About Rockingham Harrisonburg SPCA

Since 1973, the RHSPCA has been providing compassionate animal care to help pets and people live happier, healthier lives. We offer a full range of services, including adoption options for companion pets and barn cats so that local animals can live better lives in the spaces that suit them best. We also work with a vast network of volunteers who help us care for animals in our shelter and individuals willing to foster pets in their homes. In addition to our pet matchmaking services, we partner with community members to help manage the outdoor cat population through our Community Cat Program. Across all of these services is our commitment to providing the resources and tools our community needs to improve animal welfare.

JOB TITLE:                        Foster Coordinator (Feline)

DEPARTMENT:              Shelter Operations

ACCOUNTABILITY:       Animal Health Manager

COMPENSATION:                 $16.00 - $17.00/hour

EMPLOYMENT TYPE: Part-Time, Non-Exempt

SCHEDULE: 1:00 pm - 6:00 pm Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays, 10:00 am - 3:00 pm Saturdays.

Objective

Under the direction of the Animal Health Manager, the Foster Coordinator (Feline) is responsible for the placement of cats and kittens into foster homes, foster recruitment, support, and retention, and close coordination with the Animal Health team to move cats and kittens from intake through foster to adoption in a timely manner. The position serves as an administrator of the RHSPCA Foster Facebook page and of Calendly, the foster scheduling tool.

Duties and Responsibilities

• Meet with fosters for cat and kitten pickup appointments; go over medications and care instructions with fosters at pickup.
• Perform matchmaking between cats and kittens and foster homes to ensure suitable placements.
• Communicate with fosters via email, phone, and in person - answering questions about their foster animal's status and next steps in the process, and obtaining updates on animals in foster care.
• Work closely with the animal health team, especially the foster medical technician, to move kittens and cats through the foster process to adoption in a timely manner.
• Actively promote cats in need of foster care and recruit new foster homes, with emphasis on harder-to-place cats.
• Serve as an administrator on the RHSPCA Foster Facebook page. Responsibilities include posting animals in need of foster care, monitoring and responding to messages and comments, and overseeing membership requests.
• Conduct foster orientations for new fosters.
• Track foster supplies, including litter boxes, Ziploc bags, toys, and bowls; monitor inventory and restock as needed.
• Follow up on foster non-compliance, such as repeatedly missed appointments or failure to follow instructions.
• Maintain ShelterLuv photos, descriptions, and foster-reported behavioral notes; assist with medical record data.
• Serve as the administrator and point of contact for Calendly, the foster scheduling tool. Responsibilities include onboarding new users, troubleshooting, scheduling, and managing user access and appointment types.
• Conduct surveys and polls and make recommendations for increasing foster engagement and bettering the foster program at large.
• Work closely with the adoption coordinator to support offsite events featuring foster animals.
• Collaborate with the adoption coordinator on adoption application reviews as needed; the adoption coordinator retains primary responsibility for reviewing applications.
• Carry out all responsibilities with a focus on providing excellent customer service and reducing the length of stay for animals in care while safeguarding the interests of animals and humans involved.

General

• Perform duties in a manner which encourages attainment of RHSPCA goals.
• Work courteously and cooperatively with the staff, volunteers, fosters, adopters, partners and donors to ensure that all RHSPCA policies and procedures are followed and new ones implemented successfully.
• Ensure quality care and humane treatment for the animals owned by the RHSPCA.
• Participate in meetings with other staff members and share ideas and suggestions designed to improve working conditions, welfare of pets and the organization.
• Ability to multitask, take and follow directions, adapt, and accommodate to changing demands.
• Good time management, oral and written communication skills, the ability to work well with others and a desire to learn.

Flexibility in scheduling is a must. This position will include weekend and holiday work. Job responsibilities and opportunities may change as organizational needs change and grow.

Qualifications

Required

• Proficiency with Google email, Google Calendar, and Google documents. Comfortable learning new software programs and using online information systems.
• Minimum of a high school diploma or equivalent.

Preferred but not required

• Veterinary assistant experience; must be able to learn medical information and explain it clearly to fosters.
• Previous experience working with animals is helpful.

Physical Requirements

Ability to perform prolonged computer and administrative work. Ability to lift up to 35 pounds, move throughout the shelter, and work around animals. The shelter environment may include loud noises, animal odors, cleaning products, and other chemicals.

Why Join RHSPCA?

We're a forward-thinking, optimistic team that values attention to detail, collaboration, and initiative. If you enjoy working with talented people, thrive under deadlines, and want your work to make a tangible difference every day, we'd love to hear from you.

Part-Time Perks

• All employees with the RHSPCA can take advantage of the Hill’s Pro Staff Feeding program, which offers significant discounts on their products.
• Discount offerings to multiple businesses throughout the valley
• Staff and volunteer appreciation events
• $0 adoption fee on your first pet adopted through the RHSPCA
• PTO accrual
• Meaningful work with visible impact on animals and the people who care for them.

Compensation

This is an hourly, part-time, non-exempt position offering a starting rate of $16.00 - $17.00/hour

Nature of Employment

The Foster Coordinator (Feline) is a non-exempt, part-time position eligible for overtime pay. The position is expected to work 25 hours per week and may include travel, weekend, evening, and holiday work.

There is no minimum period of employment guaranteed or implied by acceptance of an offer of employment.  It is the policy of the RHSPCA that employment for this position is at will, which means that employment for no specified term and the employee or agency may terminate that employment at any time without cause.  This job description serves as a guide.