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What Happened?

Old 12-16-2008, 11:14 AM
  #1  
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Default What Happened?

Well guys ,I lost a nice buckthis last weekend. This is the first deer I've ever lost and it really bothers me. I've spent the last couple of days and nights trying to figure out what happened to prevent it from happening again. Here's the story.

Deer comes out about 35yds from my stand. I'm about 15 feet up. I range him and he's now about 30yds walking toward me. At about 25-28yds he turns left giving me a almost completly broadside shot in a narrow shooting lane so I take the shot. Now I can keep most arrows in a 4" circle at 40yds so please don't flame me. Arrow hits low, about what I would say was heart level but a little further back.

Penetration was only about 6" judging from the recovered broken arrow (broadhead end not recovered). I was shooting a trophy ridge undertaker with an arrow weight of 342gr out of my Guardian@ 61lbs. Earlier in the season I shot another buck at 20yds or so and had complete pass through with the arrow stuck in the ground about 6 inches. Iwatch him run off with the arrow sticking out so I know from the stand, no pass through. I decide to quietly come down and return later to track.

I pickup the blood trail which is a decent amount of bright red blood after a hour and half wait. I track him to were I saw him last and see where he had laid down but I guess I bumped him even after the 1 1/2 hour wait. At this point I really bummed so I back out and return the next morning just before daylight as the temps are forcast to rise into the mid 60's. Pick up the trail and track it for an additional couple of hundred yards while the blood gets less and less until I find just one drop.

At this point I start a grid search for the next 4-5 hours. Can't find him. Now I'm really bummed, so I go home, get the toy poodle and try to track the deer again. Hey, I deperate at this point. She helped but when the blood ran out, she was lost as well. At this point I get on my blackberry and find a blood tracker. He's willing to come help but get this, on Louisiana WMAs, there not allowed. At dark on the day after the shot, I finally gave up the search. On the way out I ran into a game warden. (Had tried to get in touch with one all afternoonto get permission to use tracker but couldn't locate one and state communications wouldn't give out their phone number).He's says he and most others would just turn their heads if dog was on leash and no weapons were with you. Never did find the deer, can't figure out why penetration was so poor.

Oh, arrow had no fat or gut evidence on the recovered portion. Is it possible to slip and arrow between the heart and gut and the deer go this far? As low as the shot was I wouldn't think I hit liver. Maybe just nicked a lung? Broadhead maybe didn't open? What do ya'll think? I ordered some Slick Tricksyesterday from Dan just in case that was the problem. What do ya'll think? Sorry for the long post.
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Old 12-16-2008, 11:20 AM
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Default RE: What Happened?

I think you should read this a couple of times:

http://www.huntingnet.com/forum/tm.aspx?m=2987754

Then make sure you did everything listed in that post. If you haven't go back and see if you can't get back on the buck.

As far as the shot, if it was low and a little back you may have just passed through the brisket creatinga superficial wound that will not be fatal. If you caught lung that deer could go a long way before expiring, liver too.

Good luck.
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Old 12-16-2008, 11:31 AM
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Default RE: What Happened?

You mention a "narrow shooting lane" that you shot through. Is it at all possible you may have nipped a small branch that you didn't notice? This could explain you not getting a pass through considering where you describe him being hit. The area you think you hit (how you described it) should have resulted in some kind of a pass through I would think.
I can't imagine anything in that part of a deer's body (low and back from the heart)that would have stopped an arrow from passing through.
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Old 12-16-2008, 11:43 AM
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I say narrow but it was probably 4 foot wide. Arrow appeared to fly true. That's what's so strange. Only thing I can think of is I hit a rib very squarely or maybe the head didn't open.And I've read the thread on deer recovery several times prior to this and studied the diagrams.
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Old 12-16-2008, 11:48 AM
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Oh, I didn't realize that the head you were using was a mechanical.[:@]
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Old 12-16-2008, 11:55 AM
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Default RE: What Happened?

From your description it sounds like a one-lung shotto me. Bumping a one-lunged deer significantly reduces the chances of recovery as once they have layed up for a bit they often begin to clot up and the blood trail diminishes just as you described.
A bow shot deer often has no idea what just hurt him and isn't all that alarmed and simply beds up, but once you bump him by tracking too early he quickly realizes it was a predator that caused him harm and will run as far as his stamina will take him to escape you. The chance of recovery now is dependent on the amount of blood loss before he was bumped. You need to expand your grid much, muchfarther on a one-lung deer.
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Old 12-16-2008, 12:02 PM
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Oh, I didn't realize that the head you were using was a mechanical.[:@]
Just disregard this. If your shot was where you say....this would have NO bearing on your outcome.
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Old 12-16-2008, 12:04 PM
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Default RE: What Happened?

ORIGINAL: y2khog

Well guys ,I lost a nice buckthis last weekend. This is the first deer I've ever lost and it really bothers me. I've spent the last couple of days and nights trying to figure out what happened to prevent it from happening again. Here's the story.

Deer comes out about 35yds from my stand. I'm about 15 feet up. I range him and he's now about 30yds walking toward me. At about 25-28yds he turns left giving me a almost completly broadside shot in a narrow shooting lane so I take the shot. Now I can keep most arrows in a 4" circle at 40yds so please don't flame me. Arrow hits low, about what I would say was heart level but a little further back.

Penetration was only about 6" judging from the recovered broken arrow (broadhead end not recovered). I was shooting a trophy ridge undertaker with an arrow weight of 342gr out of my Guardian@ 61lbs. Earlier in the season I shot another buck at 20yds or so and had complete pass through with the arrow stuck in the ground about 6 inches. Iwatch him run off with the arrow sticking out so I know from the stand, no pass through. I decide to quietly come down and return later to track.

I pickup the blood trail which is a decent amount of bright red blood after a hour and half wait. I track him to were I saw him last and see where he had laid down but I guess I bumped him even after the 1 1/2 hour wait. At this point I really bummed so I back out and return the next morning just before daylight as the temps are forcast to rise into the mid 60's. Pick up the trail and track it for an additional couple of hundred yards while the blood gets less and less until I find just one drop.

At this point I start a grid search for the next 4-5 hours. Can't find him. Now I'm really bummed, so I go home, get the toy poodle and try to track the deer again. Hey, I deperate at this point. She helped but when the blood ran out, she was lost as well. At this point I get on my blackberry and find a blood tracker. He's willing to come help but get this, on Louisiana WMAs, there not allowed. At dark on the day after the shot, I finally gave up the search. On the way out I ran into a game warden. (Had tried to get in touch with one all afternoonto get permission to use tracker but couldn't locate one and state communications wouldn't give out their phone number).He's says he and most others would just turn their heads if dog was on leash and no weapons were with you. Never did find the deer, can't figure out why penetration was so poor.

Oh, arrow had no fat or gut evidence on the recovered portion. Is it possible to slip and arrow between the heart and gut and the deer go this far? As low as the shot was I wouldn't think I hit liver. Maybe just nicked a lung? Broadhead maybe didn't open? What do ya'll think? I ordered some Slick Tricksyesterday from Dan just in case that was the problem. What do ya'll think? Sorry for the long post.
I'd tend to agree with IAhuntr, but if that arrow snapped off, I also have another theory. How LOW is low??? If you hit REAL low, you may have stuck that arrow in the brisket, and sternum, in which case you'd likely have a pretty decent blood trail being where the wound is, but you may not necessarily have a deer at the end of it. If you hit the deer LOW, and the arrow snapped off, and it wasn't up in tight on the leg, you more than likely got a little sternum/brisket action, which may or may not have been fatal depending on the angle. Considering the shot distance and the height you were, I'm betting you'll likely see him alive again, before you see him dead. IT HAPPENS, whether we like it or not, it does happen, and we have to live with it, learn from whatever mistake we made, and drive on. I'm sure that bucks not sitting in his bed right now, mid-afternoon thinking to himself, "How stupid could I have been walking in front of that tree with that 'thick' spot on it??? I should've known it was a 'hunter.'"

And as much as I hate to do it, I agree with Jeff, that shot shouldn't have been affected by using a mechanical, and a mechanical would more than likely pass straight through with ease vs. not if it didn't open!!!
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Old 12-16-2008, 12:17 PM
  #9  
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Default RE: What Happened?

[quote]ORIGINAL: GMMAT

Oh, I didn't realize that the head you were using was a mechanical.[:@]
Just disregard this. If your shot was where you say....this would have NO bearing on your outcome.
[/quote

Just disregard this. If your shot was where you stated a COT head would have almost certainly passed thru. Probably with a different outcome.
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Old 12-16-2008, 12:23 PM
  #10  
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Chris I'm not trying to be a smartass. What I'm saying is....it's gonna get to be a REALLY tiresome mantra if EVERY time someone loses a deer......the COC fixed crowd (which I'm getting ready to be a part of) blames it on the mechanical BH.

I just didn't feel like it was the time or the place for that kind of statement....and on a broadside hit, behind the shoulder......hell it should make NO difference what tye head you have.

Just wasn't the time nor the place for that.
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