Carla Savage DVM, MPhil, PhD, PgC, CertAqV

Dr. 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 20 years and has been in the field of Aquatic Animal Veterinary clinical and laboratory diagnostic practice and research for the past 16 years.

She completed her DVM and masters degree in Food Animal Medicine at the University of the WestIndies, 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.

Over the past 11 years, she has served in academia 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 is 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, has served as the Fish and Shellfish Health Consultant for state-owned facilities in Trinidad and Tobago, and served as the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) National Focal Point for Aquatic Animal Diseases for Trinidad and Tobago for 6 years.

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 recognised 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. 

Dr. Savage's faculty profile can be found here.