Shelter Veterinarian

Responsibilities

• Performs high‑volume spay/neuter surgeries for dogs, cats, and occasionally rabbits at the shelter and mobile surgical clinic.
• Oversees pre‑ and post‑operative care and assists in maintaining surgical equipment, supplies, and clinic area.
• Triages, examines, and treats healthy, diseased, and injured animals with little to no history, deciding on appropriate disposition (adoption, rescue, foster, humane euthanasia).
• Leads recognition and management of infectious disease concerns in the shelter, offering recommendations and directing response measures.
• Assesses shelter health, provides recommendations, and implements plans.
• Performs and assists with humane euthanasia as needed and may train newly certified employees.
• Performs occasional necropsies to determine cause of death or illnesses.
• Creates treatment protocols for individual animals and shelter ailments, collaborating with coworkers as needed.
• Administers vaccinations and microchips at Marion County Animal Services and at off‑site locations, including community vaccination and microchip clinics.
• Safely and humanely handles animals of all species, attitudes, and behaviors in accordance with Fear Free standards.
• Maintains accurate, up‑to‑date records; performs routine filing and record keeping, including controlled substance logs.
• May deploy to active investigation scenes to evaluate, triage, and treat animals; may testify in court.
• Provides veterinary services during emergency/disaster situations and supports on‑call animal emergencies.
• Attends trainings, conferences, events, and continuing education opportunities.
• Provides superior customer service to internal and external customers and stakeholders.
• Collaborates with management to meet organizational goals and requirements.
• Assists senior veterinary staff with SOP creation, budgeting, and best‑practice implementation.

• Doctoral Degree of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) or equivalent; two (2) years’ shelter medicine experience preferred.
• Valid State of Florida Veterinarian License, USDA Accreditation for Health Certificates, and DEA Registration number within first year.
• Valid Florida driver’s license to operate a motor vehicle.
• Skilled in veterinary and shelter medicine practices, including high‑volume spay/neuter, euthanasia, and infectious disease management.
• Knowledge of drug use regulations, biohazardous waste disposal, and communicable zoonotic diseases.
• Ability to communicate accurately, clearly, and professionally in writing, in person, and by telephone.
• Demonstrated ability to provide clear, confident testimony in court and other legal settings.
• Ability to remain calm in stressful situations involving people and animals; strong teamwork and leadership skills.
• Physical capability to lift up to 100 pounds occasionally, 50 pounds frequently, and 20 pounds constantly, and to perform the physical demands described.

Marion County reserves the right to revise this job description at any time. This description does not represent, in any way, a contract of employment.