Job Description

About us 

The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS) is a wildlife conservation charity with a bold vision: a world where nature is protected, valued and loved.

Edinburgh Zoo and Highland Wildlife Park are our gateways to the natural world through which people can experience nature.  

This is an exciting role to support the development, implementation, and on-going delivery of animal welfare assessments and related projects and research at Edinburgh Zoo and Highland Wildlife Park. 

How you you’ll contribute to our mission 

To carry out veterinary nursing duties in support of our animal welfare strategy and to deliver an excellent quality service in line with agreed procedures and service standards, in support of the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS) vision and mission. 

Veterinary Nurse for the RZSS (Edinburgh Zoo). Cross site support provided where required.

Some of the things you’ll do

• The role may also be required to work on specific projects, for example Saving Wildcats.
• The veterinary nurse has no direct line management responsibilities.
• Provide mentoring /coaching for undergraduate veterinary students and less experienced staff.
• Responsible for maintaining the integrity of veterinary stock including sourcing, ordering consumables and equipment held by the veterinary section on either site.
• Responsible for day-to-day veterinary nursing duties including maintaining medical records, dispensing medications, faecal parasitology and monitoring general anaesthesia of zoo animal cases.
• Operates as a competent professional with changes to Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) being approved by Head of Veterinary Services.
• Work with minimum supervision but under Veterinary Surgeon guidance during medical procedural work.
• Acting as a first point of contact (primarily for non-emergency) will triage cases determined on treatment priorities /animal welfare needs and will escalate to veterinary team when required.
• Responsible for dispensing drugs, running in house lab samples, carrying out x-rays, and day-to-day administrative tasks.
• Actively involved with designing and implementing of animal training plans, for example hand injections to take blood from an animal consciously.

What we’re looking for

• Has an RCVS recognized veterinary nursing qualification and gives reliable advice on veterinary nursing aspects of animal health, welfare to the veterinary team as required.
• Working knowledge of veterinary legislation and best practice. 
• Veterinary Nursing Certificate, Level 3, and a Registered Veterinary Nurse (RVN). 
• Full UK driving licence.
• Post Level 3 Nursing qualifications in Zoo or related discipline.
• Knowledge and understanding of Zoological legislation and best practice.
• Broad experience of working practically with animals in a Zoo environment to make sound professional decisions about the welfare of animals. 

What you’ll get in return: 

• Starting pro-rated salary of £28,037 or £28,738 (offer based on experience) with future salary progression up to £31,250 per annum
• 37.5hr working week (may require some weekend working) 
• 34 days annual leave (pro rata) 
• Discount in both retail/catering 
• Access to Employee Assistance Programme (EAP), that provide 24-hour counselling and support, including health, legal, finance, wellbeing and family advice 
• Employer contributory pension scheme 
• You will receive a staff membership which will give you (and family/friends) free (and discounted) entry to both the Highland Wildlife Park and Edinburgh Zoo as well as a number of other Zoo’s across the UK. 

If this role excites you and aligns with your career aspirations, click APPLY now. 

This role is fixed term for 3 months.

This role is subject to standard pre-employment checks, including the candidate's right to work in the UK and Basic Disclosure check.

Please note that shortlisting of applications and interviews for this position will take place while the advert is live. The advert will close once a successful candidate has been found. 

Interested candidates are therefore encouraged to submit applications, as soon as possible. xbpsjku  

The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland is an equal opportunities employer. Our policy is to recruit a diverse workforce following the guidelines of the Equality Act 2010.