Recovery, What To Do After the Shot.
08-28-2008, 05:36 AM
#41
Giant Nontypical
Join Date: May 2005
Location: One mile east of West Podunk Tx
Posts: 5,973
RE: Recovery, What To Do After the Shot.
ORIGINAL: MNpurple
One other thing that has helped me out in the past is understanding the importance of staying undetected both before, during and after the shot. Sounds pretty straight foreward but it is so important to remain undetected after that shot. TV shows guys taking a shot, and then talking, fist pumping, whatever. If you have shot an animal and it doesnt know you are there or doesnt know what has just happened, your odds of finding that animal increase dramatically as opposed to that animal knowing a "predator" is on their trail.
One other thing that has helped me out in the past is understanding the importance of staying undetected both before, during and after the shot. Sounds pretty straight foreward but it is so important to remain undetected after that shot. TV shows guys taking a shot, and then talking, fist pumping, whatever. If you have shot an animal and it doesnt know you are there or doesnt know what has just happened, your odds of finding that animal increase dramatically as opposed to that animal knowing a "predator" is on their trail.
08-28-2008, 05:50 AM
#42
Dominant Buck
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location:
Posts: 21,043
RE: Recovery, What To Do After the Shot.
One other thing that has helped me out in the past is understanding the importance of staying undetected both before, during and after the shot.
In 2006....I shot at a buck (took him in 2007) and clipped him right behind his right front leg. Being a total newbie and having never taken a deer before....I waited about 20 minutes and got down to check my arrow. Like most beginners and a lot of vets.....I would have bet the farm I smoked him. We followed a very sparse bood trail that night (shot him about 7:20 if I remember correctly)until 3:30AM. We grid searched for a lot of that time.....butwhere the blood trail ended was only about 50yds from directly behind my stand. He'd made a wide sweeping circle....and if I were a betting man....I'd bet he saw me get down and check thearrow.
While that story does have ahappy ending (14 mos. later)....it could have just as easily resulted in a non-recovery and a lost animal.
Keep your ass in your seat for a while......and plan your exit strategy.
Again Kyle.....that's solid advice.
EDIT** For the record....I also searched for that deer for two more days (taking a day off work to do so)......employing even my two labs for those two days. The scenario above....deer was clipped on 9/12.....and I saw the buck again the day after Thanksgiving. I killed that buck Nov. 6th, last season.
08-28-2008, 10:55 AM
#43
Senior Member
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Portage WI/Racine WI
Posts: 2,320
RE: Recovery, What To Do After the Shot.
ORIGINAL: GMMAT
The scenario above....deer was clipped on 9/12.....and I saw the buck again the day after Thanksgiving. I killed that buck Nov. 6th, last season.
The scenario above....deer was clipped on 9/12.....and I saw the buck again the day after Thanksgiving. I killed that buck Nov. 6th, last season.
08-30-2008, 10:15 PM
#44
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: Manassas, VA
Posts: 3,612
RE: Recovery, What To Do After the Shot.
This place helped me score my first archery deer years ago (2002)...a little 7 point. I came on here all distraught because I made a poor shot based on the angle of the deer, then coupled that with taking up the trail after only 30 minutes. I searched for 2 hours before dark, then came back the next day and searched for almost 6 hours. Finally something in me remembered what some of the guys said on here....I was about ready to give up, exhasuted from walking up and down steep hills the past two days when I heard this....." a gut shot deer sometimes runs downhill and will bed next to water". I turned around back into the woods and walked a good half mile back in on the creek. I spun around and backtracked, finding that buck laid up under a tree that was hanging over in the creek!
This thread is fantastic.
This thread is fantastic.
08-31-2008, 06:00 AM
#45
Boone & Crockett
Thread Starter
Join Date: Oct 1998
Location: Hughesville, PA USA
Posts: 18,322
RE: Recovery, What To Do After the Shot.
ORIGINAL: virginiashadow
This place helped me score my first archery deer years ago (2002)...a little 7 point. I came on here all distraught because I made a poor shot based on the angle of the deer, then coupled that with taking up the trail after only 30 minutes. I searched for 2 hours before dark, then came back the next day and searched for almost 6 hours. Finally something in me remembered what some of the guys said on here....I was about ready to give up, exhasuted from walking up and down steep hills the past two days when I heard this....." a gut shot deer sometimes runs downhill and will bed next to water". I turned around back into the woods and walked a good half mile back in on the creek. I spun around and backtracked, finding that buck laid up under a tree that was hanging over in the creek!
This thread is fantastic.
This place helped me score my first archery deer years ago (2002)...a little 7 point. I came on here all distraught because I made a poor shot based on the angle of the deer, then coupled that with taking up the trail after only 30 minutes. I searched for 2 hours before dark, then came back the next day and searched for almost 6 hours. Finally something in me remembered what some of the guys said on here....I was about ready to give up, exhasuted from walking up and down steep hills the past two days when I heard this....." a gut shot deer sometimes runs downhill and will bed next to water". I turned around back into the woods and walked a good half mile back in on the creek. I spun around and backtracked, finding that buck laid up under a tree that was hanging over in the creek!
This thread is fantastic.
08-31-2008, 09:23 AM
#46
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: Modena Wi
Posts: 1,444
RE: Recovery, What To Do After the Shot.
When the blood trail starts to peter out....break out the hydrogen peroxide. Hydrogen Peroxide when sprayed on even old dried blood will cause a chemical reaction and bubble up. It has gotten me back on the trail several times. Its cheap and can be found at any drug store and even some convenience stores carry some. Just buy a cheap spray bottle at the dollar store and your good to go.
09-01-2008, 07:16 PM
#47
Join Date: Jul 2004
Location:
Posts: 854
RE: Recovery, What To Do After the Shot.
ORIGINAL: GMMAT
Kyle....I'll "3rd" that...along with tx.
One other thing that has helped me out in the past is understanding the importance of staying undetected both before, during and after the shot.
09-03-2008, 05:33 PM
#48
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: ELK GROVE CA USA
Posts: 1,251
RE: Recovery, What To Do After the Shot.
ORIGINAL: dabowhunter
When the blood trail starts to peter out....break out the hydrogen peroxide. Hydrogen Peroxide when sprayed on even old dried blood will cause a chemical reaction and bubble up. It has gotten me back on the trail several times. Its cheap and can be found at any drug store and even some convenience stores carry some. Just buy a cheap spray bottle at the dollar store and your good to go.
When the blood trail starts to peter out....break out the hydrogen peroxide. Hydrogen Peroxide when sprayed on even old dried blood will cause a chemical reaction and bubble up. It has gotten me back on the trail several times. Its cheap and can be found at any drug store and even some convenience stores carry some. Just buy a cheap spray bottle at the dollar store and your good to go.
everyones input on recovery is great.....i will add that this information put out is simply based on years of experience, therefore my 2cents of advice is to actually practice tracking. the worst thing you can do, IMO, is to go out hunting after all that practicing with your bow/gun, get the buck fever (like we all get), make a poor shoot, but have NEVER practiced tracking a trail.
i suggest getting with someone, friend, wife etc. make up a batch of water and any type of water thickener (flour is what i have used) and get some pasty gew and some runny stuff prepared. die it red, and get the color close to blood. go out in the woods and have a friend lay out a trailx amount of yards with a white flag, prize, or what ever you feel like at the end of it and practice to see if you can find it. We spend a lot of time "scouting" with our eyes in the woods and with our bino's to help us see those big bucks standing still behind shrubs at 200 yards, well you also need to train your eyes and practice tracking blood as well.
09-08-2008, 08:20 AM
#49
Boone & Crockett
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location:
Posts: 11,472
RE: Recovery, What To Do After the Shot.
Unless you have resorted to a last ditch effort "Body Search" where you can use all the manpower you can get, resist the urge to bring everyone and their grandmother in with you to track your animal!
Tracking is best done IMO with 2 people who know what the heck they are doing. 3 or more people does nothing on a bloodtrail but get people in a rush, off the trail and sign possibly mixed up, disturbed or lost entirely.
Call that one other guy you can count on to go slow and work with you as a teammate on the trail andTHEN call everyone else after you've either found him, or exhausted every effort to find the animal yourself and you need to grid search.
Tracking is best done IMO with 2 people who know what the heck they are doing. 3 or more people does nothing on a bloodtrail but get people in a rush, off the trail and sign possibly mixed up, disturbed or lost entirely.
Call that one other guy you can count on to go slow and work with you as a teammate on the trail andTHEN call everyone else after you've either found him, or exhausted every effort to find the animal yourself and you need to grid search.
