Job Description
AEC is looking for the person who knows preparedness is patient care. Animal Emergency Care is looking to expand our team of veterinary technician assistants (VTAs). This role is for the person who understands that emergency care depends on the details being handled before anyone has to ask. The VTA is part of the patient care system at AEC. They support hospitalized patients, maintain clean and prepared spaces, assist the veterinarians and other members of the technical team, and help patients move through admission, hospitalization, and discharge with attention and respect. This is hands-on work, and it matters.
Quick Details Hospital:
Privately owned emergency hospital in Bellingham, Washington Role:
Veterinary technician assistant Schedule:
Weekends, overnights, and holidays required Required:
High school diploma or equivalent and minimum age of 18 years Preferred:
Experience in an animal care profession Full-time status: > 24 hours per week Recent VTA census: Scheduled weekly hours ranging from 32.0 to 36.0 Recent gross hourly compensation: $21.25 to $24.25 hourly base Why This Role Matters at AEC AEC was founded in 2002 by local veterinarians to provide after-hours emergency care for the community. Today, AEC remains privately owned by 33 local veterinarians, many of whom are still connected to our referral network. We were built by the community, for the community, and that still shapes how we operate every day. Emergency hospitals run on readiness. A kennel that is clean, a patient that has been walked, a food bowl that has been checked, a blanket that has been changed, a sample that has been collected, or even a noticed change in behavior can affect the next medical decision. The VTA helps create the conditions that allow the rest of the team to care well. What This Role Requires Qualified candidates must have a high school diploma or equivalent, minimum age of 18 years, and availability for weekend, overnight, or holiday shifts as defined by the terms of employment. Experience in an animal care profession is preferred. Relevant scope includes hospitalized patient husbandry, feeding, eliminations, appetite and behavior observation, patient walking, urine and fecal collection, safe restraint, support for minor procedures, admission and discharge support, patient identification and location, hospital cleanliness, kennel preparation, laundry, instrument cleaning and sterilization, autoclave operation, equipment support, infection control, and communication of abnormal patient conditions to the team. This role requires reliability, physical effort, attention to detail, and the ability to keep moving without losing sight of the patient. A patient that eats, does not eat, eliminates, vocalizes, rests, resists handling, or changes behavior is communicating something. The VTA helps make sure those details are seen, recorded, and shared. The Person We Are Looking For The person we are looking for takes pride in work that other people may not always notice immediately, but everyone feels when it is missing. They understand that cleanliness is safety, observation is communication, and consistency is care. They can work around noise, urgency, emotion, and changing priorities. They can ask for help, accept direction, follow through, and support team members who are caring for unstable patients. They are not looking for a passive role. They are looking for an entry point into emergency medicine where their work has meaning. How AEC Honors and Supports This Work AEC standardized its compensation structures so people holding the same position are evaluated using the same criteria. The system recognizes that value is not limited to the medical skills that qualify a person for a role; it also lives in how they communicate, steady a room, support others, respond to pressure, and contribute to the greater organization. We believe baseline employment structures should be clear. Access to full-time employment and its benefits start at 24 hours per week . Employees are paid for every hour worked, operations are structured to prevent team members from being routinely pulled back into work from home, and no one is ever required to sign an employment contract. AEC knows health care should be accessible, and this is what drives our commitment to the 24-hour-per-week full-time status threshold. AEC is happy to report that 98% of our employees have access to health coverage through our employer-sponsored plan. Full-time employees have access to:
Regence health insurance, including three PPO plans and two HSA plans, with one of each 100% employer paid Regence vision insurance, 100% employer paid Regence Expressions dental insurance, 100% employer paid Principal life insurance, with benefit equivalent to annual salary, 100% employer paid Principal long-term disability insurance, 100% employer paid Principal accidental death and dismemberment insurance, 100% employer paid AEC provides professional support that reflects the work we ask our full-time VTAs to do: Employer sponsored education toward VA and then LVT programs at no cost to you. Veterinary medication clerk licensure and reimbursements for credentialing toward VA and LVT pathways Student loan repayment plan Paid time to volunteer with a cause important to you Employee pet care benefits, including complimentary in-house laboratory packages, euthanasia, and cremation benefits through AEC and professional discounts for care accessed through Boundary Bay Veterinary Specialty Hospital Other employment structures are built into the system for every employee rather than treated as perks: On-call supplement: 25% paid scheduled hours in addition to hours worked Overtime differential: 50% over 40 hours per week regardless of exempt status Overnight differential: 10% for hours worked between 12:00 a.m. and 8:00 a.m. Holiday differential:
50% in addition to other applicable differentials Sick leave: 2.5% of worked hours returned in sick leave Vacation leave: 8.7% of worked hours returned in vacation leave Retirement match: 3% employer match of employee contributions The VTA We Keep Thinking About There is a VTA we keep thinking about. They notice the patient that needs a clean blanket, the kennel that needs to be ready before the next admission, the bowl that tells a story, the team member who needs help restraining safely, and the small change that should be mentioned before it becomes a larger concern. They understand that preparedness is patient care. If that sounds like you, we would like to meet you. Pay:
From $21.25 per hour Benefits:
Dental insurance Disability insurance Employee assistance program Employee discount Health insurance Health savings account Life insurance Paid time off Professional development assistance Retirement plan Tuition reimbursement Uniform allowance Vision insurance Work Location:
In person
