When Lucy was fourteen, her family acquired a Welsh terrier, Owen. Lucy took him to a training class at Greater St. Louis Training Club. When the class was over, she and Owen entered an obedience trial where they won first place in a class of 63 dogs. While hooked for life on dog training, Lucy was interested in working with other animals as well.
At summer jobs between 1965 and 1970 Lucy volunteered at the Humane Society of Missouri, trained chinchillas at the Central Institute for the Deaf, worked at the Saint Louis Zoo, and worked with horses in southern Missouri. While continuing to train and show her Welsh terrier, Lucy began a career as a zookeeper in 1970 which gave her the opportunity to train young animals of many species including wolves, bears, big cats, great apes, antelope, and camels, as well as adults of smaller species such as skunks, raccoons, ferrets, foxes, owls, and parrots.
When her children were born Lucy left to be a full time mother, but returned to the Zoo after several years and eventually launched a training department as part of the human resources function. In 2015 Lucy was recognized as a 50-year member of Greater St. Louis Training Club where she has held office on multiple occasions, was awarded the Gaines Good Sportsmanship Award, and was instrumental in forging a training partnership with the Humane Society of Missouri, which allowed the club to renew and update its training program.
Lucy is a member of the APDT (Association of Pet Dog Trainers) and in 2003 passed the rigorous exam to become a Certified Professional Dog Trainer-Knowledge Assessed. In 2008, Lucy graduated from the prestigious Karen Pryor Academy as a Certified Training Partner. In 2009, she became certified by TAGteach International at the primary level.
She lives in Saint Louis with the seventh generation of the Welsh terriers which she breeds through WYSIWYG Welsh Terriers and shows in conformation and performance events. She is a long-time member of the Welsh Terrier Club of America and has served as a board member.
In 2003 Lucy partnered with Dixie Tenny Lehmann to launch a dog training business called Dogs Unleashed. In 2009 Lucy became the sole owner of Dogs Unleashed. In 2014 Lucy launched her new company, Come Click! LLC.
