Talisman39

Hi Adam...

Thanks for the note. Your V is a beauty!! I hope you post some shots of her on the forum.

Our V is six years old and she is really only a pet. One of her grand-dams hunted until she was 16 1/2. I've seen photos of her in the lower branches of a tree (10 feet off the ground) where she treed a squirrel. I don't like to kill hunt, but I do enjoy a spirited walk. Since I migrated to the camera, most of my images are the result of our ritual outings. We do about 4 miles a day off leash. I'm very fortunate to have some open public land near where I live. She is 'silent command' and collar field trained. I communicate with her using hand signals and we have great fun together. I've also found the K20D with the DA 55-300 to be the perfect combo for these walks. The DA 55-300 is almost my walk-around lens, as a result.

As you know, V's are quick to learn/train. I hope you caught the video on my photo-blog of her fetching the paper ("Magz Gets It"). She learned that trick in less than a week just this Spring. She performs it everyday and is to the point where she looks forward to her daily 'fetch', in addition to her walk. The size of the paper is never an issue as she can handle the Sunday NY Times as easily as the morning WSJ. My neighbors (like us) never cease to be amazed.

Anyway... It's easy to go on and on with V stories. The breed is quite a treat and joy to behold, but that's not news to you.

Take care and thanks again for the note...

Jane and Michael Gay
Ann Arbor, MI