2 Wounded Deer
 

Nope, not by me. My best friend has wounded two doe this year. The first doe he shot was quartering away slightly. He shot and said that his arrow hit a twig and went down low. Well, we found brisket hair at the shot, and the blood trail was pathetic. There was a drop about half the size of a dime every 10-15 feet, and that was when the trail was good. We tracked the deer for over 350 yards until it came to a thicket with a open field on the opposite side. The blood stopped there and we couldn' t pick it up again. We had already spent about 5 hours tracking it that 350 yards (thats how bad the blood trail was). Well, the next morning my best friend was back there looking. He got there at 7:00a.m. and didn' t leave the woods till dark. He spent a few hours in the morning looking for anymore blood, but couldn' t find it, so, he searched every spot in the woods that a deer could go and never found it.

Well, he was BUMMED out about that as it was his first deer he ever lost. He has killed deer with his bow before, and this kid can shoot that thing INCREDIBLY well.

Well, last evening we were hunting in a bottom by my house. At 4:40 a doe came out of a thicket right in front of my friend. I was only 50 yards away so I was watching everything un-fold. The doe stopped at 17 yards broadside. My friend settled the pin right behind the shoulder and squeezed the trigger. As soon as he did, the deer ducked down and forward so the shot hit about 4" back and 3" high. I sat there listening as the doe went 20 yards and bedded down. She got back up and ran, smacked the arrow off a tree (wasn' t a pass-thru), then kept running. I heard what sounded like her falling for good about 85 yards from where she was shot. Well, we came back to my house, collected our thoughts, got the flashlights and waited. We gave her about an hour and fifteen minutes before tracking. Well the blood trail didn' t start for a good while, but, when we picked it up, we were getting different sign from the blood. There would be a spot of blood about the size of a cigarette pack which would be bright red with a few bubbles in it, but, then there would be about 10 feet of nothing and the next spot would be a small drop of very watery blood. Well, the trail did this for awhile, and finally it just turned into small bright drops of blood every 15 feet or so. By now, we are getting to where I heard her crash, but, there is no deer. So, we pack out and let it alone for another hour and a half then head back in. Well, the blood trail starts getting bad. The drops of blood kept getting smaller and smaller, and the distance between them kept growing and growing. Well, it is late and we have now covered close to 250 yards. Well, I look up and see a posted sign. We are now at the edge of the property. There was about 10 yards of posted woods in front of us and the rest was a HUGE cut corn-field that was posted. Well, we came back and called up the Game Commission. Well, they couldn' t escourt us on the property because of the time and because we didn' t know for sure that the deer was dead on the property. Well, we went back and got my spotlight and spotted that field from the road. We were glassing around for probablly 30 minutes and decided that the deer wasn' t dead in the field so, we went to the opposite side of that field where the property isn' t posted (another farmer owns it and he gave us permission to hunt it). Well, we looked all around his property and never found the deer. I new the shot was back and high but I thought that I head the deer go down.

Well, he is BUMMED out BIG time and he is really talking about giving up archery. We have put in so much time looking for each of these deer that it wasn' t funny. I still have thorns all in my hand from crawling on my hands and knees through green briar thickets.

A few things that are odd about last night is that I figured he would have got a pass through. He is shooting a BowTech Extreme VFT at 63# (maxed out) and 28" draw. He is shooting 27-1/2" Easton Carbon Epics tipped with 100 grain N.A.P. Thunderheads! His bow is shooting right around 270 f.p.s. with this set-up and he is getting plenty of KE. These second odd this is that I thought that the deer had crashed, I heard it plain as day, and I never heard another sound after that. Finally, the deer headed towards and open field (which was up-hill) instead of staying in the bottom, and following the creek bed which is very thick with brush.

I know that you guys will probablly start criticizing our tracking and such, but, I can guarentee you that we put in as much effort as we possibly could have. He feels absolutely terrible about this and like I said, it has him questioning wether or not he should archery hunt anymore. Like I said, he has several other deer under his belt with his bow. A few years ago he shot a nice 8 point on the last day of late season archery in Pennsylvania (yes, that is a RARE occurance). He shot that buck at 25 yards in 5 degree temps and got a perfect heart shot.

I just wanted to post this in order to let everyone know that things can happen to you that you don' t expect and don' t want. You can do your hardest at making a good shot and tracking, but it just isn' t hard enough. You can then either give up on archery and walk away, or you can jump back on the saddle.

I have been telling my friend that he needs to take a litle break from archery, maybe just hunt the last week. Clear his mind, clear all the doughts out, and come back when he is ready and confident.

RE: 2 Wounded Deer
 

Sorry to hear about your friends misfortune. Sounds like you guys did your best to recover the animals. I too would be upset if I were in his situation. If anything I hope he can take something positive from the situation.

RE: 2 Wounded Deer
 

On the second deer, more than likely, the reason your
friend' s arrow didn' t get a passthrough was because
it struck bone. My setup is very similar to your friend' s,
and it is not going to go through bone. Any chance
the arrow lodged in the offside hip or leg bone? Was
it a quartering shot? Sounds to me like this doe was
on edge, jumping the string like that.

Also, though unusual, I' ve had fatally hit deer run uphill
when it seemed that would be the last place they' d go.
If that doe traveled 250+ yds, pretty good chance
she' s going to survive.

I feel bad for your friend, but also for both deer. It' s
unfortunate that this has happened twice in the same
season. Nice to hear you two did everything you could
to recover each animal.

RE: 2 Wounded Deer
 

I too have lost a couple deer bowhunting over the years. It sounds like you did everything you could to find them. Tell tour friend to check all his his equipment and get shooting again . It' ll be the only way to forget about it . I beat myself up over it too but then I realized gun hunters lose their share also.

RE: 2 Wounded Deer
 

Sounds like his equipment is right and
the afore mentioned bone hit sounds
like what happened,keep hunting and
stay safe!!:)

RE: 2 Wounded Deer
 

The second doe was broadside. I am pretty sure that it didn' t hit anything but ribs. I am not sure if the deers movement could have caused the lack of penetration. The deer was moving down and forward as the arrow entered which could have caused a weird energy transfer.

He feels terrible about it and he hasn' t got much sleep over it lately. He has just been thinking about " What could I have done differently"

He has been shooting his bow regularly throughout the season and everything is still fine on it.

Tommorow we are going to take a little archery break and do some pheasent hunting. There were two dozen pheasents put in the goldenrod field beside my house and his uncles farm is packed full of pheasents.

RE: 2 Wounded Deer
 

Sorry to hear about the problems your friend is having. You guys really went the extra mile trying to recover those deer though.;)

I just had a similar experience with the penetration. A quartering away deer, hit with a Slick Trick tipped Terminator Select from a Bowtech Pro 38 DC. It was only a partial pass through. I did get an exit wound, but the last 9" of arrow was still in the deer when I dressed it out. I think she may have moved down some as the arrow was hitting her, but she really did not appear to react at all. My arrow did go through the shoulder blade on the way out though.

I had no blood at all to go on, even though the deer ended up going only 89-90 yards before piling up. Entrance and exit wounds were kind of high, but no blood at all, not even from the mouth an nose? Never saw that before this deer.

I agree that your friend should take a break. The Pheasants sound like a great idea. Be glad you still have some around (that aren' t the raggedy looking tame ones the State puts out on the game lands).

RE: 2 Wounded Deer
 

Sorry to hear of your friends luck. It is very unfortunate. However, I have been bowhunting with my brother for several years.

First let me say that I have been fortunate that I have not lost any deer after a bow shot. I have been VERY lucky in this. I shot a doe a couple of weeks ago, 20 yards, broadside. I got down, walked to the spot that I shot her and found real good bright bubbly blood. I' m thinking double lung. I had heard her go down. It was close to dark. So, I get out to the 4 wheeler and wait until dark, then gget my brother. I let him finish his hunt first. But, I didn' t find my arrow. I told him about it and I was pumped, thinking double lung, good blood, this would be a quick track. It was but not because of my shooting. I mean I Robin-hooded an arrow at 18 steps this summer while practicing. When we recovered the deer she had only gone 80 yds. My double lung shot? No. I hit no vitals. I had caught the artery that runs along the back bone and had broken her back. I was very LUCKY. If I had been an inch higher, she' d have dropped in her tracks. An inch lower, she' d still be alive. Half of the arrow was still in her. The other half had broken off - Easton Carbons, with 100 gr Thunderheads with NEW blades.

My first bow kill came 7 years after I started bow hunting. When I shot the doe was broadside at 11 yards. When the arrow hit her, she was quartering away and I hit so far back that the arrow went through the tenderloin. I caught a lung and she went down in less than 200 yds, but the tracking was hard with very little blood. The point is that deer can move very quickly and the point of impact of the arrow is not always where you think it was. My brother shot one a few weeks ago, when I asked where the point of impact was, he said the deer was quartering to him and the arrow went in just over the front shoulder in the back part of the neck. When I found the deer 500 yds later, the arrow had struck low in the back part of the stomach and came out in the rear leg. It was 40 yard shot and the deer moved before the arrow got there.

My brother shot one a few years ago and we had decent blood that trickled out. We trailed and tracked over 300 yds. Searched for the better part of two days. His arrow had broken off about 3 inches above the insert. He though he' d made a good shot. Guess what. The deer lived. He saw her a few weeks later, with a knot in that shoulder and limping. She survived. He had hit the front sholder and that dead stopped the arrow. He shots a PSE Stingray at around 295 fps with Easton A/C/C' s and 100 gr Vortex Mechanical broadheads. He double-lunged a spike that only went 70 yds last year, no blood, but deer fell dead.

Those broad heads leave holes that you can stick a fist through, but sometimes we don' t get the deer. And that is part of the challenge of Bow hunting. That is why we get a longer season than rifles. That is part of the thrill of it, having to know your limits and sometimes that is the defeat of it, that you can' t recover the animal. It sounds like you made an honest effort to recover the animal, but truth is, we don' t get them all. We all hate to lose a deer, whether it is a doe or a big buck, they are all valuable.

I hope that your friend comes to peace with this and that all is well. Good luck in the future.

RE: 2 Wounded Deer
 

Just goes to show ya that there are no gimmy shots in bow hunting..
I have said it before no one can predict the outcome of a shot. things can a do happen when shooting at live animals.
That' s why most bowhunters want to get really close to the target, as things are less likely to go wrong the closer you are... Good luck....

RE: 2 Wounded Deer
 

Why didn' t you try and get permission from the land owner that had his property posted?

RE: 2 Wounded Deer
 

I have to say it sounds like you all made evry effort except the one Charlie brought up, it may be worth a try, the worst that could happen is he would say no.

RE: 2 Wounded Deer
 

He' s proably related to the kid that shot the 12 pt.[&:]:D

RE: 2 Wounded Deer
 

I can say I' ve been lucky enough not to lose a deer while bow hunting but I lost a nice buck a few years back on opening day of firearm season. I hit him hard with a 10ga. slug and he dropped in his tracks. He laid there about 15 seconds kicking a little then sprang to his feet and was gone in two bounds. I was dumbfounded. It was fairly late in the afternoon so we gave him about 45min and started tracking. There was enough blood where I hit him that I was amazed he got up. Long story short. I spend 3 long days looking for that deer. I was pretty upset as that was the first deer I had ever lost. Sometimes no matter how bad you want it, it isn' t meant to be. You can' t just give up. Tell you friend that it happens to the best of us. If he' s tuned his bow and did everything possible to insure this wouldn' t happen then he can' t be faulted. It dosn' t make it any easier but this is a time for a bit of fortitude. He' ll be okay just get him back in the woods.

RE: 2 Wounded Deer
 

curious how the deer would' ve been able to move enough at 17 yards on an arrow going 270 fps. have your friend take a look at the bow and find a way to make it more quiet. the deer must' ve heard something that caused her to lerch forward.

RE: 2 Wounded Deer
 

Willie,

I watched a video in slow motion one day that had a deer at 20 yds and a bow shooting over 250fps. The deer was facing left when the arrow was released and was facing right before the arrow made impact.

I would not have believed it if I had not seen it. Deer can move way faster than the 300 fps that a bow can shoot.

RE: 2 Wounded Deer
 

This sounds as if the deer was gutshot and " exited" out the rear quarter. The watery blood would indicate rumen/intestinal fluid. The bright blood would indicate muscle. Probably getting bubbles from expelled air out of the digestive track.

Also assumed based on the " hit back and high" scenario. Assuming he was in a tree, smacking the rear quarter probably left the arrow in the deer with a high entrance wound. Unless you hit the dorsal aorta running along the spine, there will be little blood. But with the watery blood and a back hit, the deer is down & done, especially if your friend was shooting at a downward angle.

S&R

RE: 2 Wounded Deer
 

Hey guys,

We know his second doe is dead, and that is what is killing him. The doe had been a little jittery. We watched her get up out of her bed and start heading up a trail leading out the other side of the thicket. Well, something up there spooked her, she jumped up and turned around. She walked out to the shooting lane and looked more relaxed so he figured that it would be a good shot. She must not have been entirely relaxed, I' ll bet that is one reason why she ducked so much.

The landowner of the posted property is a HUGE HUGE HUGE anti-hunter. We have had problems with her in the past. Several years ago, we were hunting on the farmers property that allows us to hunt, and she saw my dad and I sitting on a powerline. Well, she decided to " take her dogs for a walk" through the woods. Well, she actually helped us. She jumped up a nice 8 point that came past and my dad shot it. Well, she heard the shot and came over onto the farmers property and started telling my dad that " he killed her deer" She said that it was illegal for him to have killed it because it had come from her property. Well, my dad laughed and told her that he would call the cops if she wanted to discuss it with them. Well, she finally left ticked off.

We had another experience where a guy hunting with us shot a deer on his property which is across the road from her field. The doe ran across the road and piled up in her field. Well, we had to call the Game Commission and they escourted him onto the field to get the deer. Well, she came out flipping and threatening all of us, but, she couldn' t do anything at all.

If we would have asked her, she would have said no, simple as that. People have had the same thing happen and she has refused them permission. The lady is a complete and total moron.