fishinty

All of the bama deer I shot dropped I shoot a 25-06 with a 117 grain federal premium vital shok.

bigbulls

I aim for the heart and lungs regardless of the angle of the animal. Be it through the liver first, the shoulder first, the briskit first, or on a perfectly broadside shot right behind the shoulder.

mike300wm

heart/lung shots here,have taken spine shots but it ruins too much meat & more room for bullet error with a middle of the body shot,high shoulder shots are made for tv ,mike300wm

crokit

Same round, same size, same results.

Valentine

The heart/lung area was recommended by experts, because it is a big target that fits the average hunter, his knowledge and his accuracy.

It doesn't cover a hunter who spends a lot of time at a range, has studied deer anatomies, and even has done necropsies on the shot deer.

How does one recommend a shot that severs the spinal column of the deer; the hunter who not only shoots accurately, but knows where to shoot on the deer neck?

SchuLace

I aim just behind the shoulder. This year I shot my deer through the eye and it dropped in its tracks. I got extremely lucky with that shot.

swboyz

I am a neck shooter. someone on here put that people that dont shoot the vitals cant track, well my rebuttle to that is people who shoot vitals arent skilled enough to shoot the neck which is a much smaller target. neck shots are simple, either you hit them and they drop right there or you miss and they run off, no second guessing whether you hit it or not. also we shoot .223 & .22-250's with a 50gr bullet so precision is critical. we live in south texas and the brush is too thick, if they run off you cant get in there to them without having to go to the hospital.

dkhamner

not just for TV.

blacktail4ever

I shot a doe this year on my extra tag with a scarred over bullet hole in the neck and she was fine I don't reccomend this for a clean kill shot. a lung shot will not ruin meat spine shots shoulder shot both lose alot of meat what a waste of game

huntrfishr

It is easy to say aim for the vitals and leave it at that.
However recently I have practiced aiming at a specific area with reference to the front legs of the deer.
When the deer is facing me, 2 front legs are visible and I aim right in between them at the body cavity targeting the heart. This will usually take out the heart, lungs or both.
When deer is perfectly broadside that all I can see is one front leg, I follow that leg up and aim midsection of the body targeting the vena cava and arteries(large vessels of the heart) where it joins the blood vessels to the lungs. Any small mistake will take out either the lungs or the heart, a right on shot will severe both.
When deer is going away from me quartering, that I can see 2 front legs from behind,again I aim midsection on the body in between and just above the 2 front legs.This will hit the heart if I shoot a little bit low or the lungs if high or severe both organs hitting the connecting bloods vessels if right on.
If the deer is going away with only the hind legs visible I aim for the back of the neck if using a gun but will PASS the shot if using archery equipment.
I find using the 2 front legs as a reference aiming point to be very useful and have great success with it. I also find it to be very consistent with not spoiling meat for the freezer.