Job Description

For 75 years, Charles River employees have worked together to assist in the discovery, development and safe manufacture of new drug therapies. When you join our family, you will have a significant impact on the health and well-being of people across the globe. Whether your background is in life sciences, finance, IT, sales or another area, your skills will play an important role in the work we perform. In return, we’ll help you build a career that you can feel passionate about.

Job Summary

We are looking for a  Breeding Production Assistant I  to join our  Insourcing Solutions Team  in Baltimore, MD. 

• Review, comprehend and comply with all SOP's and quality assurance standards pertaining to specific area
• Understand anatomical and physiological differences of laboratory animals and is able to recognize changes or abnormalities in eating habits, feces, urine and behavior
• Maintains knowledge of and compliance with the “Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals,” USDA guidelines as well as all other institutional, local, state and federal regulations concerning the use of animals in research
• Assist as needed in daily animal care husbandry duties such as providing fresh water, feed, bedding and enrichment
• Perform and document animal health observations daily. Immediately report any serious health issues to your Supervisor, Vet Tech or Veterinarian.
• Assist in daily updates of detailed breeding records indicating the birth date, strain, number of pups, weaning date and mating date of each breeding animal.
• Update breeding records in the FileMaker database and in written room logs.
• Assist in maintaining census and production records.
• Prepare rodents for physical transfer from breeding room to experimental housing room.
• Provides animal identification, i.e. ear tag, tail tattoo or transponder, as indicated.
• General organization of individuals in the colony according to strain, investigator, ID number and date of birth.
• Provide special feed for weanlings and special needs breeding rodents.
• Performs euthanasia using the correct technique for each species. Ensures that animal carcasses are disposed of properly and maintains appropriate records
• Monitors environmental parameters. Reports problems to the building maintenance department and B-G
• Trains and mentors staff when requested
• May perform AM and PM health checks
• May provide input in disciplinary actions and reviews and may participate in the interview process
• Prioritizes work and coordinates activities with B-G and animal care staff
• Actively interacts with laboratory and husbandry staff as required to solve requests, inquiries, and complaints and to provide technical assistance
• Ensures appropriate inventory levels of expendable supplies. Assists with the ordering, receipt, and stocking of supply inventories. Organizes, unpacks, and rotates stock; checks expiration dates and purges out-of-date stock

Job Qualifications

The following are the minimum job qualifications for the  Breeding Production Assistant I: 

• HSD or GED required. Associate of Science Degree in Genetics/ Animal Science or related field preferred
• ALAT or LAT at hire preferred. ALAT within one year of employment required
• A minimum of 2 – 3 years experience in a transgenic laboratory animal facility required. 3 or more preferred
• Requires strong written and verbal communication
• Requires computer skills to include: developing and maintaining spreadsheets, database management (MS Excel and FileMaker), and word processing experience

The pay for this position is $23 USD per hour. Please note that salaries vary within the range based on factors including, but not limited to skills, certifications and locations. 

About Insourcing Solutions
Charles River Insourcing Solutions℠ can streamline research by delivering operational and cost efficiencies through the strategic insourcing of GMP, GLP and non-GLP research services from discovery through safety assessment. Insourcing Solutions℠ provides you with the ability to maintain control of your facility and expertise while leveraging available space.

About Charles River
Charles River is an early-stage contract research organization (CRO). We have built upon our foundation of laboratory animal medicine and science to develop a diverse portfolio of discovery and safety assessment services, both Good Laboratory Practice (GLP) and non-GLP, to support clients from target identification through preclinical development. Charles River also provides a suite of products and services to support our clients’ clinical laboratory testing needs and manufacturing activities. Utilizing this broad portfolio of products and services enables our clients to create a more flexible drug development model, which reduces their costs, enhances their productivity and effectiveness to increase speed to market.

With over 20,000 employees within 110 facilities in over 20 countries around the globe, we are strategically positioned to coordinate worldwide resources and apply multidisciplinary perspectives in resolving our client’s unique challenges. Our client base includes global pharmaceutical companies, biotechnology companies, government agencies and hospitals and academic institutions around the world.

At Charles River, we are passionate about our role in improving the quality of people’s lives. Our mission, our excellent science and our strong sense of purpose guide us in all that we do, and we approach each day with the knowledge that our work helps to improve the health and well-being of many across the globe. We have proudly worked on 80% of the drugs approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the past five years.

We’re committed to providing benefits that elevate your quality of life. Based on your position these may include: bonus/incentives based on performance, 401K, paid time off, stock purchase program, Health and wellness coverage, employee and family wellbeing support programs, and work life balance flexibility.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Charles River is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to providing equal employment opportunities for all qualified applicants and employees without regard to race, color, sex, religion, national origin, ancestry, age, mental or physical disability, family status, pregnancy, military or veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local laws.

It is unlawful in some states (including Massachusetts) to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.

If you are interested in applying to Charles River Laboratories and need special assistance or an accommodation due to a disability to complete any forms or to otherwise participate in the resume submission process, please contact a member of our Human Resources team by sending an e-mail message to crrecruitment_US@crl.com. This contact is for accommodation requests for individuals with disabilities only and cannot be used to inquire about the status of applications.

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