Hit one tonight, need help/advice

schnarrfuss · Post by **schnarrfuss** » Fri Oct 26, 2007 11:12 pm

Hope some guy's here can help me with some advice. I hit a fairly decent buck tonight but I think I made a bad decision. In the heat of the moment, I took a 18 yard shot at the buck facing me and looking up at me. I aimed at the throt patch and was in my climbing stand about 20 feet up. After the shot, the buck ran 40 yards and stopped. I thought I seen it stumble and it ran another 15 yards and stopped. It stumped again and I lost sight of it.
After waiting 30 minutes, my brother and I tracked it for about 250 yards and lost the trail. I found my bolt 20 yards from the impact and it was full of blood but was broken off 1.5 inches up from the broadhead. There was a decent blood trail but the rain tonight didn,t help.
What do you guy's think here. Will I find it in the morning??

BUSHDOG · Post by **BUSHDOG** » Fri Oct 26, 2007 11:22 pm

id look,hope theres no coyotes around

Fox · Post by **Fox** » Sat Oct 27, 2007 12:16 am

Give it a go tomorrow, sounds like a shot my dad took about 5 years ago, maybe a brisket shot, if you did not penatrate into the vitals it should be ok.

schnarrfuss · Post by **schnarrfuss** » Sat Oct 27, 2007 12:23 am

Thanks guy's. It's going to be a sleepless night.

vixenmaster · Post by **vixenmaster** » Sat Oct 27, 2007 6:57 am

Very good chance you have a dead Buck. Don't know yer arrow B'Head setup, sounds like it hit the neck bone and arteries or veins possibly windpipe.

Livtahunt · Post by **Livtahunt** » Sat Oct 27, 2007 10:50 am

this kind of sounds like something my girlfriends uncle did.......shot a small buck in the head but the buck did not die....... it ran around with an arrow in its head for a month until his friend killed it with a mussleloader they have pics i wish i had them but it was pretty cool

buzz · Post by **buzz** » Sat Oct 27, 2007 11:39 am

If you have access to a dog or two. Bring them to the area where the blood is and let the do there work. tie a 20 foot or so rope on them so you can handle them but so you don't get in there way. This has helped me in the past.
good luck: let us know the outcome.

schnarrfuss · Post by **schnarrfuss** » Sat Oct 27, 2007 1:25 pm

Well, no luck this morning. Looked for 4 hours and no more sign of blood or tracks. This sucks!!

R.J. · Post by **R.J.** » Sat Oct 27, 2007 1:36 pm

Sounds by the way you described his stumbling after the shot he may be recoverable ... If I wasn't on the road I would give you a hand ... best to gather a group and grid search the property ...

Let me know how you made out .... I could call back home and muster up a few volunteers ..

Good luck ...

jay73 · Post by **jay73** » Sat Oct 27, 2007 2:25 pm

Man, I can totally relate. Took a shot like that 2 years ago, only I would say my shot was from about 12 yards, and about 17 feet up.

Long story short, he hacked up tons of blood after he ran a bit, and it dwindled off (or we lost the trail?)after about 100 yards. I lost sight of him after he went 40 yards from impact. Never did find him.

I felt really shitty for a while after that.

Will never take a breast shot again. People still tell me they do though.

Sorry you couldn't find him.

Jay

MADMAX2 · Post by **MADMAX2** » Sat Oct 27, 2007 6:24 pm

Had the same thing happen to me a few years back on the shotgun hunt I shot a nice 8pt on the run in the bush using my rifled slug barell with sabots we waited a half hour after I made the shot found a nice pool of blood then lost it 50yds later.We called the MNR to see if we could use a dog the next day but thats a no-no I felt sick not being able to find that deer.I don't shoot at running deer anymore with the shotgun ,if I can't get them to stop at a bleat or a whistle their home free.Hope you can recover yours.

wabi · Post by **wabi** » Sat Oct 27, 2007 7:31 pm

Can't offer much help, but for advice I'd recommend holding shots to broadside or slightly quartering away. Don't take me wrong, I'm not trying to criticize you for what happened. I've "been there, and done that too"

. For me it's got to be perfect or I pass anymore. Learned the same way you're learning and it isn't a pleasant memory, but it's one that sticks with you and makes you more selective in the future.
Now my goal isn't to kill every deer I see, but it's to kill every deer I shoot at. More than once I've come home mentally "kicking myself in the butt" for letting a deer walk, but deep down inside I know it was the right thing to do.
You tried a low percentage shot and it didn't work. Don't be too hard on yourself, but learn from it and then it isn't a complete loss. The deer may live, and if it doesn't it won't go to waste. Nature doesn't waste anything.
Now get back out there (with a new attitude of more patience) and try again!!!!!!!!!!!!

Bucko · Post by **Bucko** » Sat Oct 27, 2007 7:55 pm

Quite a few yrs. ago I shot down from the treestand at only 15 yds. on a buck trailing me to the stand.I was useing a crossbow and I saw the bolt buried to the fletching in his brisket.I waited about 2 hrs. and found the buck[176 lb. dressed] approx 500 yds. away lying in an old strip field dead.He left the woods like a freight train and I suppose he ran that distance full tilt till he dropped.I hope ya luck in finding the buck.I'm sure for quite a time to come you'll be looking

BUCKSHOT · Post by **BUCKSHOT** » Sat Oct 27, 2007 8:09 pm

Great words of advice!

wabi wrote:Can't offer much help, but for advice I'd recommend holding shots to broadside or slightly quartering away. Don't take me wrong, I'm not trying to criticize you for what happened. I've "been there, and done that too" . For me it's got to be perfect or I pass anymore. Learned the same way you're learning and it isn't a pleasant memory, but it's one that sticks with you and makes you more selective in the future.
Now my goal isn't to kill every deer I see, but it's to kill every deer I shoot at. More than once I've come home mentally "kicking myself in the butt" for letting a deer walk, but deep down inside I know it was the right thing to do.
You tried a low percentage shot and it didn't work. Don't be too hard on yourself, but learn from it and then it isn't a complete loss. The deer may live, and if it doesn't it won't go to waste. Nature doesn't waste anything.
Now get back out there (with a new attitude of more patience) and try again!!!!!!!!!!!!

If I can add to this, I would like to say that you need to be even more sure of your shot when the weather is inclement. Sounds like you gave it your all to make a recovery, Good Show!

BigTiny · Post by **BigTiny** » Sat Oct 27, 2007 8:49 pm

I took a shot on a doe this morning and from where I shot I thought she ducked the bolt. After running about 30 feet she slowed down and wandered off. When I got down my bolt was stuck in a log behind her with hair smeared on the shaft and vanes. There wasn't any of the telltale red blood, just a greasy smear with the hair stuck in it. I searched the area for an hour to no avail. Since I've been training my pup to track, I went and got her. She led me around all over the area for an hour and a half. She found deer sign that I had overlooked and located a bedding area, but no doe. On the way out we jumped a small group and among them was the doe with a small wound on her back. It looked like the bolt passed thru at a subcutaneous level and didn't do any real damage. Needless to say I was very relieved that the doe was OK. Now I have two new stand locations to try out, thanks to my dog. Oh, and the 8-point buck Bossy ran off last week was still there, except I got a better look at him. Now I call him the 10-point that got away.

No worries, I'm the only one hunting them!

Excalibur Crossbow Forum

Hit one tonight, need help/advice

Hit one tonight, need help/advice

Good blood no deer

Yep