Animal Packer

Summary
This position is located within a National Forest. The primary purpose of this position is to pack supplies and equipment to backcountry locations by horse or mule. The incumbent is responsible for providing assistance with the complete care of the stock, including training, feeding, shoeing, and first aid needs.
This job is open to

• The public
  U.S. Citizens, Nationals or those who owe allegiance to the U.S.

Videos
Duties

• Works as a member of a crew that is responsible for packing horses or mules for trail crews and their equipment such as food, tents, and various tools such as crosscut saws, chainsaws, rock drills, rock bars, explosives, grip hoists, and sleds.
• Assists with packing construction materials such as poles, cables, lumber, sand, gravel and bridge materials. May provide pack support for fire crews including food, water, saws, fuel, hoses and portable pumps.
• May supports a variety of resource crews by packing netting, plant presses, screens and fragile survey equipment. Under supervision selects the proper type of pack equipment for the loads to be packed.
• With minimal supervision incumbent builds and packs loads and strings of animals together. Builds balanced loads using pack bags, slings, boxes, manty loads with sling ropes, pack racks, etc.
• Ties multiple hitches (e.g. box, diamond, sling, etc.) as appropriate to the load.
• Properly fits all types of riding saddles and pack saddles to mules and horses.
• Responds to medical conditions and emergency situations safely for animals and humans. Acts as "Wilderness First Responder" for the animals, providing first aid as needed including administering shots and wound care.
• Assists with the safe use of restraints for doctoring, shoeing, training, or containment purposes.
• Recognizes the shoeing needs of horses and mules for working in a mountain environment.
• Responsible for providing assistance with the ranch and pasture management including the design, building, maintenance, and safety inspections of stock facilities. Maintaining fences (including board, pipe, wire, and electric fencing).
• Flood irrigation of native pastures and forage utilization monitoring of annual grassland pastures. Operates ranch equipment such as a tractor with an auger to make post holes.
• Pulls a gooseneck stock trailer and bumper-pull stock trailers to safely haul stock on rugged mountain roads. Hauls gear, equipment, supplies, and hay on flatbed trucks and trailers. Hauls tractors and equipment for other functions.
• Reports mechanical or equipment performance problems to the supervisor.
• May spend up to 10 days camping in the wilderness utilizing Leave-No-Trace skills. Responsible for all animal care in wilderness settings.
• Provides assistance in training firefighters, trail crews, wilderness rangers and volunteer groups how to work safely around pack stock.

Requirements
Conditions of Employment

• You must be a US Citizen or US National.
• Males born after 12/31/1959 must be Selective Service registered or exempt.
• Subject to satisfactory adjudication of background investigation and/or fingerprint check.
• Direct Deposit - Per Public Law 104-134 all Federal employees are required to have federal payments made by direct deposit to a financial institution of your choosing.
• Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, visit e-Verify.
• Must be 18 years of age.
• Must possess and maintain a valid Driver's License.

Qualifications
You must possess the Basic Requirements identified below to be considered eligible for this position. Transcripts must be provided for qualifications based on education. Your application or resume must clearly show that you possess the appropriate experience requirements.
Applicants will be evaluated on their ability to perform the duties of the position rather than length of experience. Eligibility will be determined by the relevance, scope and quality of all experience and training, regardless of where or how acquired.
Applicants will be ranked and rated based on their knowledge of the job elements identified in this announcement.

• Ability To Do The Work Of The Position Without More Than Normal Supervision
• Technical Practices (theoretical, precise, artistic)
• Use of Measuring Instruments
• Ability To Interpret Instructions, Specification, etc. (includes than blueprints)
• Ability To Use and Maintain Tools and Equipment
• Knowledge of Materials
• Dexterity and Safety

There is no substitution of education for this position.
Selective placement Factors

• A valid state driver's license is required.

Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.
To receive consideration for this position, you must meet all qualification requirements on the closing date of this announcement.
Additional information
PLEASE NOTE: This vacancy is being used to fill positions for FY2024 Temporary Employment Hiring season. The expected start date for this position will be between June 30, 2024 to October 6 , 2024.
By selecting the "Location Negotiable" option during the application process, implies your willingness to be considered for any official duty location listed on this announcement and/or those duty locations not listed for this Regional announcement. Pay rates vary depending on location. The salary shown is for the Rest of the U.S. See OPM.gov for additional information on pay rates.
This position is temporary, has a Not-to-Exceed date and will be filled for up to 6 months or as a not to exceed (NTE) 1 year, however an extension of the appointment may be possible without further competition. The appointment may also end early due to lack of work or lack of funds.
Applicants who apply under this job opportunity announcement agree to have their application, associated documents and applicable personal information shared with other groups within the Region who have vacancies within the same occupational series, grade, full performance level and in any of the geographic location(s) listed on the announcement. Applying to this announcement does not replace the need to apply to other job opportunity announcements for which you wish to receive consideration.
The duty station for this position will be at one of the duty locations listed in this announcement. Please visit the Office of Personnel Management's website for additional information on pay rates in your duty location State.
The USDA Forest Service has legislative authority to recruit and fill Permanent (Career/Career-Conditional), Temporary, and Term Appointments under the USDA Demonstration Project. Under this authority, any U.S. citizen may apply.
Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) or Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP): To exercise selection priority for this vacancy, CTAP/ICTAP candidates must meet the basic eligibility requirements and all selective factors. CTAP/ICTAP eligible must meet the agency's definition for a quality candidate as provided in the How You Will Be Evaluated section of this announcement to be considered.
If you are retired from the Federal Government and are selected for this vacancy, your retirement annuity may be offset from your pay.
This position is not eligible for telework.
Availability of government housing and federal day care facilities will vary by location.
Positions filled from this announcement may be a bargaining or a non-bargaining unit position represented by either NFFE, AFGE or NAGE.

• Benefits
  A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.
  Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.

How You Will Be Evaluated
You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.
Note: If, after reviewing your resume and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and or experience, your score may be adjusted to more accurately reflect your abilities, or you may be found ineligible. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating. Providing inaccurate information on Federal documents could be grounds for non-selection or disciplinary action up to including removal from the Federal service.

• Benefits
  A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.
  Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.
• Required Documents
  As a new or existing federal employee, you and your family may have access to a range of benefits. Your benefits depend on the type of position you have - whether you're a permanent, part-time, temporary or an intermittent employee. You may be eligible for the following benefits, however, check with your agency to make sure you're eligible under their policies.
  The following documents are required for your applicant package to be complete. Our office cannot be responsible for incompatible software, illegible fax transmissions, delays in the mail service, your system failure, etc. Encrypted documents will not be accepted. Failure to submit required, legible documents may result in loss of consideration.
  Resume that includes: 1) personal information such as name, address, contact information; 2) education; 3) detailed work experience related to this position as described in the responsibilities section including work schedule, hours worked per week, dates of employment (day/month/year); title, series, grade (if applicable); 4) supervisor's phone number and whether or not the supervisor may be contacted for a reference check; 5) other qualifications.
  If education is required or you are using education to qualify, you must submit a copy of your college transcripts. An unofficial copy is sufficient with the application; however, if you are selected, you will be required to submit official transcripts prior to entering on duty. Education must have been successfully obtained from an accredited school, college or university. If any education was completed at a foreign institute, you must submit with your application evidence that the institute was appropriately accredited by an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education as equivalent to U.S. education standards. There are private organizations that specialize in this evaluation and a fee is normally associated with this service. All transcripts must be in English or include an English translation.
  Surplus or displaced employees eligible for CTAP or ICTAP priority must provide: proof of eligibility (RIF separation notice, notice of proposed removal for declining a transfer of function or directed reassignment to another commuting area, notice of disability annuity termination), SF-50 documenting separation (as applicable), and your most recent SF-50 noting position, grade level, and duty location with your application per 5 CFR 330.
  Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.
  If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:
  Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from
  schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
  Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.
• How to Apply
  Please view Tips for Applicants - a guide to the Forest Service application process.
  Read the entire announcement and all instructions before you begin. You must complete this application process and submit all required documents electronically by 11:59p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on the closing date of this announcement.
  Applying online is highly encouraged. We are available to assist you during business hours (8:00a.m. - 4:00p.m. (MST), Monday - Friday. If applying online poses a hardship, contact the Agency Contact listed below well before the closing date for an alternate method. All hardship application packages must be returned to Human Resources no later than noon ET on the closing date of the announcement in order for it to be entered into the system prior to the closing date.
  This agency provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities on a case-by-case basis. Contact the Agency Contact to request this.
  To begin, in USAJOBS click "Apply" and follow the instructions to attach your resume and supporting documents, complete the assessment questionnaire, and submit your application.
  NOTE: Please verify that documents you are uploading from USAJOBS transfer into the Agency's staffing system as there is a limitation to the number of documents that can be transferred. However, once in the Agency's staffing system, you wil...