DoubleLung55

My dad got a gutshot buck 2 years ago , it was hit at about 5 pm , we searched the trail at about 10 since he knew it was a bad hit , we got to where the buck was at by about 11-1130. the deer was still alive out in the middle of a field bedded down , we had huge lights on it so we could see it still moving , after it was bugged for a while it got up and wandered into the field edge , we decided to let it go and come back in the morning , me and my dad went back at about 7 the next morning , when it got light here and went to look that hill side where he went to the night B4, needless to say i found him , both smelt and saw, that was a gross deer , all we got were the horns , when i skinned it out there was nasty vaines and blood vessels all bulged out and gross , the meat looked almost purple due to all the full bloodways. and the meat also stunk like gut , we asked a local farmer y this happened and he said due to the deer being poisioned from its bile , the shock and poisions just made it go funky like that ...............

I wouldnt eat it after a long wait , and 70 degree heat!

Illinois Bowhuntin

I would at the least try my darnest to find the deer.ut it out and see if anything can be used.You should be able to atleast use the shoulders and such.I had a hard time tracking a buck one night.Poor flashlight ended up exploding against a tree.It needed new batteries.So I went home to get some and we didnt have any.So I waited until morning and got to my deer.It was warm that evening and the meat was fine.I didnt use anything around the gut area do to the looks of it.But the rest of the deer was fine and mighty tasty.

rick_reno

My neighbor gut shot a deer last year with his 30-30 rifle. He found it within 30 minutes, field dressed it and brought it home. I helped him skin it, it was horrible. He had a hose where he field dressed it and had washed it out - didn't seem to help. It smelled really bad. After skinning he decided it wasn't worth trying to save the meat and suggested I give it to my dogs. They wouldn't touch it.

Fieldmouse

Let the little creatures eat it.

DaveH

A number of years ago, both my buddie and I shot bucks at the same time --6pm. We saw his fall and recovered it, but could not find the trail we needed to get out of the woods! It was 11pm by the time we got his deer out -- and I had to work the next day. It rained hard all night (the temps were in the low 70's) and we weren't able to look for my deer until 4:00pm the day after it was shot. We found him quickly and he didn't smell too good because I had hit a bit too far back as well. I field dressed him anyway and took him to a butcher. She examined the meat closely and found it to be perfectly safe. I butchered the deer that evening and it remains the best meat we ever had.

MOTOWNHONKEY

Stomach contents stink like the dickens. That deer was fine and should have been processed. JMO

Thundergut

30 minutes? You threw it out? I agree with Motown. That is a blatant waste of venison, and can get you fined here in Ohio.

rybohunter

1st step....find the deer. THEN worry about whether the meat is good. Gut it, and even if it stinks, it still may be good. Skin it and cut out some meat and take it away from the deer itself. Smell it there so there is no other lingering scents.Then decide. Or you could also take it to a butcher.

BowHuntingFool

Any luck on finding your deer??? How about an update!