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Meet the Vets > Dr. Fondacaro
Dr. Fondacaro is the Chief of Staff of the Veterinary Medical Center of Long Island and founder of Suffolk Veterinary Specialty Services, PLLC. He received his Bachelor of Science degree and graduated with honors, Magna Cum Laude with distinction, from James Madison University in 1992. He received awards for his undergraduate biology research and subsequent scientific publication, and was recognized upon graduation for the most outstanding honors thesis presented to the University.
Dr. Fondacaro earned his Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine from Cornell University in 1996. At Cornell, he completed research in feline nutrition and was awarded several honors including the most prestigious Upjohn & Pharmacia Clinical Proficiency Award.
Upon completion of veterinary college, Dr. Fondacaro began his pursuit of advanced training in veterinary specialty. Dr. Fondacaro completed an internship in medicine and surgery at the Veterinary Specialty Hospital of San Diego in 1997. Next, he earned a Masters of Science Degree in Clinical Sciences and completed a 3-year residency in Small Animal Internal Medicine at Colorado State University in 2000. His residency training included advanced training in endoscopy and laparoscopy and he was recruited as an instructor for the Karl Storz Veterinary Endoscopy Teaching Center. During his time at CSU, he performed research and published veterinary articles on topics including diagnosis of liver disease, portosystemic shunts, feline diabetes, and feline gastrointestinal lymphoma. In 1998 he received the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine Distinguished Research Award for his work on the diagnosis of canine and feline liver disease . He has subsequently authored text book chapters, written scientific articles and lectured to veterinarians throughout the United States on topics in gastroenterology, hepatology, cancer and endocrinology.
Dr. Fondacaro is a native Long Islander, born and raised in St. James. In 2000, upon completion of his specialty training, Dr. Fondacaro and his wife Renee returned home to Long Island. He devoted the first year to extensive training in ultrasound diagnostics, and subsequently he was hired as the Chairman of Medicine at a veterinary referral center in Nassau County. In 2004, Dr. Fondacaro founded Suffolk Veterinary Specialty Services, PLLC and co-founded the Veterinary Medical Center of Long Island with Drs. Composto and Zaroff. For the past 3-years Dr. Fondacaro has been an executive board member of the Long Island Veterinary Medical Association, and he is currently the consulting internist for Thyrocat, a radioiodine facility in Holbrook dedicated to the treatment of feline hyperthyroidism. Additionally, he consults for numerous animal adoption and rescue centers including North Shore Animal League, PAWS, and the Guide Dog Foundation.
Dr. Fondacaro is a leading expert in the field of Veterinary Internal Medicine and is renowned for his efforts as a pioneer of minimally invasive diagnostic techniques for animals. Dr. Fondacaro is thrilled to be a part of the Veterinary Medical Center of Long Island where his progressive vision for the future of veterinary medicine is transforming into reality. On a personal note, he has formed many relationships with people and their beloved pets here on Long Island, and he enjoys the close ties he has with many of his patients and their families.