giving oral medication to an animal who would rather you didn't.
Strong emotional intelligence. You stay composed and decisive under pressure, and you communicate clearly with clients who love these animals deeply.
SF-based with a reliable commute. We're looking for someone who lives in San Francisco. You can reliably commute throughout the city and along the Peninsula, with an operable vehicle and a valid driver's license.
WHY WORK WITH US?
Benefits: Includes a $50/mo smartphone reimbursement and a $15/mo laundry allowance.
Proper Reimbursement: Mileage between client sites is reimbursed at the current IRS rate of $0.725 per mile to protect your take-home pay.
Note: Driving between client sites during your shift is reimbursed, along with any driving we ask you to do mid-shift — a supply run, or transporting a pet to a veterinary hospital. Your daily commute — home to your first visit of the day, and your last visit back home — is not, as the IRS classifies this as ordinary commuting.
1-Hour Guaranteed Blocks: Every 30-minute drop-in visit is paid as a full 1-hour block to cover travel and charting.
Health, Wellness & Recovery: We are committed to providing dedicated recovery options to maintain your well-being. This includes Workers' Compensation coverage and discretionary wellness bonuses up to $100 during peak quarters.
Team Pet Perks: Team members receive a 20% discount on all House of Guineas drop-in visits for their personal pets, plus a 50% discount on our proprietary, medical-grade cage liners.
Hands-on Training: Your first 30 days are spent training before you take a visit on your own.
TO APPLY
Submit your resume and a summary of your species experience and background to: alexandria@houseofguineas.com
Please include answers to the following:
This role is primarily hands-on husbandry; daily cleaning, feeding, and habitat upkeep, often working independently.
What draws you to that kind of work?
Tell us about the exotic animals you've cared for and in what setting (your own pets, a rescue, a facility, a clinic).
Which days and blocks can you cover? Please be specific. For example, "mornings and middays Monday, Wednesday, Friday, plus Tuesday evening." Daytime is what we're hiring for; evening availability is a plus.
Are you available to work Thanksgiving, December 24–26, and December 31–January 1? These are our highest-demand dates and coverage on them is required.
Describe a time you had a commitment you couldn't make. What did you do?
Do you have an up-to-date driver's license and an operable vehicle?
Are you comfortable commuting to/within SF and along the Peninsula?
When could you start? We're aiming for a mid-September start (include university return dates if applicable).