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Seasonal Exotic Pet Specialist

House of Guineas LLC
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Pay: $30.00 per hour

Schedule: Seasonal - Summer (~June to August) and Winter (~Late October to January)

Job description:

  • Role: (Seasonal; Summer and Winter Months) Clinical Exotic Pet Specialist
  • Company: House of Guineas LLC
  • Location: San Francisco & The Peninsula (In-Home Care)

 

  • Position Type: Seasonal, Part-Time, Variable Hours
  • Pay: $30.00/hour
  • Core Schedule: Weekdays, including weekends and Major Holidays: 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM (Core hours, with occasional later afternoon or evening availability required as needed)

 

ABOUT US

House of Guineas LLC is a comprehensive, professional exotic pet company providing high-standard in-home care for a wide variety of small mammals, reptiles, and birds across San Francisco and the Peninsula. Founded with a background in exotic veterinary experience, our mission is to elevate the standard of pet sitting. We ensure our clients' unique pets receive professional care while their owners are away.

 

THE POSITION

We are seeking a dedicated and highly responsible Seasonal Exotic Pet Care Specialist to take ownership of our weekly visits during core Summer and Winter Periods. This is a high-level caregiving role requiring an individual who can maintain a calm, professional demeanor during rare emergencies and act as a compassionate advocate for the animals in our care.

 

HOW IT WORKS:

Your day-to-day focus will adapt to the season, whether Summer or Winter:

  • Summer (~June to August): 
    • If onboarding during the summer, you will spend the first weeks heavily shadowing our lead and training to identify critical health issues in exotic animals.
    • You will be out in the field caring for pets, and identifying areas to improve their quality of life. When demand surges, you will earn time-and-a-half ($45.00/hr) on major holidays.

 

  • Winter Holidays (~late October to January): 
    • If onboarding during the winter, you will spend the last weeks of October to shadow our lead and training to identify critical health issues in exotic animals.
    • You will be out in the field caring for pets, and identifying areas to improve their quality of life. When demand surges, you will earn time-and-a-half ($45.00/hr) on major holidays.

 

PRIMARY DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

  • Specialized Pet Care: Provide meticulous, highly observant care for small mammals (guinea pigs, rabbits, chinchillas, hamsters), reptiles, and birds.

 

  • Dietary Management: Manage complex, species-specific nutrition and fresh water. For our reptile clients, this requires the safe handling and provisioning of live or stored insects and small feeder mammals.

 

  • Medical Administration: Confidently administer required medications, including oral, topical, and subcutaneous (SQ) injections as needed.

 

  • Client Communication: Provide consistent, detailed photo and video updates to clients to ensure their complete peace of mind.

 

EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT

  • Emergency Response: Quickly identify and respond to "red flag" symptoms in exotic pets, including the swift and safe transportation of pets to veterinary hospitals.

 

  • Clinical Liaison: Act as the vital communication link between hospital staff and the client. You must ensure the client is fully informed regarding the pet's state and that all veterinary instructions are clearly understood.

 

  • Protocol & Advocacy: Navigate critical situations strictly through veterinary suggestion and explicit client consent, ensuring all medical decisions perfectly align with both professional advice and the owner's wishes.

 

  • End-of-Life Advocacy: In rare and unfortunate circumstances, navigate humane euthanasia or end-of-life quality-of-care protocols with extreme compassion and professional grace, always following veterinary guidance and client authorization.

 

WHO YOU ARE

  • Student or educator passionate about animal welfare. Professional or veterinary retiree with previous experience in a veterinary setting or advanced, hands-on handling of exotic pets is highly preferred. 

 

  • Medicine Administration: You are completely comfortable administering medications, spotting signs of illness, and handling feeder insects/animals.

 

  • Reliability & High EQ: You possess high emotional intelligence, a deep sense of reliability, and the ability to remain decisive under pressure.

 

  • Reliable commute: You can reliability commute to and from San Francisco and along the peninsula and own an operable vehicle with a valid driver's license.

 

WHY WORK WITH US?

  • Opportunities to Increase Income: Not only are you improving the quality of animals lives at home, you are getting paid to do so - and at 1.5 your base rate when caring for animals on holidays.

 

  • Proper Expense Reimbursement: Mileage and vehicle upkeep will be fully and accurately reimbursed for all business-related travel to ensure tax compliance and protect your take-home pay.

 

  • A Supportive Team: Join an organized, passionate team that values your exotic animal experience and respects your time.

 

BENEFITS & PERKS

  • 1-Hour Guaranteed Service Blocks: Every 30-minute drop-in visit is paid as a full 1-hour block. This ensures you are compensated for travel and post-visit charting.

 

  • Administrative Pay: You receive one (1) guaranteed hour of pay per month at your standard rate, which is purely dedicated to asynchronous internal communication.

 

  • Mileage Reimbursement: We reimburse site-to-site travel at the current IRS rate of $0.725 per mile.

 

  • Tax-Compliant Reimbursements: Receive a $50.00 monthly reimbursement to support your use of a personal smartphone for GPS, pet photography, and client communication.

 

  • You also receive a $15.00 monthly reimbursement to offset the cost of laundering for your company attire.

 

  • Wellness Bonuses: During peak quarters, you may receive discretionary bonuses of up to $100.00 to be used towards healthcare premiums or other wellness activities.

 

  • Health & Security: We provide full Workers' Compensation coverage, and follow San Francisco Paid Sick Leave.

 

  • Team Pet Perks: Enjoy a 20% discount on House of Guineas drop-in visits for your personal pets. You also receive discounts on our patent-pending, all-in-one guinea pig liners.

 

TO APPLY

Please submit your resume and summary detailing your specific species experience, clinical background, and how this variable part-time schedule works well for your lifestyle to: houseofguineas@gmail.com