Animal Care Technician

ANIMAL CARE TECHNICIAN

General Summary

This position is responsible for providing animal care and husbandry.  The Animal Care Technician in the animal facility has a basic understanding of the principles involved in providing animal care and husbandry and a proven ability to work well in a team setting.  This position is a member of an animal care team led by the Manager, In Vivo Lab Operations.  This position reports directly to the Manager, In Vivo Lab Operations who will have direct management responsibility to include day-to-day task direction and assurance of the quality of work completed. 

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Handles and works with laboratory animals and the equipment, supplies, and materials required to provide for humane conditions.
• Executes key activities to maintain the care of laboratory animals, including but not limited to:
  • Cleans cages, equipment, and work area, and decontaminates animal rooms, this includes operating sanitizing and sterilizing equipment.
  • Provides clean housing, feed, water and appropriate enrichment for animals housed in the facility.
  • May gather experimental data by measuring and recording body weights and temperatures, qualitative and quantitative food and water consumption, and observation of physical condition.
  • Transfers animals and animal identification to clean caging/racks, and materials from storage to work areas.
  • Transports laboratory equipment and materials to and from animal rooms.
  • Observes animals twice daily and reports abnormal findings to appropriate individual(s).
  • Stores feed, bedding, materials and equipment.
  • Operates and adjusts animal watering system.
  • Provides environmental enrichment and/or socialization to animals as directed.
  • Does general handling and restraint of animals.
  • Verifies and documents the operational status of various pieces of equipment and environmental conditions in animal facilities.
• Observes appropriate safety and study requirements by reading, understanding, and following Standard Operating Procedures (SOP), Good Laboratory Practices (GLP) and study protocols.
• Performs other duties as directed by supervisor.

Requirements/Minimum Qualifications

• High school diploma or equivalent with 1 year of related experience.
• Ability to work overtime when necessary and participate in weekend/holiday rotations
• As a Federal contractor Southern Research may be required to comply with a Federal COVID-19 vaccination mandate.  In that event, Southern Research will require that all newly hired employees show proof of full COVID vaccination or authorized exemption prior to their start date.

Work Environment & Conditions

This position works in a BSL 2/3 animal facility environment and requires the use of personal protective equipment (PPE) including (but not limited to):

• Eye protection (safety glasses and full-face shield)
• Closed toed shoes
• Respirator (varies based on tasks and barrier requirements)
• Tyvek/scrub suits
• Nitrile and latex gloves (varies based on tasks)
• Hearing protection (varies based on tasks)

Immunizations are required for this position and are determined by the study/ agent.  Some examples include Tetanus, Hepatitis B, Smallpox, and Influenza.

Physical Demands

This position requires significant physical exertion including:

• Standing, walking or climbing for extended periods of time
• Lifting, pulling, or pushing heavy objects (sometimes in excess of 50 lbs.)
• Perform repetitive and strenuous activities that require standing or stooping/crouching by bending at the wait or legs
• Clear vision with corrective lenses at 20 feet or more.
• Fine motor skills and manual dexterity
• Withstanding exposure to constant or intermittent high noise levels

• Wearing a respirator for extended periods of time

Certifications, Licenses & Registrations

AAALAS certification at the ALAT level (desirable)