Terrible thing happened tonight......
 

This was not good at all. I really let myself down tonight. It's 1:30am now. I just got home from my girlfriends house. On the drive home, I saw a deer, apparently hit by a car, in the middle of the highway. I turned the car around to see if it was a buck or not....I got about 10 feet from the deer, which was not moving, and it blinked at me. I didn't know what to do, I didnt' have my gun or bow with me, because I took everything out earlier today. I couldn't picture myself pulling out a tire iron and hammering on the poor deer. The only thing I could think of was a choke hold, but I wasn't going to go there either. (That would be just plain weird, and I wasn't sure if it would work anyways). I drove as fast as I could to my house, which is about 10 minutes away to call 911. They said they would have somebody go and check on it. Arrrgh, I feel pretty crappy about it. Just one of those things that happens all the time, but you never, and I mean ever, want to see what I saw tonight.

RE: Terrible thing happened tonight......
 

james,just one of those things.I usually always have some sort of weapon in the car.But in Pa. it is against the law to put a animal down with a weapon ,even a hit terminal case.I survey the situation ,the people around and just run over its head. By law I cant shoot it,but I feel it is more of a sin to let it suffer then take it out.Of course then I utilize it and feed either me or some needy family

RE: Terrible thing happened tonight......
 

I keep a razor sharp 7" ka-bar knife under my seat for occations like this. I don't like to cut the throught because it can take a few minutes to die, I normaly stick it behind the shoulder like you would with a hog. Hit the heart and it will die very quickly. I strattled a little buck once to slit the throught, and when I did, it took in a deep breath, I guess it's throught was clogged with blood or something and when I cut it, it could breathe. Like I said I was strattling the deer and then it got up from under me and beat me around for a minute before running about 50 yards in the woods and bleeding to death. Keep it quick and go behind the shoulder.

"Hey ya'll, watch this"

RE: Terrible thing happened tonight......
 

James this just shows you have a heart, no one wants an animal to suffer, I don't know what the law is in Va., but if I had something to finish him/her off I would, if not I would have done just what you did.

The Tazman aka Martin Price
Founder and President of
Virginia Disabled Outdoorsmen Club

RE: Terrible thing happened tonight......
 

I know how you feel. Years ago when I was stationed in Germany in the army the fellow I was riding with hit a deer. It did't kill it, but it was all messed up. The only thing we had was a tire iron, which I used to finish it. One hit in the head and it was dead, although I did hit it a number of times to be sure. Not a pleasent thing to hear I know. We went to the local Guesthouse(tavern) and told the owner about it and where the deer was. Ten minutes later the deer was back at the Guesthouse being processed,everybody there was tickled to get that much meat free. Don't have any idea how much it weighted, but the deer in Germany are small. We were in a Mercedes, really messed up the front end.

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RE: Terrible thing happened tonight......
 

That is a tough situation. I personally haven't had that happen. All the deer I've seen on the road were already dead. But here in Iowa I don't think you're allowed to kill them if you find them alive either. I think you have to call the local sheriff's office and they come out to check it out first. I know you can get a salvage tag and claim a road kill but I don't think you can actually kill it without local LE officers there. I know they will site you for carring a gun or uncased bow in your car. And a knife with a blade over 4 inches long is considered a weapon in this state. So if you had 1 of those under the seat they could get you for carrying a concealed weapon I suppose. Tough senario. No easy answers here. One of my wife's friends is married to a deputy sheriff. I'll ask her today and see what she says. I'll get back to ya later.

KEEP IT LEGAL. KEEP IT SAFE. OR WE MAY NOT GET TO KEEP IT AT ALL.

RE: Terrible thing happened tonight......
 

James
I understand what you went through. The 2nd week in October I was doing some scouting on 1 of our properties. As I was coming out to my vehicle I saw a deer bedded in a field. As I walked closer it tried to get up and then fell back down. When I got close enough I could see it was a buttom buck with 2 legs that had compound fractures. I immediately called the DNR and they said they couldn't get there for a few hours so if I had the means to go ahead and put the deer down. I drove to our cottage 5 minutes away and grabbed a .22. I was able to finally put the deer out of it's misery but I couldn't help but see the pain and terror in it's face. It was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do. The deer just looked at me, breathing heavily, and then had a tear run down from it's eye.

RE: Terrible thing happened tonight......
 

Leads back to "what's illegal isn't necessarily unethical and what's legal isn't necessarily ethical."

I feel the same James, shows the compassion and hunter inside you. We all know for a fact a PETA brainwash wouldn't have even stopped.


<font color=blue>Good Luck and Good Shooting</font id=blue>

<font color=red>Rob</font id=red>

RE: Terrible thing happened tonight......
 

I found a cat one time that had its back legs cut off from being ran over by a train.
It was screaming bloody murder.
No one had the guts to put it out of its misery.
I finally picked up a big stick and hit it over the head, ending its pain.
From then on all my friends called me cat killer.
I told them, at least I had the compassion to end its suffering.

Barile,

The deer with a tear running down its face...
Damn, that would be hard to take.

This thread is somewhat depressing!
Don't get me wrong though, I would end the suffering of any animal.
Our beloved little Dachshund got hit by a car last month.
The next day, we found out he was badly injured and had to put him down. It was heartbreaking.
Hell, if I was badly injured and it looked like I wouldn't recover.
I wouldn't mind taking a bullet to the head myself.
I know it's illegal but it's what I would want.


Sag.




Edited by - Sagittarius on 12/26/2002 10:55:10

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RE: Terrible thing happened tonight......
 

I just talked with my wife's friend and found out your not even supposed to pick up a road kill. If you want to collect a roadkill, you go down to the county sheriff's office and sign up. Then when a roadkill is reported, the dispatcher sends out a deputy. If it's a valid call, the deputy tells the dispatcher who in turn calls people on the list until they find someone on the list to come collect the deer. So if you're driving down the road and a deer runs out in front of you and you hit it doing a couple of thousands of dollars damage to your vechile, you can't claim the deer unless you're on the list! GOD! I love our government! Always good for a laugh.

KEEP IT LEGAL. KEEP IT SAFE. OR WE MAY NOT GET TO KEEP IT AT ALL.

RE: Terrible thing happened tonight......
 

Had something very similer happen to me this year. Long story short I ended up using a knife on the deer. I won't ever forget the sounds it made. It was a very difficult thing to do, and I hope I never have to do it again. That said I am glad I did what needed done. I don't know what I would have done if I hadn't had my knife with me, but you did the right thing for sure.

TAKE YOUR KIDS HUNTING AND YOU WON'T BE HUNTING FOR YOUR KIDS

RE: Terrible thing happened tonight......
 

Thank you guys for backing me up on what I did. I understand there is a pretty significant LEGALITY on taking down a deer that is suffering. I think that Cardeer probably has the best idea, as far as the legality end of it goes. I've since gotten over it. But at the time, I wasn't feeling very well about the whole deal.

RE: Terrible thing happened tonight......
 

Barile, Your post confirms something I have suspected for years. Four years ago I was helping a guy track a gut shot a deer. When we found it he had traveled about a mile and had bedded up and been pushed many times (public land). I noticed this deer had crusty deposits by what I imagined were tear ducts. I was so bummed when I saw this, I was convinced the deer had suffered and was certain it had been crying. I did not want to apply human traits to an animal but that is how it seemed. This was before I had ever harvested a deer and even though I know bad hits happen it made me determined to not take bad angle shots like this guy had done. So far I have been fortunate, all my harvest have been short recoveries.

James Vee, One day I was driving home and saw a young man in a ditch cradling a button buck. I stopped and saw the deer was dieing but it seemed at ease. This fellow was no hunter and asked if I knew how to end this deer’s suffering, I said yes but I did not have my knife. A lady who lived near by came over and said she called the police and got the run around. They said it was a conservation problem or sheriff’s problem. She called a number they gave her (I don't know which) and they said they could not come out right away. Soon another guy stopped and came out of his truck with a hammer. I told the young man that I was not staying to watch this and he might want to do the same. It is hard to see this stuff but it happens. Nature is cruel, if anti-hunters understood how people like us respect these deer I don't think it would change their minds but it would take away from their argument against hunting. You won't forget this incident but try to categorize the experience as a fact of life.
Bill

RE: Terrible thing happened tonight......
 

I had an incident like that this spring on a fawn. It was very ironic because the guy that hit it was and proclaimed animal rights activist in Omaha. I had a knife in my truck. He was just standing there watching this deer bleat with a crushed pelvis but not dying. When he saw what I was going to do he said he had to leave. I told him to stivck around because he was advocating no hunting and I told him this sight would be repeated over and over if hunting was banned. I double lunged it and it was over in a few seconds. I don't know if he converted or not but he thanked me for ending it before he got in his car and left. I understand him in a way. They don't want to see animals suffer and I feel the same way. They just don't realize that the nonhunting ways of death are more brutal than a well placed arrow.

THWACK!

RE: Terrible thing happened tonight......
 

really sad situation but i like what rob had to say

RE: Terrible thing happened tonight......
 

I have something I would like to pass on that I read several years ago. It was written by someone of the stature of Leonard Lee Rue III, I'm not sure if he was the author. What he said was that when a prey animal is injured their brain causes their body to release a chemical that deadens pain. He had a name for it, I don't remember what he called it. I have no idea if it is true, I sure hope it is, it would be nice if nature did this for them. I do not remember reading that prey animals produce tears when injured, I would think that they do have tear ducts though, to lubricate their eyes.

RE: Terrible thing happened tonight......
 

Bad deal, it shows the true compassion we do have for animals even though we are thought of as blood thirsty freaks by some. I had to finish a moose off last year with a knife. It was illegal, but I wasn't about to let it keep flopping around in the road. Let them prosecute me for putting it down. Regardless, nobody saw, and the moose was salvaged by the state.
ArcticBowMan's Hunting Photo's

RE: Terrible thing happened tonight......
 

This is a subject that I've been thinking about for a couple of weeks since our trip to Tionesta, PA. As we were driving home we came around a bend in the road and there was a doe right on the white line - it looked as if it was bedded down there. So it was obvious that someone had just hit it. The doe was in a bad spot where you couldn't pull off the road so we just kept going and argued over whether or not you are allowed to put the deer out of its misery. I think I will talk to a game warden or state trooper to see what they say. It's scary out there at night, especially where I live. There's hardly a night goes by where I don't spot deer right alongside our main route - summer or winter. Two weeks ago a friend of mine totaled her Jeep thanks to a buck. It's antler gored the hood and crumpled everything in front and the fenders and door on the drivers side. What do we do?
Slug hunting in Allegheny Co. tomorrow with the hubby. Will let you all know if we're lucky! <img src=icon_smile_wink.gif border=0 align=middle>

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RE: Terrible thing happened tonight......
 

<BLOCKQUOTE id=quote<font size=1 face='Verdana, Arial, Helvetica' id=quote>quote:<hr height=1 noshade id=quote>
This is a subject that I've been thinking about for a couple of weeks since our trip to Tionesta, PA. As we were driving home we came around a bend in the road and there was a doe right on the white line - it looked as if it was bedded down there. So it was obvious that someone had just hit it. The doe was in a bad spot where you couldn't pull off the road so we just kept going and argued over whether or not you are allowed to put the deer out of its misery. I think I will talk to a game warden or state trooper to see what they say. It's scary out there at night, especially where I live. There's hardly a night goes by where I don't spot deer right alongside our main route - summer or winter. Two weeks ago a friend of mine totaled her Jeep thanks to a buck. It's antler gored the hood and crumpled everything in front and the fenders and door on the drivers side. What do we do?
Slug hunting in Allegheny Co. tomorrow with the hubby. Will let you all know if we're lucky! <img src=icon_smile_wink.gif border=0 align=middle>
<hr height=1 noshade id=quote></BLOCKQUOTE id=quote></font id=quote><font face='Verdana, Arial, Helvetica' size=2 id=quote>

RE: Terrible thing happened tonight......
 

Wasn't much you could do. I think it was alright what you did. I doubt the choke hold would have worked(LOL). A long time ago I wathed a guy once try to break the neck of an 8-pt buck. Threw him around pretty good, and never got close to killing him. Then was finally smart enough to go get his knife. Too bad the people who hit the hit couldn't have checked for the deer to make sure it is put down before they kept driving on.
Visit My Updated Hunting Page

RE: Terrible thing happened tonight......
 

A lot of my friend's laughed at me when I told them about the tear and said I was full of sh$#. I wish I was full of it b/c it would have made everything a little easier. I don't know if the deer was crying but a tear ran straight out of it's eye and dripped to the ground. It is something I will never forget.

When I called the DNR to find out what to do they said that if I wanted the meat I could go to the sherrif's department and get a tag. I went to the sherrif's office and they gave me the run around. I finally got the tag but they couldn't comprehend that I didn't hit the deer nor did I see the car that hit it. My dad butchered the deer but I have not been able to eat any of it. (At least not that I know of). I feel like a sap but I honestly considered burying the deer for a second. That whole tear thing really got to me.

RE: Terrible thing happened tonight......
 

Been there...

If the general public only knew half of the compassion for wildlife we hunters possess, groups like PETA and others couldn't get the backing they now have.

I put down an adult doe on 12-28 that had been shot through the left-rear shank with an arrow. At the end, she just gave up trying to move, looked at me at five yards , turned her head away as if she knew what was about to happen. I will never forget the look she gave me.

That was the saddest day I have ever spent in the woods; happy to put an end to it, but sad nonetheless.



Shoot often - Hunt always

RE: Terrible thing happened tonight......
 

you guys are going to make me cry... Its alway sad when an animal loses its life, even when its by my own hands. However, harvesting animals is a duty we owe to the entire animal herd, otherwise starvation, disease, and true suffering would set in.

Hunt the thickets

RE: Terrible thing happened tonight......
 

Few years back came across a small doe just hit by a car in 4 lanes of heavy traffic. One of her rear legs was sheared off, just hanging by the skin. She kept falling and then getting up and running a few feet before falling again. When she fell I took off my shirt and wrapped around her head and then another guy helped me load her into the back of another guys van. Thats right the 3 of us picked up a live deer and layed her in the back of a van! It was amazing but she did not struggle at all and we drove her to a vet office 2 miles away. He came out looked over quickly and then came back with an injection which put her out of her misery immediately. Looking back I can't believe how foolish we were, if she panicked she could have jumped up in the van, given us a few swift kicks, severely injuring us all. Thank God it all worked out for the best.

RE: Terrible thing happened tonight......
 

If an animal is suffering I see no problem in ending it's pain. Some say leave it be and let nature take it's course but when a deer or any animal is hit by a car nature had nothing to do with it and the animal should be put down.
I love to hunt deer and have a freezer full of fresh meat but every time I harvest a deer get very excited when I find it but then after I calm down a bit feel sorry for the deer in a way but that is what we as hunters are here for, to control the population. I am a hunter with respect for the game I hunt and fish for not a cold blooded killer like some organizations make try and make the general public beleive. This is a very good tread and I am glad to see people feel the same as I do.

RE: Terrible thing happened tonight......
 

boy tough one here,

The flipside to the argument of course is who are we to play God let nature take it's course. Like bigcountry said, nature or God didn't put roads and automobiles on the Earth. Man already altered natures course. You did all you could do considering your situation. This happened to me once with a doe. The worst thing in the world if you're a hunter. I caught her eyes laying in a ditch on the side of the road on the way home from work. I immediately stopped and backed up. Upon further review she was trying to get up and move and her 2 back legs were just dragging behind her, she was shot in the rear.

I ripped apart my truck looking for something to finish her off with, but couldn't find anything. Fortunately I was only within a couple minutes from work (where I have a shotgun). Man like gforce says the look she gave me when i was jumping in my truck. Telling me to hurry back. Wow it really sucked. Probably the worst part was when I got back to her her head was still standing up above the ditch. I got out of my truck and walked over to her. My heart was pounding 10 times more than any other time I've seen a deer hunting. I clicked the safety off and shouldered the gun and she laid her head down!!! I had to pull the gun down for a second to collect my thoughts. And when I did she lifted her head as if to say finish me please. I again shouldered the gun and waited about 30 seconds until she turned her head and finished her. The absolute hardest thing I've done. It really shook me up for awhile. Never foget the encounter or that look!!

RE: Terrible thing happened tonight......
 

I had to knife a fawn this spring that was hit. Terrible thing when you only have a small knife.

THWACK!

RE: Terrible thing happened tonight......
 

seriously you guys are going to make me cry..espcially the tear story..this is very depressing..i hope i never have to do something like that

RE: Terrible thing happened tonight......
 

James Vee know how you feel, before season a friend and I came across a spike fawn that had been hit and was dying, I had a pocket knife and I cut its throat to ease the suffering. hardest thing I had to do, otherwise like you I would have had to watch as it struggled with death. It is a weird feeling but something that has to be done and is necessary in these cases!<img src=icon_smile_sad.gif border=0 align=middle>

Der Jagd Meister
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