Job Description:
Position Title: Pet Caretaker – Cat
Reports To: Animal Operations Manager–Cat
Location: Thompson’s Station, TN
Function: R&D
Level of Role: Individual Contributor
SHIFT: Wednesday - Saturday, 6:30am - 5pm. This will include holidays.
Purpose of Role: The focus of this role is to provide daily care for the pets within the MARS Petcare Feeding Facility including cleaning of the facilities and implementation of environmental enrichment programs.
Principal Accountabilities:
This position may include any of the following accountabilities
- Execute the daily operations of the care unit of the MARS Pet Feeding Facility to ensure pet safety and well-being, efficient running of the facility and that quality data are gathered from the protocols and delivered to the business.
- Accurately record the requested data according to study protocols (ie, consumption timing, amounts eaten, body weights, etc)
- Evaluate pet health (both mental and physical) for any veterinary and/or enrichment needs.
- Daily cleaning of pet housing quarters (interior and exterior) in accordance with standard operating procedures (SOPs).
- Implementation of environmental enrichment programs directed by the Pet Behavior Performance & Training Scientist
- Implementation of exercise programs in accordance with standard operating procedures and/or veterinary recommendations.
- Provision of basic animal health tasks such as grooming, nail trimming, weighing, etc to pets
- Collection and evaluation of feces quality
Critical Mars Leadership Competencies
- Priority Setting
- Planning
- Dealing with Ambiguity
- Integrity & Trust
- Problem Solving
- Attention to Detail
Key Functional Skills/Knowledge:
- Knowledge in animal facility operations
- Computer skills
- Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal
- Knowledge of animal health and management issues
- Ability to lift up to 50 lbs.
- Ability to work evenings, weekends and holidays
Preferred Qualifications:
- Minimum 6 Months of experience interacting with cats/dogs
- Experience working in an animal facility or Veterinary Hospital is preferred
Minimum Qualifications
- Minimum high school diploma or GED
- BS or MS in a biological science preferred but not required
Every associate at Mars has responsibility for the achievement of quality and food safety.
As a privately-held, family-owned company, Mars Petcare US offers benefits which reflect our commitment to attracting and retaining great people. This includes excellent pay, competitive health and dental care coverage, a retirement plan, a very competitive vacation plan and unrivalled career advancement opportunities, to name just a few of our unique and generous benefits.
If you're looking for a place where you can take ownership for your work, where the pace is fast, the environment is built around the importance of open communication, and where employees are called "associates" and treated as such, then we want to hear from you.
What can you expect from Mars?
Work with diverse and talented Associates, all guided by the Five Principles.
Join a purpose driven company, where we’re striving to build the world we want tomorrow, today.
A strong focus on learning and development support from day one, including access to our in-house Mars University.
An industry competitive salary and benefits package, including company bonus.
Skills Required
- High school diploma or GED
- Minimum six months of experience interacting with cats or dogs
- Experience working in an animal facility or veterinary hospital
- Bachelor’s or master’s degree in biological science
- Ability to lift up to 50 pounds
- Ability to work evenings, weekends, and holidays
- Knowledge of animal facility operations
- Knowledge of animal health and management issues
- Computer skills
- Strong written and verbal communication skills
Mars Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Mars and has not been reviewed or approved by Mars.
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Healthcare Strength — The benefits package is positioned as comprehensive, with broad medical coverage and additional protections like life insurance and short- and long-term disability. Mental health support is emphasized, including free mental health services and wellbeing programming under initiatives such as Mars Be Well.
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Parental & Family Support — Paid parental leave is highlighted as market-leading in the U.S., with an example of 18 weeks fully paid for both parents. Additional family-related leave types such as sick time for caregiving and bereavement leave are also described as part of the overall package.
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Retirement Support — Retirement offerings are described as strong, including 401(k) matching (with a 6% match cited) and pension plans in some cases. The broader package also references retirement savings options and contributions aligned to local market practice, supporting long-term financial security.
Mars Insights
What We Do
For more than a century, Mars, Incorporated has been driven by the belief that the world we want tomorrow starts with how we do business today. This idea is at the center of who we have always been as a global, family-owned business. Today, Mars is transforming, innovating and evolving in ways that affirm our commitment to making a positive impact on the world around us. Across our diverse and expanding portfolio of confectionery, food, and petcare products and services, we employ 133,000 dedicated Associates who are all moving in the same direction: forward. With $40 billion in annual sales, we produce some of the world’s best-loved brands including DOVE®, EXTRA®, M&M’s®, MILKY WAY®, SNICKERS®, TWIX®, ORBIT®, PEDIGREE®, ROYAL CANIN®, SKITTLES®, WHISKAS®, COCOAVIA®, and 5™; and take care of half of the world’s pets through our pet health services AniCura, Banfield Pet Hospitals™, BluePearl®, Linnaeus, Pet Partners™, and VCA™. We know we can only be truly successful if our partners and the communities in which we operate prosper as well. The Mars Five Principles – Quality, Responsibility, Mutuality, Efficiency and Freedom – inspire our Associates to take action every day to help create a world tomorrow in which the planet, its people and pets can thrive.
