Bigeasy08

Hey guys,
I got a chance at a nice mature deer last night, not the biggest in the woods but definitely an older deer. I was close to 30 feet up a tree due to lack of cover and had this deer walk out at 14 yards. I drew back and grunted and he stopped SLIGHTLY quartering away with his left leg forward. I aimed to have the entrance a little high due to the shot angle and released. One blade on my slick trick drilled a bone (I guess the shoulder) but I watched my arrow hit right behind. I admit the shot was a little far forward.
I got to trailing the deer and found hardly any blood because I didn't get a pass through. Finally found my arrow almost 200 yards from the shot. Twenty yards later the blood stopped. When I found my arrow, I could tell the deer had stopped and probably pulled it out and started walking. He definitely did the typical act of circling back to where he came from, but after 240+ yards, I simply couldn't follow his trail anymore.
My only explanation is that the arrow went it, was maybe deflected or the angle was extreme, and it penetrated right under the front of his lungs. I found a piece of cartilage about the size of my thumb next to the arrow that looks like it came from the sternum. I have a hard time believing an arrow can penetrate behind the shoulder, even at that angle, and not at least get something vital to the deer...but I know it happens. I just wish I knew if he was dead or alive.
I just want some opinions or experiences. I know they can go a long way on one lung, but there was NO sign that this deer bedded down for over 200 yards. I waited in my tree for 45 minutes and slipped out of the woods. We came back 3 hours later to look. Hardly any blood. It was all straight red and the entrance was high due to the angle with no exit so I know he did not bleed much. I grid searched today, but there are simply too much woods and I have no idea how far he could have made it. This is the first deer I've lost and I could never explain this feeling to anyone. It's still a little hot down here, so I am going to keep an eye out for buzzards...but I just feel defeated right now. I'm just going to have to get back in the tree and learn from experiences. Thanks for any input

halfbakedi420

sounds like a dead deer in the woods to me...everyone fuggs up, lesson learned..might i suggest maybe some target practice from said location before ya go practicing on anymore live game? time to call in a dog already?

Bigeasy08

I understand what you're saying but I have shot 3 deer from >15 yards and more than 26 feet up and never had an issue...i don't know why this one was other than just a simple bad shot

IOWABUCKHUNTR

I would do concentric circles around your last set of blood and arrow... If you did hit him fatally as suspected he is dead somewhere, prolly not to far either. Personally after not seeing lung blood on the arrow I would have backed out for a bit longer, but it sounds like you would have no doubt caught at least one lung with the scenario you presented

Bigeasy08

I agree completely that I should have backed out now. This is my first experience where I may have only gotten one lung, and I should have thought it through better but sadly I assumed he would expire sooner. Now when I think about it...even humans can survive a long time with one lung

Bigeasy08

I think what I am trying to get at is this:

Is it possible, or what are the chances, for my arrow to hit the deer that is mostly broadside, but slightly quartering away, forward and behind/into the shoulder from a 45 degree angle vertical shot (the angle my arrow traveled) with a 4 blade slick trick broadhead and not hit anything vital that would kill the deer?

It just seems weird to me that I found my arrow and immediately after I found it, the blood started looking like he began walking and stopped running. This makes me think he pulled the arrow out himself which just seems like a bad sign to me if he is that conscious enough especially after 200+ yards of hauling the mail wide open...

*twodogs*

You didn't mention if any blood was on the arrow and if so, how far up the shaft? How much of the arrow was sticking out of the deer after the shot? These are key pieces of info that will tell you about depth of penetration. I think you are right, sounds like you hit him in the upper part of the shoulder, the question is how far in did that arrow go based on what you saw after the shot and the blood on the arrow. This should give you a good idea if he is dead or not.

Start tracking in circles from the point where you found the arrow. Bring toilet paper and mark your trail as you move outward. I have had several one lung shots before and I have always recovered the deer and each time, my arrow was broke off but never found in one piece unless it passed through.

halfbakedi420

I would just wait for night time and go back with a blood lite

Bigeasy08

The arrow penetrated roughly 10-12 inches and had what looked to be arterial blood, however some of what I found on the ground looks slightly frothy, but i couldn't really tell because there was such little of it. I could tell that the arrow barely poked out the other side and the cartilage i found suggests that the broadhead stopped around the brisket/sternum before it was pulled out.

UncleNorby

I know you said there was not a lot of cover, but I think 30 feet (if that's really the actual height) is generally too high. It can lead to more "one-lungers" than you want. A deer hit high will often not leave much sign, even after quite distance. Don't let lack of blood on the ground make you think he's not dead. You say the woods are big, but ask yourself where an injured deer would go. Thicker than average areas, blowdowns, sources of water, ravines, etc. Also, do not overlook a small patch of cover in an otherwise open area. I have found deer in very small clumps of brush/weeds out in open fields. Deer like these because they can see something approaching from any direction. Keep at it.