Green Vets York – Veterinary Care Support: Level 2 Apprenticeship (Animal Care and Welfare Assistant)

Company Details

Name: Green Vets Services Limited

Address: 71 Green Lane, YO24 3DJ

Phone: 01904393393

Webiste: https://www.thegreenvets.uk

Green Vets is an independent, eco-conscious first-opinion veterinary practice in Acomb, York, offering high-quality first-opinion companion animal care with a focus on environmental and community responsibility. Staffed by a dedicated team, we emphasise building rapport with clients and providing detailed, empathetic, and transparently priced care.

Our vision is to deliver clinical excellence and genuine care for patients using environmentally and community-sustainable principles.

Our mission is to continuously improve clinical standards while reducing our negative impact on the environment and making positive contributions to environmental sustainability and our local community.

Our motto is ‘’Healthy Pets, Happy People’’. It is our foundation. It is what our business is all about.

Our values follow from it, and they describe what drives us. Our core values are part of everything we do. Here they are marked in Green – of course.

Our environmental commitment

We support Vet Sustain’s veterinary sustainability goals. We acknowledge that our veterinary activities, services, and operations impact the environment, and we have identified key impacts related to our business that contribute to our environmental and carbon footprint. Through the implementation of this sustainability policy, we will encourage wide-reaching participation, working to reduce these impacts while upholding the highest standards of animal health, welfare, and clinical care for our patients.

Key Impacts

Although ‘being Green’ is a constant thread through our business, we also have an impact on the environment. To deliver services to our patients and clients, we need to use electricity, gas, and chemicals. Without that, we simply would not be able to look after the animals in our care.

Currently, only UK-quoted companies and large businesses must disclose their annual energy use, greenhouse gas emissions, and related information. Small businesses have no such requirement. However, we have always recognised the need for early voluntary action, and through that, inspire other businesses to do the same.

We have used Vet Sustain to calculate our practice carbon footprint, and we can report that our April 2025 – April 2026 emissions are 13.78 tons of CO2 equivalent.

Job Details

Job location: North Yorkshire | Yorkshire and the Humber

Role: Veterinary | Animal Care

Position: Apprentice

Closes in: 25 days (Wednesday 30 September 2026)

Job Description:

General Responsibilities

• At Green Vets, Animal Care Assistants (ACAs) make animal health and welfare their first consideration when attending to animals.
• They apply themselves and take an organised, pro-active approach to daily tasks, being flexible and helping out wherever needed.
• They take instructions and follow directions from Management and RVNs, but always taking a proactive approach.
• They maintain calm under pressure and be supportive of all colleagues.
• They attend work on time and are presentable. They are the public face of the practice knowing that while wearing the uniform an ACA represents Green Vets and acts accordingly.
• They have a working knowledge of practice protocols and handbook, including any changes issued by Management.
• They take reasonable care of their own health and safety and take reasonable care not to put other people - fellow employees and members of the public - at risk by what they do or don't do in the course of their work

Communication

• They communicate effectively in written and spoken English.
• They keep clear, accurate and detailed clinical nursing and client records, including in-patient records.
• They communicate effectively and courteously with clients and the rest of the team.
• They  ensure effective animal handover, including patient hand over from nurse in charge of monitoring recovery following surgery.
• They check work email regularly for communications from management and respond promptly.

Care of in-patients

• They ensure that veterinary nursing care is appropriate and adequate.
• They ensure housing is clean and meets the needs of the animals.
• They liaise with vet and nurse in charge of care as to plan for the day.
• They ensure patients’ nutritional and fluid requirements are met.
• They administer oral medications only (no injections can be given)
• They ensure comprehensive documentation of patient care.

Care of surgical patients

• They turn on piped oxygen in the morning, leak test all circuits, and test Active Gas Scavenging System.
• They prepare kennels for the surgical patients
• They assist the vet/nurse with placing IVC
• They set up anaesthetic circuits for patients.
• They set up surgical equipment liaising with vet as to what they anticipate they might need.
• They assist with the induction of anaesthesia, preparation of patient for surgery and moving safely to theatre.
• They ensure patients are warm before and after the procedure.
• They monitor animals after surgery.

Dispensing Medication

• They preparing POM-V prescriptions authorised by the vet, ensuring the correct drug, strength and batch number is processed.
• They check medication prepared by colleagues.
• They hand out medication to clients, ensuring all drugs are countersigned before handout. They ensure clients have understood the intended use, method of administration, dosage and duration of medication handed out.
• They take payment when drugs are handed over and process payment correctly through Practice Management System (PMS)
• They assist in Consultations
• They ensure the consult room is stocked properly, is cleaned between patients, ensuring minimum cross-contamination.
• They are ready to assist when the vet brings a patient in if no owner is available to hold the animal.
• They restrain animals gently but effectively, ensuring their own safety, that of the vet and the animal’s.
• They dispense and check medication prescribed during consultations

Cleaning Duties

• They generally ensure that the practice maintains a professional and tidy environment for public and staff, and a safe environment for patients free from cross-contamination.
• They clean Theatre and Prep in between procedures and more fully at the end of the op list.
• They ensure a clean and tidy work environment for all.
• They keeping washing and drying of laundry running.
• They clean surgical kits and surgical equipment carefully and with the appropriate detergents. They pack and autoclave kits and disinfect equipment according to their individual requirements.
• They wash, dry and fold surgical laundry and process for autoclaving where necessary.

CPD

• They keep up with CPD and other training.
• They partaking in CPD as a way of improving knowledge and interests to advance and improve patient care at Green Vets

Emergencies

• They assist the vets during emergencies
• They partake in the on-call rota and being available and ready to attend at a moment’s notice taking into account travel time needed from home to work.
• They are flexible around shifts and duties of the job

Diagnostics

• They run blood samples and process urine samples
• They set up for radiographs and ultrasonography.
• They collect and run urine samples

Maintaining equipment

• They exercise care when handling equipment, particularly avoiding dropping it on the floor.
• They check all equipment for visible damage prior to use and report to Management if damaged.

Reception Duties

• They answer the phone and handle calls in a courteous and time-effective manner.
• They book appointments .
• They take payment and process correctly in PMS.

 

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