Veterinary Technician - Animal Care

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Posting Reason:

Replacement of a temporary position

Job Type:

Employee

Anticipated Duration in Months (for contracts and temporary assignments):

12

Job Family:

Laboratory Support

# of Open Positions:

2

Faculty/Service - Department:

Animal Care and Veterinary Service

Campus:

Main Campus

Union Affiliation:

SSUO

Date Posted (YYYY/MM/DD):

2026/11/09

Applications must be received BEFORE (YYYY/MM/DD):

2026/11/20

Hours per week:

35

Salary Grade:

SSUO Grade 07

Salary Range:

$62,027.00 - $78,349.00

Position Purpose
Reporting to the Associate-Supervisor, Animal Care Operations, the incumbent participates in the delivery of the program of veterinary care under the general supervision of a  veterinarian in order to maintain the Animal Care and Veterinary Service’s (ACVS) high standards of animal care and welfare and regulatory compliance.  Responsibilities will include daily clinical and preventive veterinary care, anesthetic and surgical procedures, and biological specimen collection, for a variety of laboratory animal species. 

In this role, your responsibilities will include:

• Provision of Veterinary Care: First line evaluation of veterinary clinical cases at various uOttawa animal facilities.Initiate/implement treatment in consultation with veterinarian. Provide primary care of animals with health issues by frontline clinical response, assessment and administration of treatment plan. Monitor treatment and progress and provide feedback to the veterinarian and/or Animal Care Committee and research staff.
• Preventive veterinary medicine: Assisting with physical examinations, vaccinations, and clinical assessments.  Perform routine sample collection procedures such as blood collection, and urine/fecal collection as directed by an ACVS Veterinarian. Responsible for initiation and maintenance of accurate and complete animal clinical case records, document retention and archiving.
• Veterinary Technical Support and Scientific Collaboration: Using veterinary technical skills and expertise, support the advancement of animal based research, by providing in vivo study technical support to investigators including but not limited to, surgical animal model development, recording and/or tabulating of experimental protocol data, biological sample collection, and administration of chemical, biological or radioisotope products that may be categorized as hazardous or biohazardous.  Assist research groups with, or responsible for rodent colony breeding and management  
• Adhere to all regulatory requirements and guidelines, notably the Animals for Research Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. A-27 (the Act),  and the standards of the Canadian Council on Animal Care (CCAC), in addition to  the University of Ottawa Policy 31 (the Policy) and other uOttawa policies and procedures.  Adhere to all safety regulations (Ontario Provincial Ministry of Labour), University of Ottawa safety program initiatives and all pertinent safety guidelines (Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS) and CCAC standards).

What you will bring:

• A diploma from a CVMA (Canadian Veterinary Medical Association) recognized (or equivalent) Diploma from a Veterinary Technical program.
• Minimum of two (2) years of relevant experience.
• Bachelor of Science, or a post-secondary degree from a relevant discipline is desirable.
• Canadian Association for Laboratory Animal Science (CALAS) certification is desirable
• Knowledge of laboratory animal species, specifically knowledge allowing for the recognition of disease, pain and distress, and of related management techniques.
• Knowledge of the basic principles of laboratory animal medicine, and experience in applying veterinary technical procedures and methods.
• Experience in private practice or industry, with proven ability to perform well both independently and as a team member.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills, including writing skills to help draft internal standard operating procedures and policies.
• Ability to remain friendly yet objective in a team environment despite potentially conflicting views, priorities and interpersonal styles.
• Willingness and ability to work after hours, evenings, weekends and statutory holidays as assigned.
• Willingness to provide proof of vaccination history as per standard provincial protocols.
• Willingness and ability to work with a respirator (e.g. PAPR).
• Ability to multitask and to prioritize in an often challenging, quickly changing and time sensitive environment.
• Bilingualism - French and English (spoken and written).

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Key Competencies at uOttawa:
Here are the required competencies for all or our employees at uOttawa: 

Planning: Organize in time a series of actions or events in order to realize an objective or a project. Plan and organize own work and priorities in regular daily activities.
Initiative: Demonstrate creativity and initiative to suggest improvements and encourage positive results. Is proactive and self-starting. Show availability and willingness to go above and beyond whenever it is possible.
Client Service Orientation: Help or serve others to meet their needs. This implies anticipating and identifying the needs of internal and external clients and finding solutions on how to meet them.
Teamwork and Cooperation: Cooperate and work well with other members of the team to reach common goal(s). Accept and give constructive feedback. Able to adjust own behaviour to reach the goals of the team.

The University of Ottawa embraces diversity and inclusion in the workplace. We are passionate about our people and committed to employment equity. We foster a culture of respect, teamwork and inclusion, where collaboration, innovation, and creativity fuel our quest for research and teaching excellence. While all qualified persons are invited to apply, we welcome applications from qualified Indigenous persons, racialized persons, persons with disabilities, women and LGBTQIA2S+ persons. The University is committed to creating and maintaining an accessible, barrier-free work environment. The University is also committed to working with applicants with disabilities requesting accommodation during the recruitment, assessment and selection processes. Applicants with disabilities may contact [email protected] to communicate the accommodation need. All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadians and permanent residents will be given priority.

Note: if this is a union position: The hiring process will be governed by the current collective agreement related to the union affiliation noted above; you can click here to find out more.

If this is a front-line position with responsibilities to interact with students, selected candidates must be rated at the Low Advanced proficiency level or higher for both oral comprehension and reading comprehension in their second official language. The rating is determined by a proficiency test designed by the Official Languages and Bilingualism Institute.

Prior to May 1, 2022, the University required all students, faculty, staff, and visitors (including contractors) to be fully vaccinated against Covid-19 as defined in Policy 129 – Covid-19 Vaccination. This policy was suspended effective May 1, 2022 but may be reinstated at any point in the future depending on public health guidelines and the recommendations of experts.