Animal Technician Job Description
Animal technician
provides animal husbandry activities including handling, care and breeding on a daily basis in accordance with standard operating procedures.
Animal Technician Duties & Responsibilities
To write an effective animal technician job description, begin by listing detailed duties, responsibilities and expectations. We have included animal technician job description templates that you can modify and use.
Sample responsibilities for this position include:
To organise and maintain breeding programmes of genetically altered murine strains
Breeding multiple strains of mice and providing them to researchers
Observes animal health condition and behavior of animals, reporting injuries or abnormalities to the veterinary team
May administer treatments as directed
May assist investigators with research procedures
Identify signs of illness and abnormalities (change in behavior or appearance, rough hair coat, poor appetite, ) and report to appropriate staff
Provide for the daily care and handling of laboratory animals
Performs routine and specialized duties associated with animal care, including feeding, medicating, cleaning, restraint and transportation of laboratory animals, including but not limited to nonhuman primates, mice, guinea pigs, and rabbits
Understand and follows all Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and Quality Assurance Standards
Participate in technical or SOP training
Animal Technician Qualifications
Qualifications for a job description may include education, certification, and experience.
Licensing or Certifications for Animal Technician
List any licenses or certifications required by the position: AALAS, LAT, ALAT, ALAAS
Education for Animal Technician
Typically a job would require a certain level of education.
Employers hiring for the animal technician job most commonly would prefer for their future employee to have a relevant degree such as Bachelor's and Associate Degree in Science, Education, Sciences, Biological Sciences, Medical, Faculty, Veterinary Technology, Graduate School, Patient Care, Medicine
Skills for Animal Technician
Desired skills for animal technician include:
Methods
Materials
Equipment used in animal care and laboratory activities
Principles of medical asepsis
Animal research
Weaning
Breeding
Record-keeping
Animal research and breeding procedures and practices
Disinfection
Desired experience for animal technician includes:
Preferred Associate degree in Animal Science, Poultry Science or Biology
High School diploma and 3-5 years of paid animal experience
Minimum of 1 year experience working in a laboratory animal setting either in direct care, supportive care, or research
High School diploma and up to 1 year of paid animal experience
High School diploma and at least 5 years of paid animal experience
Receive, examine, transfer, identify, and properly house incoming animal shipments according to SOPs
Animal Technician Examples
1
Animal Technician Job Description
Job Description Example
Our growing company is searching for experienced candidates for the position of animal technician. If you are looking for an exciting place to work, please take a look at the list of qualifications below.
Responsibilities for animal technician
- Provide food and water to animals following SOPs or approved protocols
- Perform animal husbandry duties as assigned
- Understand and follow SOPs, safety procedures, and quality assurance guidelines for animal care at ABSL2 or less
- Report any abnormal conditions of the animal rooms, animal facility or immediate vicinity to supervisory staff
- Maintain all records to include but not limited to log sheets and room records
- Facilitate customer relations between military, government, and contractor personnel in regards to animal husbandry issues
- Sanitize and decontaminate all areas of the facility
- Dispose of waste from the facility following appropriate SOPs
- Maintain and repair animal caging and support equipment
- Assist with receipt, stocking and maintenance of all supply inventories
Qualifications for animal technician
- High School diploma and 3-5 years’ paid animal experience
- Maintain clean and organized work and personal areas
- Perform all functions of cage wash and autoclave operations
- Bachelor’s degree in behavioral science, neuroscience, pharmacology, animal science or related discipline
- Paid, hands-on animal experience at a farm, pet store, zoo, animal rehabilitation center, or through animal-related course work
- Perform animal conditioning (vaccinations, deworming)
2
Animal Technician Job Description
Job Description Example
Our innovative and growing company is looking for an animal technician. To join our growing team, please review the list of responsibilities and qualifications.
Responsibilities for animal technician
- Monitor compliance with federal, state, local, and institutional policies regulating the humane care and use of research animals
- Operate animal care related equipment, such as change stations, biosafety cabinets, rodent ventilated cage racks, autoclaves, cage washers, water pouch systems
- Carry out routine husbandry and housekeeping Clean the cages, the area and tools thoroughly following strict hygiene procedures
- To undertake reviews of technical processes and procedures and advise on options for improvement within own work area
- Knowledge of good laboratory practice (GLP)
- To take murine biopsies under a Home Office licence
- To record and perform PCR analysis using agarose gel electrophoresis and fluorescence imaging equipment, communicating data accurately and effectively to other team members and participate in data analysis
- To be involved in immunohistochemical analyses
- Assist with restraint, handling and manipulation of various animal species as assigned by the on-site Supervisor
- Receive, identify and house selected animal species
Qualifications for animal technician
- High school diploma or equivalent and AALAS Laboratory Animal Technician (LAT) certification
- Must be able to follow verbal and written instructions and exhibit interpersonal skills that are conducive to effective communication and that contribute to a congenial teamwork environment
- Ability to use basic logic to identify and solve problems – identifies problems, recognizes symptoms, and potential causes
- Demonstrated ability to set-up and troubleshoot equipment as required
- Provide general animal facility maintenance and cleanliness to animals
- Ability to lift up to 50 pounds, with frequent lifting and/or carrying of objects weighing 15 - 30 pounds
3
Animal Technician Job Description
Job Description Example
Our growing company is searching for experienced candidates for the position of animal technician. If you are looking for an exciting place to work, please take a look at the list of qualifications below.
Responsibilities for animal technician
- Assists in sterilization using the glassware washer, autoclave and depyrogenation oven as appropriate to ensure surgical materials and glassware are sterilized and ready for use when needed
- Cleans caging, equipment, animal holding rooms and other areas of the facility
- Maintains a clean and orderly work environment to meet the standards of the institution
- Performs daily rounds under the direct supervision of the clinical veterinarians or Animal Health Technician, Lead to triage new animal health reports and monitor ongoing clinical cases
- Performs daily rounds under the direct supervision of the clinical veterinarians or Animal Health Techincian, Leads to triage new animal health reports and monitor ongoing clinical cases
- Maintains knowledge of applicable company Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) in order to successfully perform job duties
- Cleans and/or completes spray-backs and sanitizing of animal caging and housing areas per SOP
- Administers daily and enrichment feeding according to SOP or protocol prescribed amounts and types of feed
- Performs large and small animal receipt, including preparing housing for arrival, movement of animals to housing, preparing animal charts, and bathing and weighing of animals as required
- Performs daily documentation activities, such as cleaning/sprayback and feeding dates and times, sanitation dates and initials, appetite, feces and vomit observations, room and location transfers, room temperature and humidity data
Qualifications for animal technician
- Must have own means of transport
- A strong dedication to care for and work with animals
- Good communication skills & a strong willingness to learn
- Ability to maintain accurate & legible laboratory records
- AALAS certification at the Laboratory Animal Technician (ALAT) level and 2 years experience working in an accredited animal facility is required
- Certification of American Association for Laboratory Animal Science - Laboratory Animal Technician (LAT) within 6 months of being eligable
4
Animal Technician Job Description
Job Description Example
Our growing company is searching for experienced candidates for the position of animal technician. To join our growing team, please review the list of responsibilities and qualifications.
Responsibilities for animal technician
- Performs preventive health maintenance such as canine and lagomorphs nail trims, ear cleaning, and quarantine and pre-procedure bathing
- Conducts animal movement from room to room as needed for housing requirements, study requirements, Uses transport cart to assist with moving post-operative animals
- Interacts with animals daily and restrains animals as warranted
- Assists with training newer Animal Technicians
- Assists with stocking of supplies
- Hold or have held a Home Office License
- Be passionate about animal welfare and our industry
- Have previous experience in the Research industry
- Like to work in a fast moving professional team environment
- Experience in Reproductive Toxicology Licenced Procedures would be beneficial
Qualifications for animal technician
- Physical ability to do required work and ability to communicate effectively (speaks, reads and writes in English)
- Must be able to wear Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
- The ability to work independently being a good team player
- Ability to communicate animal health information to appropriate personnel, maintain legible records for permanent status
- HSD/AA/AS/BS
- AALAS certification, LAT, LATg (preferred)
5
Animal Technician Job Description
Job Description Example
Our company is growing rapidly and is looking to fill the role of animal technician. Please review the list of responsibilities and qualifications. While this is our ideal list, we will consider candidates that do not necessarily have all of the qualifications, but have sufficient experience and talent.
Responsibilities for animal technician
- Maintain appropriate documentation and records of animal husbandry and care activities
- Coordination of regulatory and compliance activities
- Oversite to facility access, training of facility users
- Creation and maintenance of SOPs, manuals, and novel techniques
- Document and Log new stocks from the nursery
- Direct work of students and temporary staff
- Track and compile nursery viability rates
- Perform routine and non-routine facility maintenance
- Assist Facility users with routine Facility operations and occasional experiments
- Manage and execute animal study protocols with minimal supervision
Qualifications for animal technician
- Able to keep clear, complete and accurate records of all procedures performed
- Be familiar with mechanical cage washing equipment and autoclaves
- Previous animal handling experience is preferred
- Basic computer skills, Microsoft Outlook experience preferred
- Regularly required to stand, walk, reach with hands and arms, use hands, talk and hear
- Frequently required to grip and squeeze with hands, stoop, kneel or crouch