Charly Seale was born in Kerrville, Texas, and grew up in Bandera County, where he was raised in a ranching family that concentrated mainly on cattle, sheep and goats. He received a bachelor's degree in Agri-Business and Personnel Management at Southwest Texas State University. He worked in the banking industry for 5 years in Corpus Christi, Texas, handling real estate financing and real estate appraisals for residential, commercial, and land development. After leaving the banking industry, he spent 30 years with the Texas Department of Public Safety, assigned to the Highway Patrol service and served in a supervisory position. He did post-graduate work in Police Administration at the University of Corpus Christi and Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. He converted his family ranching operation from a traditional livestock operation to an elk, whitetail and exotic breeding and hunting operation in the early 1980s. After retiring from DPS, he currently serves as Executive Director of the Exotic Wildlife Association.  He serves on the board of directors of the United States Animal Health Association and am currently co-chair of the USAHA Farmed Cervid Subcommittee. He also serves as the current president of the North American Elk Breeders Association.