do deer really go to water when they are wounded?
03-26-2008, 01:53 PM
#91
Giant Nontypical
Join Date: Feb 2003
Posts: 5,716
RE: do deer really go to water when they are wounded?
I don't think it's water so much as it is gravity.
Simply put: You have a wild animal with a grievous wound, maybe his intestines turned inside out,and a laundry list of toxins coursing through his veins- so it stands to reason that, when in hilly country, that animal will use the available energy to escape the danger and lie down.
If he's hurt - and he knows he's hurt - What he doesn't want to do is uselessly expend copious amounts of energy fighting his way upsome gigantichillside.
So, from my experience - the more time he has to deliberate about where he's going, the more likely it will be that he's thinking about changes in elevation and self-preservation. If he's hurt bad, he'll just scramble to the nearest cover. If he's sick, he might start sidehilling it with a destination in mind.
To say "he's looking for water" is a misnomer. The fact is, usually when you recover a deer near a watersource - he wasn't "looking" for water - he just lost the war against the force of gravity and angled down into the creek bottom - with nothing left in the tank.
Although, I have read that certain types of wounds do cause an animal to experience a sensation of dehydration and voracious thirst. But let's be real here.Fifteen seconds after the shot - as he's slinking through the woods with his guts hanging out and blood pouring out of both sides- he's probably not thinking "Golly gee - I sure am thirsty."
Simply put: You have a wild animal with a grievous wound, maybe his intestines turned inside out,and a laundry list of toxins coursing through his veins- so it stands to reason that, when in hilly country, that animal will use the available energy to escape the danger and lie down.
If he's hurt - and he knows he's hurt - What he doesn't want to do is uselessly expend copious amounts of energy fighting his way upsome gigantichillside.
So, from my experience - the more time he has to deliberate about where he's going, the more likely it will be that he's thinking about changes in elevation and self-preservation. If he's hurt bad, he'll just scramble to the nearest cover. If he's sick, he might start sidehilling it with a destination in mind.
To say "he's looking for water" is a misnomer. The fact is, usually when you recover a deer near a watersource - he wasn't "looking" for water - he just lost the war against the force of gravity and angled down into the creek bottom - with nothing left in the tank.
Although, I have read that certain types of wounds do cause an animal to experience a sensation of dehydration and voracious thirst. But let's be real here.Fifteen seconds after the shot - as he's slinking through the woods with his guts hanging out and blood pouring out of both sides- he's probably not thinking "Golly gee - I sure am thirsty."
03-26-2008, 02:58 PM
#93
Dominant Buck
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Blossvale, New York
Posts: 21,199
RE: do deer really go to water when they are wounded?
ORIGINAL: MeanV2
When I shoot a Deer they head to my Freezer pretty quick.
Anybody wanna argue with that?
Dan
When I shoot a Deer they head to my Freezer pretty quick.
Anybody wanna argue with that?
Dan
03-26-2008, 03:02 PM
#94
Giant Nontypical
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location:
Posts: 7,367
RE: do deer really go to water when they are wounded?
ORIGINAL: davidmil
What???? You don't give any to Farmers and Hunters Feeding the Hungry?[8D]
What???? You don't give any to Farmers and Hunters Feeding the Hungry?[8D]
Dan
