Job Description
Working location Lilongwe Wildlife Centre (LWC) in central Lilongwe
Department Wildlife Rehabilitation
■ Full-time □ Part-time
Job description
The Head of Wildlife Rehabilitation (HWR) is the Lilongwe Wildlife Trust (LWT) lead on the rescue, rehabilitation and veterinary care programmes at Lilongwe Wildlife Centre (LWC), Vwaza camp and through the Wildlife Emergency Rescue Unit. The HWR reports to the General Manager (GM) of LWC and has a functional reporting line to the Technical Director. This position is central to one of LWT’s core functions, to ‘Save Wildlife’, and will play a critical role in delivering this objective under our new five-year strategy. The HWR manages the animal care and veterinary teams and is responsible for ensuring that LWC and WERU provide an excellent standard of animal care and adhere to high standards of animal welfare in compliance with our international accreditations and requirements of international donors. The HWR coordinates with the Department of National Parks and Wildlife (DNPW) and other NGOs on animal rescues, transfers and releases and represents LWT at an appropriate level with partners and in national and international fora. The HWR develops and oversees the veterinary courses and placement activities for local and international volunteers based at LWC, working closely with the Head of Placements and other teams. The role inputs into grant applications and reports for animal care/WERU grants and manages the associated budget. The HWR works closely with the Biodiversity Research, Conservation Justice and LWC teams.
Essential duties & responsibilities
Contributing to strategy
● Lead on the ‘Saving Wildlife’ strategic objective in LWT’s new five-year strategy, helping to identify new projects or areas of work and work closely with the other programme areas on implementation
Wildlife rescue and rehabilitation
● Oversee the care and treatment of all animals at LWC and Vwaza camp, ensuring they receive the best care and treatment available and high standards of animal welfare, as per LWT’s Animal Welfare Policy
● Ensure that international accreditation standards and requirements of donors are upheld
● Carry out “quality of life assessments” of animals at the LWC, especially those that are geriatric or chronically ill
● Assess reports of injured/abandoned/seized animals and determine where rescues are necessary and feasible and coordinate logistics
● Ensure all animal care, medical records and LWT monitoring and evaluation indicators are kept up to date
● Ensure all Standard Operating Procedures and LWT’s animal care guidelines are up to date and implemented for the care, hygiene, quarantine and rehabilitation of wildlife at LWC and Vwaza camp
● Work closely with the Director of Operations, GM and site maintenance teams to ensure the veterinary clinic, LWC animal enclosures and Vwaza camp facilities are well maintained and in line with LWT’s Environmental Management policies
● Oversee maintenance and care of animal care/veterinary equipment and report any issues to GM
● Develop and oversee animal release plans, ensuring these are compliant with LWT and DNPW policies
● Monitor accreditation scheme requirements and ensure any recommendations are implemented and lead on renewal submissions
● Ensure that LWC is compliant with all Government of Malawi standards for wild animal captive care facilities as per legislation and veterinary and poison board requirements
People management
● Line manage the LWC veterinarian and WR deputy head to ensure they are appropriately trained and supported and hold regular 1:1s and appraisals
● Ensure that all LWC animal care and veterinary staff adhere to LWT’s health and safety policy
Financial management
● Develop and manage annual budgets for animal care/veterinary/WERU/pangolin programmes
● Submit timely monthly cash requests and reconciliations
● Ensure adherence to financial management practices as per LWT’s Financial Handbook
Partnerships
● Liaise with DNPW to implement and provide support for confiscation, re-homing, rehabilitation and releases of animals back into the wild
● Maintain positive relationships for mutual benefit with other PASA members and wildlife NGOs
Reporting and fundraising
● Provide weekly update reports to the GM of LWC (line manager) and liaise with the Technical Director on policy and best practices
● Submit monthly update report and monitoring and evaluation indicators to the Programmes team
● Provide input to six-monthly trustee reports, annual impact report and all relevant grant reports
● Provide input on applications and reports for animal care, veterinary and pangolin grants
● Provide input into guidelines, reports and papers relating to animal care
● Lead tours of LWC animal care facilities when requested for donors and other guests
● Oversee veterinary reports for court for confiscated animals
● Represent LWC in national and international fora as appropriate
● Provide LWT’s Communications Department with photos, stories, content for blog posts and other social media contributions – in alignment with LWT’s policies and manuals
Placements programme
● Work with the Placements team to develop and deliver the LWC placements programme including developing and delivering veterinary courses with the LWC vet and partners, overseeing the activities of all vet and sanctuary placements and ensuring the animal care and veterinary staff are trained and briefed in managing volunteers
● Work with research students to develop and provide supervision for student research projects at LWC
Education and experience
Essential
● Bachelor’s degree, in an animal related field such as animal behaviour, wildlife management, veterinary science or any similar animal related field
● Minimum of 5 years’ experience in rehabilitating and/or caring for multiple species in a captive care setting including primates, ungulates, birds, reptiles and carnivores
● Developing and implementing policies, strategies and protocols for a captive facility equivalent to the LWC
● Experience in the following fields of rehabilitation and/or animal care:
○ Evaluating animal behaviour in a captive setting
○ Rehabilitating animals that may have undergone trauma or abuse
○ Developing and implementing individual enrichment plans
○ Integrating animals of different species, but especially primates
○ Formulating diets for different species
○ Physical capture and restraint of animals
● Must be flexible, adaptable, and capable of developing innovative and practical solutions to challenges, and good at multitasking
● An attention to detail, particularly around animal care and welfare
● Physically fit and able to work in a hot climate
● Highly self-motivated, self-driven and self-learning attitude
● Excellent English communication and writing skills
Desirable
● Master’s degree in a related field
● Experience in the following would be advantageous:
○ Training different species e.g. for capture/veterinary care procedures
○ Leading diverse teams of people; sensitivity to different socio-cultural situations
○ Working with and training staff and volunteers from different backgrounds
○ Design and construction of appropriate enclosures for different species
How to apply
Please send a covering letter and CV to applications@lilongwewildlife.org
Closing date 4 December 2024
LWT is an equal opportunity employer and values diversity. All employment decisions are based on qualifications and experience, merit and organisational need and all reasonable adjustments will be made where possible.