RE: HOW TO: FINISH A DEER?
I am glad this discussion was brought up. I have been hunting for 18 years now and last gun season was the first time I had to finish a deer. I tracked the deer into a high swamp and it tried to get up less then two feet away. It was after legal shooting light, so even though I had a pistol (CCW in Michigan) I did not fire. I had heard of people cutting the throat, so I grabbed my knife and jumped on the deer. I have always thought of myself as a man's man, but never again. Struggling with that animal and the noises it made... to say it bugged (and is still bugging me) is an understatement. I did end up with 6 stitches across my left hand during the battle. For now on, I do not care if it is legal shooting light or not. If I find a mortally wounded animal, I will shoot it in the base of the skull.