Dana Varble, DVM, CAE
Dana Varble received her B.S. in Zoology from Southern Illinois University in 1999 graduating Suma cum laude with departmental and university honors having completed an honors thesis evaluating abnormal behavior in captive Spectacled Bears. She earned her veterinary degree with high honors from University of Illinois in 2003 where she pursued a non-traditional clinical rotation schedule and fulfilled her clinical and academic requirements at University of Illinois, University of Tennessee, Louisiana State University, Brookfield Zoo, and University of Pretoria. She also completed an externship at Marathon Veterinary Hospital including clinical experience at the Sea Turtle Hospital and Key West Aquarium.
She has practiced clinical medicine in exotic pet, small animal general practice and emergency medicine and continues to serve as an associate veterinarian on a limited basis for Chicago Exotics Animal Hospital in Skokie Illinois and as a relief veterinarian for emergency services. She has served as a veterinary consultant to the Mississippi River Sturgeon Project and Central Arizona Animal rescue.
She has spoken locally, nationally, and internationally at conferences and seminars on herpetological and exotic animal medicine and surgery and has written several publications in the same field. Her interests are varied but include organized veterinary medicine, learning methodology, venomous bites and stings and antivenom development, herpetological medicine and surgery, working canines, soft tissue surgery, and improving job satisfaction for all veterinary health team members.
She joined the Association of Reptile and Amphibian Veterinarians in 2003, served on the board of directors from 2008 to 2014, and was the president of ARAV from 2012 to 2013. She continues to serve as the managing editor of the Journal of Herpetological Medicine and Surgery for ARAV. She is also a member of American Veterinary Medical Association and Association of Exotic Mammal Veterinarians.
In January 2015, she joined NAVC as the Executive Director of ARAV and progressed to the Executive Director of Pet Nutrition Alliance and Senior Director of Hands-On workshops in October 2017. In October 2018 she was promoted to Vice President of Veterinary Education and in January of 2020 she was named Chief Veterinary Officer. In 2021 she earned her Certified Association Executive designation from the American Society of Association Executives.
As a NAVC spokesperson and veterinary industry expert, she promotes public health and veterinary practices to industry and external audience through media interviews and appearances in international, national, local and trade media including CNN, CNN International, Steve Dale’s Pet World, Pet Life Radio, NBC News Network, the number one cat show in the world Catittude. and local media outlets including Tampa Bay Times and ABC, CBS, NBC and FOX TV affiliates across the country.
She shares her home with a mixed-up brown dog named Hannah, a Leonberger named Kodi, a tank of cichlids, four ball pythons, Phil, Jake, Hickok, and Saffron, and a domestic human and his kiddos Patrick, Lexi, and PJ.
