Adoption and Animal Care Specialist

Posting Date

07/28/26

Application Deadline

07/31/26

Pay Range

Anticipated Hiring Range: $20.25 - $26.38 hourly
Full Pay Range: $20.25 - $32.50 hourly

Salary offers are based on the candidate's equivalent experience and internal equity with other employees within the same job classification. The position is eligible for overtime compensation for all hours worked over 40 in the designated workweek.

Job Type

Unclassified

Department

Animal Care and Control

About the Position

Are you passionate about connecting adopters with pets, caring for animals, and providing excellent experiences for people and pets?

As an Adoption and Animal Care Specialist, you will play a critical role in matching animals with customers looking to adopt while providing daily cleaning and care at our PetSmart Everyday Adoption Center (EAC). You will conduct animal meet-and-greets and facilitate a conversational adoption approach through open dialogue. You will be essential in promoting our animals by ensuring that their bios and photos are updated regularly. As one of our champions, you will lead efforts to identify customers' needs and assist them through the adoption process. This position requires the employee to be in the office and customer-facing for all hours worked.

What better way to contribute to our mission than to be on the front line, bringing together the people and pets of Maricopa County!
 

Don't miss out on this opportunity to support our shelter! Apply today!

About Us

Maricopa County Animal Care & Control employees are committed to animal welfare and strengthening the human-animal bond in our community, and we are always looking to add talented individuals to our team.  As one of the nation’s largest open-admission shelters, we work with our community to serve the animals and people of Maricopa County. Our adoptions, shelter, clinic, and animal services officer teams learn firsthand about the proper care of homeless and stray animals and work hard to help find them new homes.

Proud to Offer

• Work with a greater purpose

• Tuition reimbursement

• Exceptional work-life balance

• Opportunities for growth and development within Maricopa County

• Low-cost, high-value healthcare for you and your qualifying dependents

• Child care benefits, including access to our on-site center Maricopa County Kids Club, dedicated to serving Maricopa County families

• Paid vacation, sick time, and parental leave

• Extensive wellness program, including an incentive

• Enrollment in the Arizona State Retirement System, a defined retirement benefit requiring a 11.98% per paycheck contribution rate that includes a 100% employer match on Day 1

• Want to learn more about the County’s Qualifying and Compensation Philosophy? Follow this link to learn more!  Work With Us | Maricopa County, AZ

We Require

• Two years of experience in a retail or similar customer service role
• Six months of experience handling animals
• High school diploma or GED
• A combination of post-secondary education and/or job-related experience may substitute for the minimum qualifications on a year-for-year basis

Other Requirements

• Must be flexible and able to work all shifts, which include starting as early as 6 am and finishing as late as 9 pm, working weekends and holidays, determined by the needs of the Department
• Must complete animal handling training within three months of employment.

We Also Value

• Animal adoption experience in an animal welfare-type environment
• Experience with processing financial transactions
• Bilingual skills in English/Spanish

Job Contributions

• Conduct daily kennel cleaning, laundry, dishes, feeding, and welfare rounds. Maintain the cleanliness of the EAC, including front and back of the house areas
• Conduct animal adoption meet-and-greets and review information and adoption materials with potential adopters
• Perform accurate data entry, including adoption processing, fee collection, entering animal, person, and medical information, and creating and updating animal bios and photos
• Maintain an EAC floor presence and actively engage with the general public and PetSmart employees to facilitate matchmaking and a positive customer experience
• Demonstrate excellent verbal and written skills, including clear and effective communication with others (staff, public, volunteers) that is professional, respectful, positive, and educational
• Ensure adoption areas are clean and tidy throughout the day by mopping floors and wiping surfaces in meet-and-greet and lobby areas, and maintaining kennel signage/cards and indoor play yards. 
• Ensure the EAC is stocked with needed supplies and addresses supply and repair needs in a timely manner
• Participate in transferring animals from MCACC into and out of the EAC through loading and unloading transports and updating animal locations and records
• Conduct additional animal handling as needed, including restraint, walking, playgroups, and other duties
• Maintain and update adoption packet information and supplies to ensure new adopters have all the appropriate documentation and resources needed for their new pet

Working Conditions

• Work is predominantly performed in a busy, often noisy, office setting within an animal shelter with close proximity to dogs and cats with unknown temperaments or behaviors

• In this role, you will be exposed to cleaning products used in animal shelters and the smells associated with animal housing

• While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to stand and walk on all types of surfaces, some of which could be slippery, uneven, and rough.

• This position requires handling animals. May be required to drive to different shelter locations; subject to County policies regarding the use of County vehicles and/or private vehicles used on County business

• Exerting 50-100 lbs. occasionally, 10-25 lbs. frequently, or up to 10-20 lbs. constantly

• Machines, Tools, Equipment, Software, and Hardware: MFD printer, Desktop computer, Chameleon software, Microsoft Office suite, Avaya phone system, POS system

Selection Procedure

• Consideration will only be given to candidates who submit online applications

• Candidates will be contacted primarily through email and their Workday online application profile

• Must pass a pre-employment background and/or fingerprint investigation as required by statute or policy, including drug and alcohol testing requirements for positions designated as safety-sensitive

 

Maricopa County is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all applicants. If you require a reasonable accommodation during the application process or to perform the essential functions of the position under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), please contact

MHRFeedback@maricopa.gov?subject=ADA%20Accommodations

to initiate the interactive process.

 

Apply Now!