Animal Support Manager
Nebraska HumanePosition Title: Animal Support Manager
Department: Animal Support
Reports To: Director of Animal Welfare
Supervisory Position: Yes
Position Summary:
The Animal Support Manager provides administrative, personnel, and program management for Nebraska Humane Society’s animal support program across dogs, cats, small mammals, and other species in the organization’s care. Reporting to the Director of Animal Welfare, the Manager supervises the Animal Support Specialist Lead, Animal Support Specialists, Volunteer and Enrichment Coordinator and other assigned staff. The position is primarily responsible for staffing, scheduling, employee development, performance management, administrative coordination, and oversight of behavior support, enrichment, playgroups, the Molly Program, and related services.
The Manager supports the Animal Support Specialist Lead in coordinating daily animal support activities, providing technical guidance to specialists, and implementing individualized animal support plans. The Manager ensures the Lead and team have clear expectations, adequate resources, appropriate training, and timely leadership support. The position stays connected to daily shelter operations through rounds, observation, and staff check-ins, while prioritizing people management and program administration over a routine individual animal caseload.
Essential Job Functions
Team Leadership and People Management
- Recruit, hire, onboard, supervise, coach, and evaluate the Animal Support Specialist Lead, Animal Support Specialists, Animal Support and Enrichment Specialist, and other assigned staff.
- Manage schedules, staffing coverage, workload distribution, timekeeping review, and leave coordination in accordance with NHS policies.
- Establish clear roles, decision-making authority, performance expectations, and accountability for assigned work.
- Conduct regular staff check-ins and performance reviews; provide feedback, recognize effective performance, and support professional development.
- Address attendance, conduct, performance, and interpersonal concerns in partnership with the Director of Animal Welfare and Human Resources as appropriate.
- Promote respectful communication, collaboration, and employee wellbeing.
Administrative and Program Management
- Oversee behavior support, enrichment, playgroups, the Molly Program, and related services across dogs, cats, small mammals, and other species; implement goals and priorities established with the Director of Animal Welfare.
- Maintain program calendars, administrative records, and staff training records.
- Monitor assigned budgets, purchasing, supplies, and equipment within established approval authority; recommend resource adjustments as needed.
- Develop and maintain procedures, safety protocols, and training requirements with the Lead and relevant departments; ensure practices align with NHS policies, animal welfare standards, and lifesaving goals.
- Ensure timely, accurate, and objective documentation in Chameleon and other designated systems, including animal support plans, progress, risks, and follow-up.
- Evaluate program performance using service activity, response times, training completion, incidents, pathway movement, length of stay, returns, and outcomes; use findings and staff feedback to improve services.
- Report program performance, resource needs, risks, and recommendations to the Director of Animal Welfare.
Lead Support and Animal Support Oversight
- Meet regularly with the Animal Support Specialist Lead to set priorities, review daily workflow and animal needs, and resolve personnel, resource, or operational barriers.
- Support the Lead in coordinating daily assignments and technical coaching while retaining responsibility for staff performance and overall program delivery.
- Ensure the Lead has adequate coordination time and access to qualified technical resources; identify staff training needs and coordinate competency assessments together.
- Oversee the timely development, implementation, reassessment, and follow-up of individualized, species-appropriate animal support plans that account for observed behavior, medical considerations, environment, handling, enrichment, safety, and pathway needs.
- Coordinate complex or high-risk case reviews with the Lead, Director of Animal Welfare, Veterinary Services, and other qualified resources; ensure concerns beyond staff training or authority are escalated appropriately.
Shelter Collaboration and Placement Support
- Work with other departments to support both the people and animals.
- Participate in population rounds, case reviews, and Animal Welfare Panel meetings to support placement, quality-of-life, and safety decisions with relevant observations and qualified technical input.
- Oversee educational resources, behavior consultations, and transition support for foster caregivers, adopters, and rescue partners, including clear information about animal needs, foreseeable risks, recommended supports, and follow-up.
- Work with pathway teams to remove unnecessary placement barriers and reduce preventable returns while maintaining animal welfare and community safety.
- Partner with Volunteer Manager to recruit, train, assess, and support animal support volunteers within approved roles and safety protocols.
- Supervise the Volunteer and Enrichment Coordinator in coordinating volunteer participation and enrichment activities; ensure priorities, coverage, training, and safety expectations align with animal support program needs in partnership with Volunteer Services.
Other Duties
- Represent NHS professionally and maintain relationships with qualified trainers, behavior consultants, and other relevant resources.
- Stay current on animal welfare, shelter animal support practices, and people leadership.
- Perform other duties as assigned.
Qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree in animal behavior, animal science, organizational leadership, or a related field preferred. An equivalent combination of education and relevant experience may be considered.
- Minimum of five years of progressively responsible experience in animal behavior, animal training, sheltering, animal welfare, veterinary behavior support, or a related field.
- Minimum of three years of supervisory or management experience, including responsibility for scheduling, coaching, performance management, workflow oversight, and team accountability.
- Demonstrated experience coordinating or overseeing animal support, enrichment, training, or related shelter programs and monitoring consistent implementation of individualized plans.
- Experience coordinating case review and collaborating with qualified animal behavior and veterinary staff on pathway, placement, quality-of-life, and safety-related decisions.
- Demonstrated knowledge of animal learning, species-specific body language, fear, stress, arousal, aggression, enrichment, humane handling, risk assessment, and behavior support principles.
- Experience supporting or overseeing the behavioral and emotional wellbeing of dogs, cats, small mammals, and other companion animals, or the demonstrated ability to build competency across all species served by NHS.
- Ability to work with technically qualified staff to translate animal support practices into clear procedures, training expectations, documentation standards, and consistent program delivery.
- Strong personnel leadership, coaching, team development, conflict-management, and performance-management skills.
- Ability to analyze animal welfare, operational, and behavior-related data to evaluate program effectiveness and inform decisions.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to communicate behavioral needs, observed patterns, foreseeable risks, and placement considerations clearly and objectively.
- Strong organizational, administrative, problem-solving, project-management, and decision-making abilities.
- Ability to lead through sensitive, emotionally difficult, time-sensitive, and safety-sensitive situations with professionalism and sound judgment.
- Commitment to removing unnecessary barriers to positive outcomes while balancing organizational lifesaving goals, animal welfare, staff safety, adopter success, and community safety.
- Proficiency with shelter-management software, shared tracking and reporting systems, and Microsoft Office applications, or the ability to learn these systems quickly.
Preferred Qualifications
- Relevant professional certification or advanced training through IAABC, CCPDT, Karen Pryor Academy, Fear Free, Low Stress Handling, or a comparable organization preferred; technical credentials supplement, but do not replace, demonstrated people-management experience.
- Experience leading a multi-species animal behavior, enrichment, playgroup, or animal-support program in an open-admission or high-volume shelter.
- Experience supervising a team that includes lead-level staff and direct-service specialists.
- Experience working closely with an interdisciplinary animal welfare or outcome-review panel.
- Experience developing SOPs, managing program budgets, establishing performance measures, analyzing data, and delivering training to adult learners.
- Experience overseeing volunteer-supported animal behavior, enrichment, handling, or playgroup programs.
Work Conditions
The work environment characteristics described below represent those an employee may encounter while performing the essential functions of this position. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform these functions.
- Generally works a minimum of 40 hours per week. Hours may exceed 40 during peak operational periods or when program needs require additional leadership coverage.
- Must be able to work occasional evenings, weekends, holidays, or emergency situations based on operational needs.
- Works in office, shelter, and outdoor environments with varying temperatures, weather conditions, and noise levels.
- Regularly works around dogs, cats, small mammals, and other species of varying sizes, medical conditions, temperaments, and behavioral presentations.
- Maintains sufficient involvement in shelter operations to observe program practices, understand animal and staff needs, and coordinate support for complex situations.
- Must be able to safely handle or assist with handling animals who may be fearful, stressed, reactive, defensive, aggressive, or otherwise challenging within established training and safety protocols.
- May be exposed to animals with unknown behavioral or medical histories, animal waste, allergens, zoonotic diseases, cleaning chemicals, anesthetic gases, medical waste, and other occupational hazards.
- Must be able to work around animals without severe allergic reactions that cannot be reasonably accommodated.
- Works in an emotionally demanding environment that may include animal suffering, difficult outcome decisions, humane euthanasia, interpersonal conflict, and emergency situations.
- Must demonstrate compassion, emotional resilience, adaptability, professionalism, and sound judgment while supporting both animal and employee wellbeing.
Physical Requirements
The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this position. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
| Physical Demand | Occasionally | Frequently | Constantly |
| Walking |
|
X |
|
| Bending | |
X |
|
| Standing | |
X |
|
| Sitting |
|
X |
|
| Driving | X |
||
| Lifting up to 50 lbs with or without assistance | X | ||
| Lifting over 50 lbs with assistance | X | ||
| Stretching/reaching | X | ||
| Distinguish smell/temperature | X | ||
| Hearing/Seeing | X | ||
| Exposure to hazardous materials | X | ||
| Climbing | X | ||
| Hand/finger dexterity | X | ||
| Stooping | X |
The Nebraska Humane Society provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, marital status, such as a veteran, or any other protected category, in accordance with applicable federal, state, and local laws.
Nothing in this job description restricts management’s right to assign or reassign duties and responsibilities to this job at any time.