Our Team

Dr. Ritter was born and raised in Iowa, and he attended Iowa State University for his undergraduate degree and veterinary degree. After graduating, he completed a one-year internship at the University of Pennsylvania, followed by a three-year surgical residency at Michigan State University. He earned his board-certification in veterinary surgery in January 2007. He then spent eight years at a referral hospital in Greenville, SC, before starting Acacia Mobile Veterinary Surgery (now Bedrock Veterinary Specialists) in 2014.

Dr. Ritter loves performing surgery. He strives to help pet parents understand the issues affecting their pets so that they can make the most educated decisions when advocating for them. Dr. Ritter enjoys performing a range of surgical procedures, including orthopedic procedures like the TPLO and other knee surgeries, fractures, back surgery for disc disease, as well as other challenging soft tissue and oncologic surgeries. Dr. Ritter has performed over 3500 TPLOs. He has written the current chapter of salivary gland disease in the main veterinary surgery textbook. Dr. Ritter believes that a good surgeon evaluates all non-surgical and surgical options when assessing a patient’s problem. In practice, his focus is three-fold: to educate well, to execute precisely, and to minimize complications

Dr. Ritter and his wife, Stacia, have eight children, ten chickens, three dogs, three cats, and three rabbits. In addition to his hobbies of woodworking, camping, hiking, and traveling, he is also passionate about working with Set Free, a nonprofit organization dedicated to freeing children from child slavery in India’s rock quarries. As someone who became a veterinarian to care for patients without a voice, Dr. Ritter sees his partnership with Set Free as an opportunity to be an advocate for those whose voices often go unheard.

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Dr. Courtney Batchelor grew up in the Florida panhandle and has volunteered or worked in the veterinary field since 11. She graduated as valedictorian of her high school and was accepted into an early admission program at the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine. Dr. Batchelor graduated as co-valedictorian from the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine in 2006. Following a rotating small animal internship at Colorado State University, she completed a 3-year surgical residency at Cornell University Hospital for Animals in 2010. Dr. Batchelor was welcomed as a diplomate into the American College of Veterinary Surgeons (ACVS) in 2011. For the past 12 years, Dr. Batchelor has worked as a small animal surgeon in upstate New York, working with owners and their primary care veterinarians as a cohesive team to provide quality surgical care to the patients in her area. Dr. Batchelor has participated in various research projects over the years, focusing on oncology, pain management, and patellar luxation. She has also taken advanced courses in minimally invasive surgery and the treatment of angular limb deformities. She is the current author of a chapter on shoulder luxation in one of the leading veterinary textbooks. While Dr. Batchelor has many years of experience in all aspects of surgery, she particularly enjoys the treatment of knee and elbow issues, minimally invasive procedures, surgical oncology, and hemilaminectomy to treat disc disease.

Dr. Batchelor firmly believes that the best veterinary care requires a team approach between pet parents, primary care veterinarians, and specialists. While her advanced surgical skills and attention to detail help set the stage for successful treatment in the OR, the primary care veterinarian and the pet parent are instrumental in the pre-and post-operative settings. Dr. Batchelor takes the time to describe the disease process and treatment recommendations with pet parents, as well as the risks of the procedure and the aftercare necessary for a complete recovery. Dr. Batchelor works alongside the primary care veterinarians to make a smooth transition of care and welcomes any input or discussion.

Dr. Batchelor and her husband, Charlie, have two energetic young boys, who they are busy molding into respectful, empathetic, and responsible adults. To add to the chaos, they have three dogs collectively weighing almost 300 pounds and one cat that rules the roost. Dr. Batchelor enjoys hiking, camping, and woodworking, when not sitting in the cheering section at her son’s Little League games or facilitating their violin lessons.

Dr. Smith enjoys all types of veterinary surgery, including orthopedic, soft tissue, and neurologic surgery. She believes in the importance of the human-animal bond and strives to improve the quality of life for patients and their owners. She feels that client education is an important part of medical treatment and the recovery process after surgery.

Dr. Smith has three dogs: Elvira, Cricket, and Pip. In addition to spending time with her dogs, she has various hobbies, including sewing, woodworking, and learning new crafts.

Michelle moved down from Ohio to the Lake Norman area in 2004 with her husband and two sons. Shortly after Oliver, a Goldendoodle, and Spots, a rescue dog, joined their family. After being a stay at home mom for 11 years, Michelle was ready to do something more. Due to her love of animals, it only made sense for her to join the veterinary field. She has ten years of experience working in a veterinary clinic and also worked three years with a mobile end-of-life care veterinarian. Michelle brings a ton of care and compassion with her to Bedrock. She loves spending time with her family, fur babies, and friends on the lake or entertaining at home.

Monica Spence has been a Licensed Veterinary Technician since 2004. She has always loved animals and knew she wanted to help animals from a young age. She currently lives in South Carolina with her husband and two children. She enjoys spending time with her family and her animals, a golden named Phoebe and a cat named Willa. She and her family also enjoy camping, visiting her family in Ohio, and spending time at the beach.

After spending almost fifteen years in veterinary medicine, he has gained experience in specialty fields such as veterinary emergency medicine, surgery, internal medicine, dentistry and ophthalmology. He also has extensive work history mentoring new interns introduced to the profession. In addition, Joseph had the privilege of training with Medivet Biolgics and their STEM cell therapy program as well as rehabilitation therapy. A large part of Joseph’s current mission with Bedrock is to support their standard for surgical excellence, and compassionate care.

Joseph is married to Kia his beautiful, amazing wife, and has two intelligent, dynamic sons. Kali, a corgi / chihuahua mix is their furry family member that’s full of energy! We would like to give an honorable mention to Kooley our beloved first pet that passed after seventeen years of love and affection. Joseph enjoys traveling, listening to music, exercising and cooking.

As a kid I always loved animals, had a house full growing up and knew I wanted to work with animals. I am originally from Florida and moved to NC in 2005. I started working in veterinary medicine in 2017 at a general practice. I found a passion for anesthetic procedures (soft tissue, orthopedic, dentistry, etc. )which has lead me here to a specialty hospital.

I have two pets- Kane, a Pit mix adopted in 2014 and a tripod kitty Sidney (Sid), adopted in 2017. In my free time I enjoy spending time with them, being around family and friends, reading, working out and traveling. Concerts are my happy place… I am a huge Drake fan!!