Dr. Pugliese was born in Brooklyn and raised on Staten Island. After graduating from SUNY Binghamton with a B.S. in biology, she attended St. George’s University School of Veterinary Medicine where she was a member of the charter class. She spent the first 10 years of her career under the mentorship of Dr. Carreras, developing her clinical and surgical skills on a vast majority of animals ranging from the feathered to the furred. Dr. Pugliese also spent 8 of those years as the Veterinarian for the Staten Island Zoo, providing medical and surgical care for a menagerie of animals including reptiles, amphibians, a variety of primates and mammals, birds, farm animals, and fish. She treasures every moment she can spend with her family, 5 cats, and Penny the bulldog mix. Dr. Pugliese built Eltingville Veterinary Practice to continue practicing personalized, quality, and compassionate veterinary medicine. She treasures every moment she can spend with her family and pets.