To All the Usual Suspects:
Liz Callar has posted Va. Foxhound Show pictures at:
www.Lizcallar.com
I shall treasure them as mementos of a weekend spent eating, drinking, and gossiping.
Teeerific!
Imagine my surprise when I spied a picture of myself!!! Pool Liz’s camera made me look fat!!! :eek: Did anybody else notice that!!! :winkgrin::D:lol::lol:
She’s a terrific photog and got some great shots. Gives you a real feel for the day. She was everywhere that day!!!
Yes, although Liz is brilliant, she must have had a faulty lens on her camera that day because her photos of me made me look old as the Nile. How did this happen?
Thank you all for pointing out that the defects are in the camera! No wonder Liz’s fantastic shots captured my hounds beautifully – it’s just the parts of the frame that focus on me that are defective!! I was really worrying…
It was a great day and really a lot of fun!! Glad to have her record of our memories!
Wow! I love all the things I can be exposed to on COTH!
I have never hunted nor do I think I have the intestinal fortitude to manage it (I’m a show ring baby) but I find it a really amazing sport. Didn’t even know there were shows for the hounds.
I do have a question that I might know the answer but want to ask for verification.
The green presentation floor. What are the handlers doing when they are having the hound bound across it? I figured it’s to judge the form of the hound’s movement. Is the dog supposed to stop on the other side of the board? Are the handlers giving a retrieve type signal for the hound to follow across the board?
totally neat. love it, love it, love it.
I kept seeing her, HR, Rich clay, Dana and a few others wandering about. Click click excuse me click click click. 
I’m enjoying all the photos, the videos and slide shows, the stories - it’s all wonderful.
I hope this season is kinder to us than last season. All that snow. Yuck. I’ve still got downed trees littering this place.
winfieldfarm - you MUST try hunting. It’s a whole new world - you will absolutely love it.
I have to admit, I think those that hunt are truly some of the bravest horsemen I’ve ever met.
Having grown up within the confines of the horseshow arena, the thought of going hell bent across wide open hill and dale scares the ever lovin’ begeesus out of me!
I truly admire horses and riders that have the sense and sensibility to do it.
Sent you a PM, and agree that you need to experience hunting first-hand!
Just checked out Liz’s photos–wow!
I am especially proud of Maximus, the Grand Champion of the VA Hound Show (shown below). Pictured here with Michelle Moore, professional whipper-in, Mrs. Daphne Wood, MFH, Mr. Marty Wood, MFH and Charles Montgomery, our professional Huntsman. Live OaK works hard to get these beautiful hounds in tip top show shape after hunting…but these hounds can hunt too!! We have one of the fastest hunts in the Country!!
I couldn’t be accused of being biased because Maximus looks like my pintos, could I??? <wink and smile>
You are correct, in the English and crossbred rings hounds are shown ‘loose’ for the judge to look at movement. Historically in the American ring hounds remain on lead, are ‘posed’ on the board and then jogged on lead much like showing a horse in hand (or your basic dog at your basic dog show). I think over the years though, more in the American ring are daring to show loose, I know when I showed in the 80s we schooled them for loose showing which we did in the championship classes in the ring to try to one-up the competitors who didn’t dare.
Having hounds run across the board enables the judges to more clearly view their feet (which can be obscured in the grass). What you perceive to be a ‘retrieve type signal’ might be varying degrees of practice and training, but the motivational basis is pure bribery.
One tosses biscuits which ‘any’ dog will happily retrieve and consume. Back in the day we used to use bits of liver but I think that’s no longer allowed. The lingering smell of the liver in the grass or on the board might distract a hound from showing well, and of course we wouldn’t want our competitors to have that problem and so NEVER accidentally dropped any liver on the ground…
