old, when his family moved to a small farm in Loganville, Georgia. Chandler's mother raised Great Danes for show dogs; he travelled with his parents to dog shows as a child and helped out at their dog boarding kennel. Chandler's widowed mother ran the business, Sheenwater Kennels, to support Chandler and his siblings. She "was highly active with the Great Dane Club of America (GDCA) as a breeder, judge and championship prize winner."

Chandler graduated