Happend to me thi syear on a doe. I shot her, and she ducked at 18 yards. I hit her a little high. I' m almost positive I clipped a lung. Trailed spotty blood for 3.5 hours and over 400 yards. Then she hit a corn field and I could' nt find anything. I was very upset!!!!!!!

Fortunately, she lived. I got her on my cam trakker two weeks later. I' m sure it was her. It' s very clear the cut that was on her back. Good thing.


j

It' s happened to me three times in my hunting lifetime. Once earlier this year on an eight-point that I hit too far back. It left the property I was hunting and I was unable to retrieve it until the next day in 70 degree weather. It had already started decomposing and was partially eaten (coyotes?).

The other two were when I was much younger. One was a 7-pointer that I hit high in the shoulder and could see the arrow sticking halfway out as it bolted away. We found the arrow (no broadhead) bent up about 100 yards away with a small pool of blood. Two years later my brother saw an 11-pointer that had an ugly scar on the same shoulder from the same stand. I make myself feel better by believing it was the same deer.

I hit a 6-pointer behind the ribcage that was quartering away very sharply. I thought this was a good shot. It left a red carpet through over two hundered yards of woods that led to a huge pool of blood. There was no bloodtrail leading away in any direction. We had given it 45 minutes before taking up the trail. I can only assume that another hunter grabbed it a ran. It would' ve been the largest I' ve ever harvested (in terms of mass and tine length).

It' s not a good feeling at all. I think the reason we all feel so bad about it is because of our respect and love for the whitetails we pursue. Not that we' d feel any better if it was different animal.

come on guys 11 posts out of 120 people? kinda wierd i dunno but thanx for letting me know i appriciate it

I have lost a few, but not any in the past 3 years though

It' s happened to me once, right after I started bowhunting, in 1987. I almost gave up bowhunting because of it. Tracked that deer all day, over a mile thru peoples yards, etc. Never could get close enough to finish him off, and he showed no real signs of slowing down.

Once in seventeen years. Made a bad shot on a doe when I was around 14 years old. Using a .243 and the shot hit her leg and I can only guess it didn' t enter the body cavity. Never found it.

one time for me

I lost what would be my first bow kill this year. My friend hunted the same stand and saw the deer limping in with a scab directly behind her shoulder two weeks later. I went ahead and got rid of the mechanicals afetr that one. I am not saying they dont work because that isnt true, but it didnt for me that day.

It happened to me last year. It would have been my first deer - a beauty 10pt, broadside at 15yrds. I thought I hit him very good - gave him 2 hours to die before looking, then tracked him for 3 days. Never found him.

I learned a valuable lesson about perfect shot placement that day that I will never forget!

In 23 years I lost 2 not something I am proud of.