Want to work for a progressive, effective, and innovative lifesaving animal shelter caring for nearly 10,000 animals a year?

Join our team at the Nevada Humane Society as a Foster Coordinator at our Reno Campus. Pay starting at: $18.00 per hour

We are proud to be a high save organization and are looking for individuals who enjoy working with people as much as working with animals. Help us care for our animal population daily and match families with a new best friend.

At NHS, we believe in our team, and their dedication to serving the animals in need all over Northern Nevada. That is why we have robust industry, leading total compensation packages for our employees. Taking care of you makes us happy from nose to tail!

Primary Purpose:

As a Foster Coordinator, you contribute to Nevada Humane Society’s (NHS) mission in the placement and care of animals in foster homes across all Nevada Humane Society campuses. This position is responsible for coordinating the intake and return of foster animals, ensuring accurate documentation, and maintaining regular communication with foster families to provide guidance and support. The Foster Coordinator works closely with other departments, such as our Volunteer, Animal Care, and Clinic Departments, ensuring smooth collaboration and efficient workflows. Your work ensures that animals who are best served out of the shelter are housed and cared for appropriately. By extending our sheltering capabilities into foster homes, you reflect our commitment to care for pets, find them homes, and save lives.

Essential Responsibilities

Position-Specific Responsibilities

1. Coordinate the care and placement of foster animals to support optimal outcomes, including managing shelter population levels and ensuring the best possible placement for each animal based on medical, behavioral, and environmental needs.
2.  Maintain accurate, up-to-date foster program documentation and data entry across all required systems, including tracking animals entering and exiting foster care and supporting effective placement and scheduling decisions. Promptly follow up with potential new foster families to support the organization’s foster needs.
3. Maintain up-to-date records of foster family availability, preferences, and requirements to support appropriate and timely placements.
4. Collaborate with the Clinic Team and Animal Care Teams to coordinate vaccinations and spay/neuter surgeries for animals in foster care.
5. Provide basic education and guidance to new and returning foster parents regarding the care needs of their foster animals.
6. Assist in emergency foster mobilization efforts during urgent situations or natural disasters.
7. Respond to requests from Washoe County Regional Animal Services, as appropriate, to maximize community lifesaving efforts.
8. Support the implementation of new foster initiatives developed by the Foster Manager and Director of Community Support and Programs.
9. Help manage foster-related communications, including responding to inquiries via phone, email, social media platforms, and the Foster Phone (when assigned), ensuring timely and professional communication.
10. Track and organize foster supplies across campuses, ensuring availability and proper distribution.
11. Provide support with animal care, intake, adoptions, events, and special projects as needed.
12. Participate in humane euthanasia procedures when required and trained to do so

General Responsibilities

1. Helps promote fundraising activities and solicit support of agency overall.
2. Interacts with co-workers and volunteers in an efficient and courteous manner to ensure a cooperative team environment amongst all departments.
3. Maintain and promote a positive public image by representing NHS professionally and courteously with customers, donors, business partners, and the community in alignment with organizational standards.
4. Attend and participate in departmental and shelter meetings. Attend educational conferences/seminars as recommended/approved.
5. In the event of an emergency, assist with the handling and evacuation of animals located at any NHS campus.
6. Participate in disaster preparedness and response activities for the organization and community as it pertains to pet related needs.
7. Address and/or report any safety hazards or unsafe activities.
8. Perform other responsibilities as requested by direct management, and/or the CEO.

Working conditions

Position-Specific Working Conditions

1. Work is performed in a fast-paced environment across office and animal care settings, requiring frequent transitions between administrative duties and hands-on coordination of foster placements.
2. Regular exposure to animals in varying conditions, including sick, injured, or at-risk animals, and participation in humane euthanasia procedures when trained and required.
3. Frequent interaction with foster families, staff, partner agencies, and the public via phone, email, social media, and in person, requiring professionalism and timely communication.
4. Schedule may include evenings, weekends, and holidays to support foster needs, emergency placements, and shelter operations.
5. Requires the ability to respond quickly to time-sensitive placement needs, emergency foster mobilizations, and partner agency requests.
6. Physical requirements include sitting, standing, walking, bending, and lifting supplies or animal-related materials (typically up to 50 lbs.), and handling animals of varying sizes, temperaments, and medical conditions.
7. Exposure to animal dander, odors, cleaning chemicals, and potential zoonotic diseases; work may occur across multiple campuses or locations.
8. Requires strong attention to detail and the ability to manage multiple priorities related to foster placements, recordkeeping, and population management.
9. Ability to work with animals of varying temperament in noisy conditions.
10. Working conditions may include both on-site indoors and off-site outside

General Working Conditions

Working for NHS in any capacity is safety sensitive due to the responsibilities of this business that directly affect the wellbeing and safety of employees, animals and the public.

1. Work will be performed in a variety of environmentally controlled and uncontrolled conditions.
2. Due to the housing of live animals onsite, work hours may take place at any time within a 24-hour period, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. Operational and public hours may vary by department or location and are subject to change. Attendance at events and other functions may require additional hours, holiday, weekend, evening overnight, or on-call work.
3. Exposure to allergens produced by animal dander, saliva, or fur, throughout all areas of the shelter, or other locations.
4. Exposure to zoonotic, or otherwise communicable disease.
5. Exposure to animals with unpredictable or aggressive behavior. 
6. Exposure to animals that may scratch or bite unexpectedly.
7. Exposure to direct or indirect injury from an animal or other mechanical means used to confine, control, or provide essential care for any animal housed with NHS.
8. May require travel within a workday on a regular basis. May require overnight travel intermittently.

Position-Specific Equipment Use

1. Animal housing and comfort equipment such as carriers, kennels, warming pads and similar heating elements, and incubators.
2. Feeding and medication equipment such as bottles, microwave oven, syringes with and without needles, pill cutters.
3. Cleaning equipment such as paper towels, rags, spray bottles, and brooms.
4. Diagnostic equipment such as Wood’s Lamps, SNAP tests, and scales.
5. Animal handling equipment related to care and control such as leashes, collars, harnesses, and humane traps and nets. 

General Equipment Use

1. Telephone or mobile device.
2. Computer, printer, copier and/or scanner.
3. Two-way radios.
4. Other office-related equipment.
5. May require use of personal and company vehicles.

Physical & Mental Demands

Position-Specific Mental Demands

1. Ability to make timely, sound decisions regarding animal placement, balancing medical, behavioral, and capacity considerations to support positive outcomes and population management.
2. Capacity to manage multiple priorities simultaneously, including foster placements, communications, recordkeeping, and urgent requests.
3. Strong attention to detail required for maintaining accurate records, tracking animal movement, and managing foster family information.
4. Ability to assess and match animals with appropriate foster homes based on nuanced factors such as behavior, medical needs, and foster capabilities.
5. Emotional resilience when working with animals in distress, making difficult decisions, and supporting foster families through challenging situations.
6. Effective problem-solving skills to address unexpected issues, including last-minute placement needs, medical concerns, or foster availability changes.
7. Clear and professional communication skills to educate, guide, and support foster families, staff, and external partners.
8. Ability to adapt quickly to changing priorities, emergency situations, and evolving organizational needs.
9. Capacity to follow established procedures while exercising independent judgment in day-to-day decision-making.
10. Ability to remain organized and focused in a fast-paced, sometimes high-stress environment.

General Mental Demands

1. Demonstrated ability to maintain emotional balance, competently and reasonably manage daily exposure to various animal welfare concerns, including adverse outcomes for animals, ethically complex situations, and hostile clients. 
2. Must have ability to make decisions based on reasonable judgment.
3. Must have ability to work with the public, staff and volunteers in a fair and ethical manner.
4. Requires the ability to think clearly, act quickly and utilize sound judgment in a variety of situations.

Position-Specific Physical Demands

1. Ability to frequently stand, walk, bend, stoop, kneel, and reach while coordinating foster activities and handling supplies or animals.
2. Ability to lift and carry animals, equipment, and supplies weighing up to 50 pounds, with or without assistance.
3. Ability to safely handle animals of varying sizes, temperaments, and medical conditions, including those that may be fearful or stressed.
4. Ability to perform repetitive tasks such as data entry, phone use, and written or electronic communication.
5. Ability to operate standard office equipment, including computers, phones, and tablets, for extended periods.
6. Ability to move between multiple work areas or campuses as needed to support foster operations.
7. Sufficient manual dexterity and coordination to manage animal handling equipment, supplies, and routine administrative tasks.
8. Ability to work in environments with moderate noise levels, including barking animals and active shelter settings.

General Physical Demands

1. The physical ability to be at the shelter for the duration of each scheduled shift and other offsite locations as assigned or required to provide essential care to all animals under the care of NHS.
2. Physical ability to walk and/or stand on your feet throughout a normal workday to provide essential care for all animals under the care of NHS.
3. Physical ability to engage in repetitive motions of all limbs and the dexterity to grasp and hold small items with both hands, to move animals and goods. ability to hear, and discern noises from within 3 feet of you, visual acuity, near, far, depth, color vision, to provide essential care to all animals under the care of NHS.
4. Ability to and willingness to physically be near and handle any animals, and required tools, supplies, materials, used to safely and humanely manage their care.

The Reno/Tahoe region is host to a growing population of motivated professionals who work hard but value a work life balance and lean into the numerous outdoor recreational opportunities of the region.

Sweeping ski and snowboard vistas pair with stunning water experiences at nearby Lake Tahoe and Pyramid Lake, complemented by numerous hiking, biking and park amenities – together these options make an active day in the valley or in the nearby mountains a matter of which terrain you want to experience.

 In fact, Reno was named by Outsider Magazine as the #1 Happiest Place to Live in the United States in 2023, citing the burgeoning craft brewing scene, its annual monthlong summer art festival (Artown), as well as the prolific Burning Man installations made public thanks to its proximity to Burning Man, and the relatively affordable cost of living.

Home to Nevada’s first university, the University of Nevada, Reno, the region comes alive with school spirit. It also boasts an impressive number of community-minded professionals, a number that is growing thanks to blue chip companies like Tesla and Microsoft.  

With approximately 300 days of sunlight each year, a diverse economy, and a wealth of options for adventure, the Reno/Tahoe area is a perfect home for a nonprofit professional looking to continue the next chapter of their career in a bustling and welcoming community.

Experience and Qualification Requirements

Position-Specific Requirements

1. High School graduate (or equivalent)
2. 1 years of experience in handling animals, preferably in an animal welfare or veterinary medicine environment
3. Fear Free Certified, or the ability to become Fear Free Certified within 1 month of holding the position

General Requirements

1. 18 years of age or older.
2. Ability to work autonomously, manage multiple tasks, and meet deadlines efficiently.
3. Staying updated on community developments, particularly in animal welfare.
4. High degree of accuracy and meticulous attention to detail.
5. Excellent verbal, written, and observational skills.
6. Self-starter with a goal-oriented mindset, willing to exceed prescribed work and time schedules to meet deadlines.
7. Possession of a valid Driver’s License with valid registration and insurance for personal vehicles, essential for positions requiring driving.
8. Demonstrated commitment to the welfare of animals and alignment with the mission of the NHS.
9. Consistently treat animals with compassion and respect, both professionally and personally, and promote these values to others.
10. Strict adherence to all local regulations concerning the ownership and care of personal animals.
11. Comprehensive understanding of pet behavior and care, with the capability to handle various animals safely and responsibly.
12. Maintaining a consistently positive and professional demeanor is essential.
13. A sincere interest in the NHS’s mission and vision.

Position-Specific Desired Experience

1. Experience providing support within a team or department, preferably in an animal welfare or nonprofit setting.
2. Hands-on experience coordinating foster placements or supporting a foster care program.
3. Experience caring for and handling neonatal animals, including bottle-feeding and monitoring health concerns.
4. Familiarity with program operations, including scheduling, communication, and recordkeeping.

General Desired Experience

1. Experience in same or related position in a nonprofit setting-preferably animal welfare.
2. Record of continually increasing responsibilities with measurable results.

Additional Beneficial Qualifications

1. College degree.
2. Experience in a nonprofit agency.
3. Animal welfare experience.

Salary : $18 - $20