CHEYENNE, Wyo. — Vice President Dick Cheney ended a troubling week among friends, receiving a rousing ovation from state legislators in his first public appearance since accidentally shooting a lawyer while quail hunting.

"It's a wonderful experience to be greeted by such warmth by the leaders of our great state. It's especially true when you've had a very long week," Cheney told legislators here Friday. "Thankfully, Harry Whittington is on the mend and doing very well."

Whittington, 78, was hit in the face, neck and chest with birdshot Feb. 11. After a shotgun pellet traveled to his heart, he suffered a mild heart attack Tuesday while being treated at Christus Spohn Hospital Corpus Christi-Memorial.

Some 20 minutes before Cheney's speech in Wyoming, Whittington made his first public appearance in Corpus Christi, Texas, since the hunting accident.

His face marked with tiny birdshot wounds, the Austin attorney said "accidents do and will happen" and apologized for the trouble the incident had caused the vice president.

"My family and I are deeply sorry for everything Vice President Cheney and his family have had to deal with," Whittington said, his voice a bit raspy but strong.

Whittington, who did not answer questions after giving his brief statement, had what appeared to be a line of cuts on his upper right eyelid and scrapes on his neck.

"We all assume certain risks in what we do, in what activities we pursue," Whittington said.

He said the past weekend involved "a cloud of misfortune and sadness that is not easy to explain, especially with those who are not familiar with the great sport of quail hunting."

Dr. David Blanchard, the hospital's chief of emergency care, said the attorney was lucky to have survived the shooting.

Whittington was being released Friday because of "his excellent health," Blanchard said, but he added that Whittington wasn't answering questions because "he is not 100 percent."

Whittington did feel well enough to crack a joke.

"I also thank all of you for understanding as best you can that medical attention is very important to someone my age — and you haven't failed to give my age," he said, drawing laughs from reporters.

Whittington returned to his home in Austin late Friday afternoon, smiling and waving to reporters through a tinted window before a garage door closed behind the green sport utility vehicle he was in.

"He's very tired. He's had a long, hard trip," said his daughter, Sally May Whittington, who added that the family would have no further comment. "He's happy to be home."

Cheney took full blame for the shooting in a Wednesday appearance on Fox News, but his comments Friday were focused on reminiscing about Wyoming politicians, including his own time as the state's sole representative in the U.S. House.

"For better than a decade, I proudly answered to the title, 'the gentleman from Wyoming,'" Cheney said.

Cheney planned to spend the weekend at his home in Jackson Hole.

About a dozen people waited outside the Capitol in subzero temperatures to protest Cheney's appearance. "We're a little embarrassed that he's from our state," said Tony Hayden, of Cheyenne.

But Cheney also had his supporters, including Dan Yoksh of Cheyenne, who watched Cheney's speech on television at the Cheyenne Regional Airport.

"I think the media has blown things out of proportion," Yoksh said of the accident. "If you go duck hunting out here, you're bound to get shot sometime."

In Texas, the Kenedy County Sheriff's Department closed its investigation in the shooting Thursday without filing any charges. The department's report supported the account of the vice president, who told an investigator he did not see his hunting partner while aiming for a bird.