Great subject! I like reading the variety of opinions. But that's really just what they are - OPINIONS, not ANSWERS.

James, you posted so you must be looking for replys and/or opinions.

Here's my OPINION..............

1. You shot at a "nice doe" at 45 yards and MISSED? Time for a REALITY CHECK. You might want to seriously consider some major range time.

2. When hunting, isn't it prudent and wise to always know your surroundings? (i.e. not hunting too closely to others) Count you and the other guy as very fortunate! Three shots were fired, any one of which could have "harvested" either of the two of you. The shouting of "I GOT ONE!", could have been, "I'VE BEEN SHOT!" Can you say Hunter Safety Education courses? Maybe you two could carpool to the classes and make up? Turn a negative into a positive? (Oh yeah-you don't see much of that, if any, on this site. Once the "crying & whining" starts it seems like it's only to gather as much sympathy as possible)

3. What if after your second shot (no matter how finishing it was) the deer walked 200....300....400....500 yards before the other guy shot it? Would it still be "yours"? What's the "limit"? If you want to believe there is no "limit", then what if you shot it and it went 2 miles.3 miles...4 miles before dropping? Remember-you have to go that far and get the animal because it's the ethical thing to do, right? What if it walks or runs a mile or two and another guy shoots and drops the animal? Is it still "yours" because "it was all but bled out"? We can go on forever with this............

4. I feel that he harvested a live (i.e. still breathing), legal animal. And he hit it with his first shot. In the head with a 20 or 12 gauge slug would have killed it immediately! A double lung that drops the animal doesn't assure that it isn't breathing when it drops, does it?

5. Me personally, if I heard a couple of shots ring out, then saw a deer from that direction, and I didn't even know another hunter was in that direction or his/her exact location.....I would hold my fire.

P.S. ABSOLUTELY no offense is intended in this posting! Just some "food for thought" by those who read the follow ups. I've got "big shoulders" so if I'm outta line.........please let me know.


Now....."Go Get Ya One!"