too much of a risk of getting it in the jaw or something. i've taken one head shot. my first year of hunting, i had a doe that i mortally wounded and i finished her off with a head shot. instant death. leaves a nasty looking wound. if im finishing anything off anymore its a neck shot. a nice buck i'll finish off in the boiler room so i dont ruin the cape. head shots are big no no's.

.22 LR or 17 HMR? NEVER shoot a deer with either of these. the only time i would call it ethical would be if you were in a surivival situation. anybody shooting deer with a .22 LR shouldnt be hunting.

And as far as meat damage goes, who cares if you shoot them in the front shoulder? Theres at tops on a huge deer 2 lbs of meat on the front shoulder. unless you're obsessed and feel the need to get every last little scrap of meat off that deer, shooting them in the front shoulder isn't going to hurt a thing.

i took a neck shot on a doe fawn last sunday and killed her instantly. i shot her there because i knew it would anchor her right there. pretty ethical shot IMO.

Overall though, i try to gun for the heart/lung area everytime. they wont run over 50 yards without a heart and or lungs. i had a doe run 30 yards with both lungs gone and the top of the heart gone. absolutely perfect shot. i was surprised how far she ran but with the kind of blood trail she left, it wasn't hard even in the downed tree tops.


slayer