Hit a Buck.
 

I hit a nice 8 point tonight, at first i thought i may have shot over his back but when i recovered my arrow there was hair, meat, and a minimal amount of blood. The shot was perfect for left and right, but like i said it was high. I watched the deer run off for about 150 yards, his tail was down the whole time. He was running hard, but he was crashing into where ever he could go. I've seen deer do this that are about die that just go where ever they can. My question is do you think the shot could be fatal or not ? I really don't have a good feeling about it, I just got out of the area and am going to go look first thing in the morning. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

RE: Hit a Buck.
 

I forgot to mention that i know i didn't just graze his back because there is blood on all 3 flechings. When i say blood i mean just a little bit.

RE: Hit a Buck.
 

Its good you backed out. You'll know more tomorrow when you pick up the blood trail. Might be a meat shot from above the spine. The deer should live if that is the case. Good luck and keep us posted.

RE: Hit a Buck.
 

I bet if you get out there early tomorrow morning and resume your search you will find him. Sometimes even a good hit will not produce huge amounts of blood. The thing that makes me think you have a good chance to find him is the fact you said he was crashing into things and running hard. sounds like a death run to me.
Good luck

RE: Hit a Buck.
 

good luck on the search ; above all don't give up till you are sure he is OK.my wife made a shot like that last year,she hit just below the spine.we waite and I took my blood dog and trasiled him for amost 2 mile befor I gave up.at the last I was finding just a drop of blood every 50 to 100 yards.we looked for a couple of days and never did see any buzzards in the area where we last left him.[&o]
I beleve he made it.

RE: Hit a Buck.
 

I agree with Deer902. You did the right thing not to push that deer. Look for him in the morning. It's hard to say how well you hit him. There have been times I thought I made marginal shots but found the deer within 50-60yds, it hard to say. Good luck and hopefully you'll find him.

RE: Hit a Buck.
 

Good move backing out. Now you just need to good tracking execution. If he's not dead by morning, you probably won't find him. By not pushing he'll bed down and bleed to not far away!

good Luck in the morning!

RE: Hit a Buck.
 

Ditto - very good move on your part. I'd check hard for more sign in the morning. From the sounds of the evidence on your arrow, it may have zipped through the dreaded no-go zone. That's the evil little space between the spine and the upper most section of the rib cage that doesn't lead into the chest cavity. If that's the case, it's zipped through the loin and is not likely to be a fatal hit. Sadly, I have done this and was unable to recover the animal. The good news is that the deer will survive with little complications, if any at all. Good luck, I do hope you get 'em!

RE: Hit a Buck.
 

I am sure that you will find him in the morning don't forget to post pics,and congrats on the hunt

RE: Hit a Buck.
 

Hope you find him, just remember it may take a little while for you to pick up a blood trail b/c the hit was so high.

RE: Hit a Buck.
 

Good luck finding him

RE: Hit a Buck.
 

Well ???????????????

RE: Hit a Buck.
 

Did you find him yet????????

RE: Hit a Buck.
 

How "high" is high? Over the spine or under. Over the spine, I doubt at all if you will find him, and I doubt if the shot will be fatal, unless infection gets in. Keep hunting the area hard though, you might be able to get another shot at him. If it went under thoug, chances are that it will be fatal.

RE: Hit a Buck.
 

There is definately a consesus about backing out. When in doubt you did the right thing. Sooooo, what happened? Did you find him?

RE: Hit a Buck.
 

Uh-oh Bobco a consenus has been reached.. Guess your gonzo

RE: Hit a Buck.
 

It sounds like you hit muscle. However, even a shot that does not hit heart, lungs or liver can still hit a major blood vessel. By backing out, the deer laid down close by. He either bled out, or the wound stopped bleeding. Unless there are predators around, he's either dead close by or he will recover.

RE: Hit a Buck.
 

:D:D:D


Actually, if it was a muscle wound, the best thing to do is get on it.

RE: Hit a Buck.
 

Bob, if it was a muscle hit and you "get on it"... you'll run that deer into the next county, if not the next state. Unless of course I'm misunderstanding your meaning of "get on it". Like Barnes, the only shred of hope when a shot goes under the spine and fails to enter the chest is nicking a vessel. You simply will not recover a deer from a meat only hit in that region.

Now, I guess there is a slight chance you'd get 'em... so long as you pushed him toward traffic... he may run out in front of a bus. Hey, where's Cardeer when you need 'em. [&:];)

RE: Hit a Buck.
 

That may be true. But, it is also not-fatal unless the deer bleeds out.

Deer beding and resting up = coagulation = less blood loss.

RE: Hit a Buck.
 

This is very true. However, if the wound is minor enough that resting will prevent the deer from bleeding out, this deer will be able to cover a lot of territory if pushed. It may also leave a very spotty blood trail. I would get on it with a rifle, but not a bow. I would let him bed down and hopefully bleed out. If he’s able to run, you’ll chase all over the country side before he expires or lets you within bow range. These are very tough decisions and it really depends on where he’s hit. I’ve found deer where I was 100% sure I hit it one place and the hole was somewhere completely different. A muscle wound is a tough one for a bow hunter. If you hit a major vessel, he will bleed out in time. If not, he’s probably going to recover.

RE: Hit a Buck.
 

IME if it's a non lethal hit no matter how far you push them they won't bleed out. It may be possible but I've never seen it happen.

If you're unsure of where you hit the animal IMO it's best to back out. If you caught a liver the last thing you want to do is push the animal.

Bobco, I respect your opinion. You're not gonzo you';ve just got a diffrent perspective then I;)

RE: Hit a Buck.
 

Barnes, I'm confused with your post. And I'd like to converse a bit more.

Why? Do deer bleed better with bullet?



So what?

You'd rather hope then go after him? You already stated that:

Have you actually ever seen the capibilities of a wild animals ability to form blood coagulations? It is nothing like a human. I work with a tracking dog and as such have to keep a fresh inventory of blood for training purposes. The capilitiy is amazing, I can gather up two quarts of fresh blood and will not make it back to the house within an hour and the entire batch is totally coagulated (I have to break it down with a blender when I get back home). What I am saying is that you would be surpised what type of wound can coagulate. It doesn't have to be minor.

RE: Hit a Buck.
 

I'm in consensus with ya Adams!!!!:):):)

RE: Hit a Buck.
 

It’s not that they bleed more with a bullet (although a mushroomed bullet traveling at 3000fps can cause quite a wound channel). The reason I say get on it with the rifle is because you have a better chance of ending the game with the rifle. If you kick the deer up, you can take a running shot with the rifle and put it down (not with a bow). If you see it 50 or more yards away, you can put a bullet in the vitals without trying to walk up on it. You just have more possibilities with a rifle.

RE: Hit a Buck.
 

Did you find it?

RE: Hit a Buck.
 

What's the word? Did you find it?

Everyone always posts for assistance but seldom to I see the circle closed. We're all pulling for you and want to know what happened.

This is like watching a movie and not being able to see the end. :)