Whole lot of rumor and guessing going on here. This year I had to shoot one in the head. I don't try to shoot deer only in the head, but sometimes it is the only option. I was up in some rocks and two big doe came around the bend and started feeding in front of me. It was full of laurel and redbrush so I could see the whole deer easily, but there was branches and sticks blocking their bodies. I kept an eye on one that was more open and when she reached her head over her back to pull some hair, I shot her right between the eyes. Maybe 75 yards. Definitely not over. I am guessing most guys would have shot through the brush. Now and then I take a headshot, but not usually my first choice. I remember when I was younger I saw a guy unload a lever action on a deer when I was hunting a powerline. A guy down farther killed it and it had the nose shot off. I can tell you that first guy was NOT aiming for the head. I killed a deer once that had a bullet hole through the ear. I am absolutely sure that all these horror stories (Mostly rumors and BS) stem from guys that were NOT even shooting at the head. I only take frontal or rear head shots. How do you shoot the jaw off a deer that way? I don't use a magnum, but if I shoot low and hit the nose, it is going into the neck too. Same with a shot from behind. I would say that if you can't do a head shot under 50 yards, you will eventually gut shoot and lose one anyway. **Shooting a leg off will not kill the deer. I have killed a few doe with the lower leg healed over and my buddy, a butcher, gets a couple "Stumpies" in every year.