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-   -   Advice on shot placement. (https://www.huntingnet.com/forum/whitetail-deer-hunting/330050-advice-shot-placement.html)

buckhunter21 09-18-2010 06:40 PM
Advice on shot placement.
 
Question for everyone here. I shot a buck tonight and since it was so close to dark I backed out and am going to look in the morning. I am about 20 feet up and the deer was quartering slightly away at about 13 yards. I shoot a 3 blade rage. The shot looked to hit just behind the shoulder and a bit high....No full penetration. As soon as I hit him, he took off with his tail down and ran across the field (about 100 yards) into a pine stand. As he was running away I could see about half the arrow or maybe a little more sticking out of the entry side. As he entered the pine stand I may have heard him fall over but I'm not 100% sure.

Any help or advice would be great. Thanks!

sprintflyer 09-18-2010 06:54 PM
If you didn't hit shoulder bone it sounds like you got at least one lung and maybe two depending on how deep and how wide the deer is. I'm gona bet since you didn't push him you will find him in that pine thicket at first light. We want pics!

sprintflyer 09-18-2010 06:55 PM
BTW, tail down is a good sign.

thwackdaddi 09-18-2010 07:01 PM
Sounds fairly promising based on the info given. Good Luck in the morning.

Patrick Eubanks 09-18-2010 07:03 PM
I bet hes laying just inside the pines. Ive knocked two in the dirt this year so far with the rage heads. I am a believer thus far. Both of mine were within 100 yards of the shot. Good lluck tomorrow.

doramide7 09-18-2010 07:11 PM
Thanks for sharing. It's great

buckhunter21 09-18-2010 07:25 PM
Originally Posted by sprintflyer (Post 3684988)
If you didn't hit shoulder bone it sounds like you got at least one lung and maybe two depending on how deep and how wide the deer is. I'm gona bet since you didn't push him you will find him in that pine thicket at first light. We want pics!
What the chance of recovery with one lung hit, and how far will he go? Another thing, after giving him some time I did walk into the thicket HOPING I would find him since I thought I head him crash. I hope that doesn't end up hurting me in the long run, but I didn't hear anything get up and run off when I was walking through some of it and it was dead silent. No wind.

buckhunter21 09-18-2010 07:26 PM
Originally Posted by Patrick Eubanks (Post 3684995)
I bet hes laying just inside the pines. Ive knocked two in the dirt this year so far with the rage heads. I am a believer thus far. Both of mine were within 100 yards of the shot. Good lluck tomorrow.
I did walk around a little in the beginning of the pines to see if I could find him before deciding on backing out and trying in the morning. I didn't find him or any sign of blood and never heard anything get up.

Jeff Ovington 09-18-2010 07:43 PM
If it was a lung shot with no full penatration blood will be running up through his mouth and nose. Being dark it would be hard to find but
in light you will see it.

sprintflyer 09-18-2010 07:51 PM
No blood? Sometimes with a high hit you won't get much blood on the ground for several yards. Don't push him! Give it till morning. If you got one lung it most likley is fatal but not unheard of to go couple hundred yards. If you find blood it should be brite red and full of bubbles if it's a lung hit. Bubbles will be gone by morning and blood a little darker. Real dark and foul smelling is a gut hit but if it was quartering away and just behind the shoulder he's hit in the lung(s). Read the after the shot in Bowhunting forum if you haven't done so yet. Get ready for the longest sleepless night of your life. I had to back out once overnight but found him withing 75 yards of where I shot. Good luck and don't give up till you find him or are 101 percent sure it's a clean miss. Like I said, Dont push and he won't go far.

BarnesX.308 09-18-2010 08:04 PM
That deer is dead and was probably dead when you looked for it.

I'm all for waiting until the next morning. You're just stumbling around in the dark when you search that night. And, if you think the shot was questionable, you sure don't want to push it in the dark.

I know it's warm this time of year, so it's a tough call.

You'll find it tomorrow. Hopefully before the coyotes. Bring a dog.....he'll find it in 5 minutes.

Jeff Ovington 09-19-2010 06:59 AM
I agree.I'm exited to see some pics.It's 8:00 am pacific time in British Columbia he's probably got it hung and hide off by now, ready to take to a cooler.I'm sure the deer itself and the meat will be o.k.

halfbakedi420 09-19-2010 07:07 AM
right, good job backing out, most guys woulda just pushed...hopefully the yotes didnt find him. post some pics, or at least an update.

Mr. Deer Hunter 09-19-2010 08:04 AM
I think that someone here does not have a lot of experience hunting deer and wants us to look into our crystal balls and tell him where that deer is at and if he killed it or not.

My guess is that if he got it, he should have stayed in that spot for a hour and then went to look for it. If it was hit in the lungs - it might go 300 yards max.

If you hit it in the guts - it will probably suffer a long slow death.

That is the one thing that I hate about archery hunting, those guys with stick n string that goes out and wounds a bunch of nice deer.
Then when rifle season rolls around, you find nice bucks laying dead in some old grapevines - where no one thought of looking for him.
Or shooting a nice trophy buck and when you go to gut him out, he is all full of puss from a arrow that has been sticking in his guts for the past 4 weeks.

Where I live at, my opinion is that they ought to put archery season after rifle season.

bronko22000 09-19-2010 08:09 AM
waiting to see pics. i bet he got him

halfbakedi420 09-19-2010 09:17 AM
Originally Posted by Mr. Deer Hunter (Post 3685152)
I think that someone here does not have a lot of experience hunting deer and wants us to look into our crystal balls and tell him where that deer is at and if he killed it or not.

My guess is that if he got it, he should have stayed in that spot for a hour and then went to look for it. If it was hit in the lungs - it might go 300 yards max.

If you hit it in the guts - it will probably suffer a long slow death.

That is the one thing that I hate about archery hunting, those guys with stick n string that goes out and wounds a bunch of nice deer.
Then when rifle season rolls around, you find nice bucks laying dead in some old grapevines - where no one thought of looking for him.
Or shooting a nice trophy buck and when you go to gut him out, he is all full of puss from a arrow that has been sticking in his guts for the past 4 weeks.

Where I live at, my opinion is that they ought to put archery season after rifle season.
in some cases, but he was there, he did the right thing, we learn from our experiences, i am bettin he isnt online cause he is having fun, after finding his buck <fingers crossed>

kateraxl2381 09-19-2010 09:37 AM
Originally Posted by Mr. Deer Hunter (Post 3685152)
I think that someone here does not have a lot of experience hunting deer and wants us to look into our crystal balls and tell him where that deer is at and if he killed it or not.

My guess is that if he got it, he should have stayed in that spot for a hour and then went to look for it. If it was hit in the lungs - it might go 300 yards max.

If you hit it in the guts - it will probably suffer a long slow death.

That is the one thing that I hate about archery hunting, those guys with stick n string that goes out and wounds a bunch of nice deer.
Then when rifle season rolls around, you find nice bucks laying dead in some old grapevines - where no one thought of looking for him.
Or shooting a nice trophy buck and when you go to gut him out, he is all full of puss from a arrow that has been sticking in his guts for the past 4 weeks.

Where I live at, my opinion is that they ought to put archery season after rifle season.
It has nothing to do with hunting with a bow and arrow, it is just as effective as a rifle at close range if you put it where it needs to be..I've seen many deer lost during the firearm season because of poor shot placement..Found dead deer with slug holes in them, and I can honestly say I have never found one with an arrow in them (not saying that doesn't happen), but it goes both ways :wink:

kateraxl2381 09-19-2010 09:39 AM
P.S. from the sound of it, you'll get to put the tag on your buck

sprintflyer 09-19-2010 11:45 AM
Update????

Kybuckhunter 09-19-2010 12:10 PM
Originally Posted by kateraxl2381 (Post 3685182)
It has nothing to do with hunting with a bow and arrow, it is just as effective as a rifle at close range if you put it where it needs to be..I've seen many deer lost during the firearm season because of poor shot placement..Found dead deer with slug holes in them, and I can honestly say I have never found one with an arrow in them (not saying that doesn't happen), but it goes both ways :wink:
I believe that more deer are wounded and lost by gun hunters by far over archery. I gun hunt and bow hunt so I'm not biased either way. Gun hunters tend to shoot too far and at running deer. Also many bow injuries will recover where as gun injuries will not.

Also in warm weather I will take up the trail after a couple hours rather than waiting all night. If I wait all night it will be ruined anyway and the yotes will without a doubt eat it in my area.

Jeff Ovington 09-19-2010 01:26 PM
I don't know where he lives or temp myself.He did shoot it at dark so things will be cooling off.Where I live it cold at night already near zero. If he recovered it first thing in the morn it may still be good.He could live in Pacific Time like I do, so it's just 2:00pm where as it close to 5:00 almost dinner time in the Eastern Time Zone.Reguardless, I'm sure he found it.

2 Lunger 09-19-2010 05:19 PM
Originally Posted by Mr. Deer Hunter (Post 3685152)
I think that someone here does not have a lot of experience hunting deer and wants us to look into our crystal balls and tell him where that deer is at and if he killed it or not.

My guess is that if he got it, he should have stayed in that spot for a hour and then went to look for it. If it was hit in the lungs - it might go 300 yards max.

If you hit it in the guts - it will probably suffer a long slow death.

That is the one thing that I hate about archery hunting, those guys with stick n string that goes out and wounds a bunch of nice deer.
Then when rifle season rolls around, you find nice bucks laying dead in some old grapevines - where no one thought of looking for him.
Or shooting a nice trophy buck and when you go to gut him out, he is all full of puss from a arrow that has been sticking in his guts for the past 4 weeks.

Where I live at, my opinion is that they ought to put archery season after rifle season.
A shear hunting genius right here. I will tell you for a fact that I have ran across more dead deer with slug holes in them than arrow wounds. Also, I would like to see the deer that lived with an arrow in its "guts" for 4 weeks.

Keep up the good work, Mr. Deer Hunter.

buckhunter21 09-20-2010 10:07 AM
Well guys, I looked all day yesterday and nothing. No deer and no blood, and no arrow either. I did a grid search of that whole pine stand where he ran into, and some of the hardwoods next to it. I'm wondering if my shot was a bit more forward than I thought and hit the shoulder blade? Or even in-between the blade and spine and missed the lungs entirely? If that happened, is that still a fatal hit with the arrow in him? Just really anxious right now and not sure where to turn or what to do. Love to go back out and look some more but not sure where to start. From where I shot him to the back end of that pine stand has to be almost 7 or 800 yards.

Thanks for all the advice so far.

buckhunter21 09-20-2010 10:11 AM
Originally Posted by Mr. Deer Hunter (Post 3685152)
I think that someone here does not have a lot of experience hunting deer and wants us to look into our crystal balls and tell him where that deer is at and if he killed it or not.

My guess is that if he got it, he should have stayed in that spot for a hour and then went to look for it. If it was hit in the lungs - it might go 300 yards max.

If you hit it in the guts - it will probably suffer a long slow death.

That is the one thing that I hate about archery hunting, those guys with stick n string that goes out and wounds a bunch of nice deer.
Then when rifle season rolls around, you find nice bucks laying dead in some old grapevines - where no one thought of looking for him.
Or shooting a nice trophy buck and when you go to gut him out, he is all full of puss from a arrow that has been sticking in his guts for the past 4 weeks.

Where I live at, my opinion is that they ought to put archery season after rifle season.
Sorry to disappoint you, but I'm a seasoned deer hunter. I've been hunting deer 21 years with the bow and gun. I've shot a lot of deer...and have lost two in that span. One with a gun and one with a bow. I came on here to get some advice on what other hunters think...You can never stop learning. I'm sorry to hear that you don't have any more room in your noggin for education.

halfbakedi420 09-20-2010 10:18 AM
Originally Posted by buckhunter21 (Post 3685808)
Well guys, I looked all day yesterday and nothing. No deer and no blood, and no arrow either. I did a grid search of that whole pine stand where he ran into, and some of the hardwoods next to it. I'm wondering if my shot was a bit more forward than I thought and hit the shoulder blade? Or even in-between the blade and spine and missed the lungs entirely? If that happened, is that still a fatal hit with the arrow in him? Just really anxious right now and not sure where to turn or what to do. Love to go back out and look some more but not sure where to start. From where I shot him to the back end of that pine stand has to be almost 7 or 800 yards.

Thanks for all the advice so far.
usually, when we go back and get the blood dog, the deer are about 20-40 yards from where we stopped searching.
no blood because you were in the air and hit him high?
the cavity could have just been filling up, and he didnt dump blood fer awhile..
im sure you tracked up the whole area already?
look in the creeks and the thickets?
most any dog will take you to a dead deer.... so i heard..take fido with you

buckhunter21 09-20-2010 10:53 AM
well we didn't find any blood at all, i imagine since there wasn't full penetration and the shot was high. i just found out that i know of a guy that has a dog that tracks deer, but not sure how that would work with no blood and it's raining a bit here today. we did a pretty exhaustive search yesterday. does anyone here have experience with tracking dogs and if they would still work with no blood, and with rain after the hit?

halfbakedi420 09-20-2010 12:37 PM
Having a blood dog, i can tell you its 50/50..just depends on how much water vs how much blood
IT DOESN'T REALLY MATTER, YOU NEED TO GET OUT AND FIND THAT DEER

2 Lunger 09-20-2010 04:13 PM
If you hit him you should find blood. If you went between the shoulder blade and the spine you got lungs. If you look at the anatomy of a deer the top of the longs connects with a lining to the spine. There is no "void". There is some clue out there at the point of impact. You have to find it. The last buck I shot I found exactly 2 drops of blood in a 150 yards. I went off of tracks and other clues and found him piled up. You can do it. Go find him.

*twodogs* 09-20-2010 04:31 PM
If you know you hit him, you should find some hair, start at this point. Bring toilet paper with you and mark the POI and go from there. Do a circular search from POI until you find the deer or the arrow. He had to of bedded down at night so you should find a large patch of blood where he bed.

Don't give up just yet. It took me three days to find a deer a few years back. It was spoiled by the time I found him but I never gave up, you owe it to the animal to keep looking. If you saw the arrow in him as he fled, then he is hit and you need to keep after it. It is exhausting and frustrating but the reward is great when you find him. Read the After the shot sticky in the bowhunting forum, it has great information.

Jeff Ovington 09-20-2010 05:16 PM
Well if it is dead crows and magpies will be on it pretty quick.
Look for a murder of crows.Murder is the term used for a flock of crows in case anyone is wondering what that means.

zaboo 09-20-2010 06:56 PM
if you missed the shoulder good shot sounds like you got him

buckhunter21 09-22-2010 07:42 PM
Originally Posted by 2 Lunger (Post 3686078)
If you hit him you should find blood. If you went between the shoulder blade and the spine you got lungs. If you look at the anatomy of a deer the top of the longs connects with a lining to the spine. There is no "void". There is some clue out there at the point of impact. You have to find it. The last buck I shot I found exactly 2 drops of blood in a 150 yards. I went off of tracks and other clues and found him piled up. You can do it. Go find him.
I agree on finding blood. Even if he's not bleeding out from the hole, he should be bleeding out through his mouth if I got any lungs. Trust me I searched and searched for that initial spot of blood and could not find any, before we started our grid search. Do you know of a good website for deer anatomy? I've found a few but nothing that great.

Trust me this is eating me up inside. Seems to be all I think about every day from the time I get up to the time I go to sleep. My family and friends know how hard-core I am but they still don't understand it.

I'm going to head out again this weekend to look for him. I won't be sitting in a stand again till I feel like I have done all I can. I realize that the meat will be spoiled of course, but I need to have that piece of mind, and to be able to know where I for sure hit him so I can learn from this experience.


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