Ayanna Carla N. Phillips Savage, DVM, MPhil, PhD, PgC, CertAqV., DABVP (Fish Practice)

Carla Savage joined the veterinary college as an associate professor of practice in the Department of Population Health Sciences in August 2022. She has been a veterinarian for over 20 years and has been in the field of Aquatic Animal Veterinary clinical and laboratory diagnostic practice and research since 2005.

She completed her DVM and masters degree in Food Animal Medicine at the University of the West Indies, her PhD in Aquatic Animal Medicine at the University of Florida, and holds a Postgraduate Certificate in University Teaching and Learning. She is a Certified Aquatic Veterinarian with the World Aquatic Veterinary Medical Association and has extensive experience in the diagnosis, treatment and management of diseases affecting marine mammals, sea turtles, ornamental fish, food fish and shellfish in freshwater and marine production systems.

Before returning to the US, she served in academia for 12 years as a Lecturer in Marine Mammal Medicine and Aquatic Animal Health at the University of the West Indies, School of Veterinary Medicine (UWI-SVM), St. Augustine Campus, Trinidad and Tobago, and as Coordinator of the Aquatic Animal Health Unit and the Aquatic Animal Health Diagnostic Laboratory at the UWI-SVM. She has been the Coordinator of the Trinidad and Tobago Marine Mammal Stranding Network (TTMMSN) since 2011. She was previously a member of Trinidad and Tobago’s National Sea Turtle Task Force, a member of the Management Committee of the Caribbean Fisheries and Training Development Institute, the Fish and Shellfish Health Consultant for state-owned aquaculture production facilities in Trinidad and Tobago, and served as the World Organization for Animal Health (formerly OIE) National Focal Point for Aquatic Animal Diseases for Trinidad and Tobago.

Having led capacity-building and community engagement projects and workshops geared toward a wide variety of stakeholders (including veterinary students, graduate veterinarians, aquaculture extension service providers, state regulatory agency officials, vocational program students, and commercial aquaculture producers and hobbyists) she is an strong advocate for the promotion of the ‘One Health’ principle in addressing issues that threaten the health and conservation of aquatic ecosystems, and the overall improvement of human, animal and environmental health.

In 2018, she was awarded as one of 77 women who have made outstanding contributions in their respective disciplines, the community, and the Caribbean region. In 2021, her professional contributions to the field of Aquatic Medicine and Aquatic Ecosystem Health and Conservation in Trinidad and Tobago and the Wider Caribbean were recognized by the Anthony N. Sabga Caribbean Awards for Excellence, where she was selected and named a 2021 Laureate in the field of Science and Technology.

Postgraduate Certificate, University Teaching and Learning, 2016
Faculty of Humanities and Education
Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning (CETL)
The University of the West Indies
St. Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago

PhD, Veterinary Medical Sciences, Aquatic Animal Medicine, 2009
College of Veterinary Medicine
University of Florida
Gainesville, FL

MPhil, Food Animal Medicine, 2007
Faculty of Medical Sciences
School of Veterinary Medicine
The University of the West Indies
St. Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago

DVM, 2002
Faculty of Medical Sciences
School of Veterinary Medicine
The University of the West Indies
St. Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago

• Diplomate of the American Board of Veterinary Practitioners (Fish Practice)

• Promotion of ‘One Health’.
• Identification and characterization of food fish, ornamental fish, shellfish, sea turtle and marine mammal pathogens and toxins affecting marine and freshwater species, and to elucidate their potential impacts on human, animal and environmental health.
• Aquatic animal disease surveillance.
• Biotic and abiotic factors that may contribute to aquatic environmental degradation and disease pathogenesis.
• Molecular diagnostics for aquatic animal diseases in the Gulf of Mexico, the Wider Caribbean region and the Northern Atlantic.
• Exploring the use of emerging Extended Reality (XR) technology in Veterinary Public Practice Education.

2022–present
Associate Professor of Practice, Aquatic Animal Medicine
Center for Public and Corporate Veterinary Medicine
Population Health Sciences
Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine
Virginia Tech
Blacksburg, VA

2018-2022
Member, Management Committee of the Caribbean Fisheries Training and Development Institute
Ministry of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries
Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago
Port-of-Spain, Trinidad and Tobago

2011-present
Stranding Coordinator
Trinidad and Tobago Marine Mammal Stranding Network
(Marine mammal and sea turtle stranding response)
St. Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago

2020-2022
Member, National Sea Turtle Task Force
Ministry of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries
Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago
Port-of-Spain, Trinidad and Tobago

2010-2022
Lecturer, Marine Mammal Medicine/Aquatic Animal Health
Faculty of Medical Sciences
School of Veterinary Medicine
The University of the West Indies
St. Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago

2010-2021
Fish/Shellfish Health Consultant to the Institute of Marine Affairs
Ministry of Planning and Development
Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago
Port-of-Spain, Trinidad and Tobago

2015-2020
Member, World Organization for Animal Health (formerly OIE)
Focal Point for Aquatic Animal Diseases for Trinidad and Tobago
Ministry of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries
Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago
Port-of-Spain, Trinidad and Tobago

2010-2017
Fish/Shellfish Health Consultant to the Seafood Industry Development Company, Ministry of Trade and Industry
Ministry of Trade and Industry
Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago
Port-of-Spain, Trinidad and Tobago

2012-2015
Member, National Aquaculture Task Force for the Implementation of the Food Production Action Plan
Ministry of Agriculture, Land and Fisheries
Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago
Port-of-Spain, Trinidad and Tobago

2010
Aquatic Animal Health, Post-doctoral Clinical Extern and Advanced Fish Medicine Clinical Clerkship
Multiple Facilities
Multiple Locations

2007-2009
Graduate Research Assistant
Department of Infectious Diseases and Pathology
College of Veterinary Medicine
University of Florida
Gainesville, FL

2005-2009
FULBRIGHT Scholar
Department of Infectious Diseases and Pathology
College of Veterinary Medicine
University of Florida
Gainesville, FL

2002-2005
Teaching Assistant
Large Animal Medicine/Surgery/Theriogenology
School of Veterinary Medicine
The University of the West Indies
St. Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago

2002-2003
Small Animal Clinician
St. Augustine Veterinary Clinic
St. Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago

• World Aquatic Veterinary Medical Association (WAVMA)- Certified Aquatic Veterinarian (CertAqV.)
• International Association of Aquatic Animal Medicine (IAAAM)
• University of Florida Alumni Association
• United States Animal Health Association (USAHA)
• American Fisheries Society, Fish Health Section (AFS-FHS)

• Carla Savage's ResearchGate profile