Tracking Deer
 

Has anyone kept track of the deer's position when recovered. About 60% of the deer we recover are always facing the way they came from, some are in a bedded position , some look like they died mid-stride ect.

RE: Tracking Deer
 

I shot a doe this last season that ran into the swamp and when i found her, she was facing the way she came from.

RE: Tracking Deer
 

Come to think of yes. Most of the animals I've tracked that are harvested by bow especially are facing the way they came from. Interesting.

RE: Tracking Deer
 

most of them are facin the way they came from but some dont i never really thought about it do i will keep track of it now

RE: Tracking Deer
 

I agree, most of the deer run the direction they came from before they was shot. My guess is because they knew that route was safe to begin with. Just my opinion.

RE: Tracking Deer
 

I never really paid attention to it until now, so now you are gonna make me think.....(pause to think)... Most of the deer I've killed either died in mid-stride, or were stopping to catch their breath (lung shots) and ended up dying faceing away from me.

I can only think of two instances when the deer actually bedded down. Both times they bedded down facing the way they came from as to be looking for pursueing danger. Those two instances were the only two bucks I've ever shot and neither shot placement was perfect. I believe I must have hit them hard enough that they needed to bed, but not hard enough that they died immediatly. One buck traveled 175 yds and the other 160.

So my conclusion from my results, I've noticed a trend that most of my deer died faceing away from me as though they were still fleeing. The only two instances where the result were different was when I made iffy shot placement and the deer had time to flee, stop and bed down.

Also, none of the deer I killed ran back the way they came from. All of them continued on the direction they were heading. Some might have been attempting the circle back, but they never made it.

I think I need to kill a few more deer to make sure there aren't any flaws in my conclusion;)

RE: Tracking Deer
 

Last year was my first time hunt, and when i shot a button buck( it was 50 yards away and the first deer i ever saw from a tree) i shot it rite in the heart with my 12 g and it ran 50 yards and droped dead int the direction it was going