martinman528

Well, as of last night, my cousin has now missed two nice bucks in 2 weekends of hunting. Last year he killed his first deer, but it wasn't exactly a good shot, hitting it about 8 inches in front of the tail, but got the spine. Anyway, my question is, what advice could I give him to help calm down. I bowhunt and I know to keep controlled breathing through the shot, is that the same for rifle hunting, or should he hold his breath? Maybe chew gum, lol I am at a loss here,but Idon't want him wounding deer, for the deers sake and his.

And also, he said this deer jumped, fell over, then got up and ran after the shot. When he got to the place the deer was when he shot it, the deer blew from about 30 yards up in the woods, as it got up and ran off. He checked the "bedding" spot of the buck and said no blood was anywhere to be found, and they scoured the woods until dark, about 2 1/2-3 hours. What does that sound like to you? I think he hit it. Thanks in advance for all the advice

jonesato

My advice for helping him calm down is to not put up the gun immediately and take some deep breaths. I tend to get excited when seeing any deer (doe or buck) so I just take it easy and breathe deeply and gain my composure.

On the second, it definitely sounds like your cousin hit the deer. If it fell where he shot it and also laid down 30 yards from where he shot, it's probably in the woods somewhere. He might have gut shot it and it hasn't started bleeding out yet but is hurt.

AP deer hunter

I made a bad shot yesterday, the doe started to bolt as I shot so It caught her in the back right hip.[:@]Maybe his gun is off? He ought to go someplace where can shoot so he can be confident. Make sure once you know the buck is a shooter, don't look at the antlers anymore, just concentrate on your target.When I go to shoot once I got the gun on target I take a deep breath, hold it, then fire. Also make sure he's not jerking when he shoots butwatchesthe target through the shot. For the deer he shot make sure you get down and look for tiny droplets of blood. My dad and I followed a trail like this for hours yesterday. Sorry for the long post but it is no fun for the hunter or the hunted to have bad shot/recovery made. Good luck!!

Rebel Hog

Let's see, he shot at the tail and hit 8ins in front!

o2bebowhunting

get him a set of shooting sticks or trim a branch to hold the gun steady.

stubblejumper

How much shooting practise does he do before hunting season?Nothing improves ones shooting more than practise from actual field positions.Even practising with a 22 or air rifle will help a great deal.

mauser06

i agree...sounds like he needs to hit the range......if he shots groups on the bullseye at the range then he needs to calm down....sounds like he sees a deer pulls up and cracks one off......tell him not to rush it...and goto the range and practice.......i practice alot with my deer rifles.....long range groundhog shooting all summer plus pop cans ect when the groundhogs arent coming out makes shooting deer simple........

zekeskar

Your cousin needs to practice several boxes of shells at the range not using the bench - mimicking actual hunting positions. He needs to practice as if he's actually shooting at a deer - every thing that we do when we draw down on a deer that appears out of the brush. See the deer. Quickly and quietly flip the scope covers if needed. Slowly but surely get a good position and rest on whatever is available. Acquire the target - the RIGHT target!!! (not just getting on brown!). Flip the safety. Exhale, squeeze. He needs to practice this slowly and carefully in a variety of positions and gradually speed up the sequence when he can do it accurately. In otherwords, he should go through the routine and fire as quickly as he can, but only as quickly as he can do it smoothly, quietly, and ACCURATELY.

If need-be he should use life like targets.

Anything that makes this all routine and almost without thought - but at the same time, a good aim and accurate shot.

Sounds like he's just not practiced and gets flustered.

AS for loosing the deer- he also needs to learn the importance of letting a deer be after the shot. At least 1/2 hour for a good clean chest hit. At least an hour if not two for a leg shot like his. A leg will bleed out and fairly quickly if the femoral artery is hit, but they will also hang in there and run for quite a while afterwards if pushed, but if not pushed will often lay down after just a minute of running or trotting.

Criggster

You didn't mention the caliber of gun he is shooting. Is he overgunned, or does he have a flinch? If not he needs to practice shooting at lifesize paper deer targets in the off season. This will improve his accuracy and help him concentrate on the vitals.

I used to have the same problem with buck fever. After killing a few deer it has really slowed down a lot. Also, I used to put the scope on every deer that came into range and pretend to shoot it. I made absolutely sure the safety was on, and my finger was away from the trigger. This helped greatly.

TurkeyT

some practice would be good for him also sounds likes he's shooting at the deer and not picking out a spot to shoot.