Meet Our Team

Dr. Michael Betts

Dr. Michael Betts was born and raised in Oregon. He attended Oregon State University where he earned a B.S. in Animal Science. After he graduated, he then to the Caribbean island of St. Kitts to attend Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine. He then finished his veterinary education at the University of Illinois in Champaign IL. Dr. Betts’s original passion is for dairy cows so he moved to the central valley to join Lander Veterinary Clinic as a dairy practitioner. The need for affordable spay-neuter services in the Modesto area drove the partners of Lander Vet to open Valley Pet Care in 2018.

As a second-generation veterinarian, you could say that Dr. Betts has been working in the industry his whole life. He has had the title of DVM since 2006. The main reason he began Valley Pet Care is that he is passionate about reducing the number of unwanted pets that end up in shelters every year so providing affordable spay/neuter services is his way of trying to achieve this. Dr. Betts always says that it is his goal to work his way out of a job.

Dr. Betts is married to Dr. Lynette Lotz, who is the real brains behind Valley Pet Care, and they have two amazing daughters in addition to a dog and two cats. Outside of spending time with his family, his passions include improving my BBQ skills as often as possible and college football, specifically the Oregon State Beavers.

Dr. Lynette Lotz

Dr. Lynette Lotz graduated from Tufts University in 2000 with a degree in biology, but also majored in classical studies (she loved learning about ancient history, art, and archaeology). She proceeded to study veterinary medicine at Ross University and did her final clinical year at the University of Illinois. She graduated from Ross with highest honors in 2006. Dr. Lotz did a one-year rotating small animal medicine internship at Encina Veterinary Hospital and East Bay Veterinary Specialists in Walnut Creek from 2006-2007. During that internship, she developed a passion for emergency medicine and soft tissue surgery. Dr. Lotz is originally from Chicago but ended up on the West coast because she was dating her now husband (Michael Betts) in vet school and she followed him out here so that he could practice dairy medicine. Her sister (her only sibling) had moved to the Bay Area several years prior and she wanted to be closer to her as well.

Dr. Lotz knew from a very young age that she wanted to be a veterinarian. She believes her mom said that she wanted to be a vet since she could talk. She was always bringing home/adopting stray cats (we weren’t allowed to have dogs, only cats) and she had two uncles who were veterinarians. She began working for one uncle when she was 16 years old, cleaning kennels, walking dogs, bathing animals, and doing anything to help around the clinic. In college, Dr. Lotz worked for her other uncle as a receptionist and learned about customer care, while also assisting with animals as needed. After college, she worked for two years at the Champaign County Humane Society in Illinois. She worked directly with the animals under the supervision of their staff veterinarian, giving medications, reading fecals, running in-house tests, and assisting with anesthesia during surgeries.

After her internship in the Bay Area, Dr. Lotz began a career in emergency medicine which she loved. She has worked at Animal Medical Center in Merced, the Veterinary Emergency Clinic in Modesto, and Pet ER in Fresno. She loved the challenges that came with emergency work as no shift was ever the same and you never knew what would walk through the door. She always found emergency surgeries to be most gratifying, especially when you have a chance to save a life. After having children, the emergency hours became too difficult and Dr. Lotz switched to relief work in general practices. It was during a relief shift at a spay/neuter clinic that she realized how much she enjoyed being in surgery all day. After spending more time learning about the world of high quality, high volume spay/neuter, she realized that we can really make a difference in animals’ lives by reducing overpopulation and allowing animals to live longer, healthier, and happier lives. She loves the challenge of working with animals because they cannot tell you what’s wrong. You have to piece together a diagnosis from their history, clinical signs, your physical exam, diagnostics, and your understanding of animal behavior. It’s a bit like solving puzzles.

As a veterinarian, Dr. Lotz’s current interests include veterinary anesthesia and pain management. She is always looking for ways to improve our drug protocols for the optimal safety and comfort of our patients while still providing affordable rates for our clients. She is also interested in low-stress handling techniques and drug options to help reduce the fear and stress we see in so many of the patients that visit our clinic.

Dr. Lotz is married to Michael Betts and they have two daughters, one dog, and two cats. She loves baking! She loves making elaborate cakes for her kids’ birthdays or creating animal-themed cupcakes, cake pops, and cookies. She also loves doing jigsaw puzzles with her kids She studied acupuncture through the Chi Institute, but really hasn’t had time to practice in ages. She would love to retake some acupuncture courses when her kids are older and she has more free time.