Gene Lonsway, owner and manager of Chapel Hill Boarding Kennel, is a seasoned professional in the dog business. He has dedicated more than 30 years of his life to working with dogs and educating pet owners.
Gene playing ball with several of his dogs in 1998
Lonsway has worked as a groomer and owned a boarding kennel in his hometown of Findlay, Ohio. He spent almost a decade breeding, training, and selling German Shepherds. He also spent several years caring for dogs with hemophilia.
Lonsway’s career as a professional dog trainer began in 1985 after he graduated from the prestigious National Canine Learning Center‘s School for Dog Trainers. Since then he has trained well over 2,000 dogs and successfully taught many more pet owners to train their own dogs.
In addition to his work as an obedience trainer and instructor, Lonsway owns the Durham Bulls mascots, Lucky The Wonderdog (retired) and Lucky Junior. He and his dogs have performed at Durham Bulls baseball games since 2003. They can be seen during home games on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights.
Gene, Lucky Sr. and Wool E. Bull at the DBAP in 2004
Lonsway is also the author of a wonderful children’s book “Lucky Oh Lucky” The Puppy Who Loved to Run. It is based on the true story of his dog, Lucky Senior.
Lonsway’s unique insight and knowledge of canine behavior has also led to the invention of several dog toys. Lonsway has been granted two patents by the United States Patent Office for dog related inventions.
