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The shot was perfect, or at least I thought it was. The six pointer walked in front of my stand just as the evening light was starting to fade. At 17-yards, I grunted, stopping the buck in its tracks. On impact, the arrow made that "thwack" sound that all bow-hunters love to hear as it sliced through the buck. The deer ran off making a wide circle and disappeared into a steep ravine close to where he had just come from. I could see the arrow sticking in the ground behind where the buck had been standing with a crimson hue on the shaft. This was going to be easy, Not! As with any tracking job, things can go crazy at any minute. After waiting the standard 30 minutes, I climbed down from my stand and made my way back to the house. I met my brother who was just getting out of the woods from hunting another stand at the other end of the property. I told him about my shot and the buck's reaction, we both agreed that the deer should be down. It had been about three hours since I shot the six-pointer and the blood on the arrow was bright red with some bubbles indicating a lung hit. We picked up the blood trail immediately which was easy to follow for the first 100-yards. As the blood disappeared we saw the eyes of a deer about 75-yards ahead of us. After watching for a few minutes I decided that this deer had to be my buck. He was bedded down and probably never going to get up from that spot if we didn't bump him. You guessed it, the buck got up and bolted. With that, I decided to follow the buck for a while, with help, but gave up without finding him. I decided to wait it out until the next morning. So, the next morning I went back to where the buck was bedded down from the previous night. There was a good amount of blood there but as I followed in the direction he had taken off the night before the blood trail was non-existent. I kept on searching along a well-used deer trail with a few rubs and entered a long field on the top of the ridge. "Where now?" I asked myself. I continued along the field edge looking to see if the buck entered back into the woods again making a wide circle. I happened across one small spot of blood on the edge of the field some 200-yards from where I'd last found any sign. I walked down the natural funnel that the local deer heard frequently use and found my six-pointer expired! Being persistent, knowing the terrain and with a little luck I found my Missouri buck. He probably ran 400-yards before going down. After field dressing the whitetail I found that I had hit him right where I thought. I clipped the top of one of his lungs and did plenty of damage around it. I'm amazed at how deer hit well can run long distances like the deer in this story. I have taken deer with shots worse than this one that pile up less than 50-yards from the stand. It just depends on the particular animal and a particular set of circumstances. Sometimes after the shot, deer don't bleed at all, or at least for the first few yards. I had a group of does walk under me one November morning a couple of seasons ago while hunting firearms season at Ft. Leonard Wood in Missouri. The does were feeding calmly toward me and when they got within 30-yards I let the lead deer have it. It looked perfect and all three deer bolted down the ravine into a little thicket. I waited a few minutes and then went to where the deer had been when I shot. To my amazement there was no sign that anything had happened there except for scattered leaves and dirt where the deer had taken off after the shot. I kept telling myself that I had made a perfect shot with the 12 ga. Slug gun but I couldn't help second guessing myself and the gun. I followed the direction the does had gone and found my deer lying there not 50-yards away. After field-dressing the deer my suspicions were right. The heart of that doe was completely destroyed! No blood anywhere to be found until I started dressing the deer out. Things like this really make a hunter wonder sometimes! You can sometimes make a marginal shot with bow or gun and the blood trail is so apparent anyone could follow it. Make the same shot the next week on a different deer and you and six of your buddies couldn't find a spot of blood within miles of where you just knew you'd hit that deer. Whitetail deer are amazing creatures in a lot of ways. One of them being there will to fight and keep going. They are very tough and strong-willed. I've seen deer put their head down to hide as I walked by and sneak on all fours through thick brush while they were wounded so bad that they couldn't get up. On another occasion, a single mature doe walked within 15-yards of me as I was still-hunting an acorn flat on top of a long ridge. My arrow flew true and she wheeled around and ran back the way she had come. The arrow passed completely through and the shot looked good. The blood trail was great for about the first 100-yards(sound familiar yet?) then the deer quit bleeding. After two hours of tracking, my friends and I found that doe. I had hit her a few inches back nicking the liver and tearing up the paunch area. When I rolled her over we noticed both holes where the arrow had entered and exited were plugged with intestines which didn't allow any external bleeding. These things just sometimes happen. It is very important to regain your composure immediately after the shot. That can be hard to do sometimes. Most important, try to watch the deer run off until it is completely out of sight. Note a landmark where the deer was standing when you shot it and a landmark where you last saw the deer. A landmark could be a log on the ground, a large tree, a rock, anything that is noticeable and very easy to remember. This is very important because things will look a whole lot different, especially if you are hunting from a tree-stand and climb down and start tracking. Try to note the posture and reaction of the deer after the shot. A deer that kicks its hind legs up can sometimes mean a perfect heart/lung shot. A deer that hunches up in the middle of the back can mean a hit but it could mean a shot too far back such as a liver or paunch shot. A blood spot on the deer's side is sometimes noticeable also. Don't only rely on your eyes either. Be alert with your ears also. Immediately after the shot when the deer takes off remain quiet and listen intently. You can often hear the deer crash when it expires. Regardless, it is always a good idea to remain in your stand for about 30-minutes. This 30-minute period allows you to calm down, reflect on the shot and where the deer ran, and also gives the deer ample time to expire. A good double-lung hit will have the deer down and dead within less than one-minute and usually within 60-yards of your stand. However, no matter how good of a shot you think you make, the 30- minute period is important to remain in the stand. Once you've waited the half-hour period, you can climb down and begin tracking. It's always best to have more than one set of eyes on the blood trail so if you have a hunting buddy nearby it's a good idea to either go get him or radio him. Next, go to the spot the deer was standing when you shot and look for traces of blood or hair and even look for the arrow. Be careful you and your helpers don't trample on any of the sign that is on the ground! Bright red blood with bubbles in it is a good sign of a lung hit. Bright, thick blood can mean a heart shot. Dark red blood usually means a liver or kidney shot or even a main artery hit. If you find any green or brownish liquid or material on your arrow or on the ground you have hit the paunch, or intestinal area. If you have any doubts on whether you made a good lung or heart shot do not pressure the deer right away by following the blood trail. Usually, most deer will bed down less than 200-yards after being hit and will most often die in that bed as long as they aren't pressed. The hardest part is knowing just how long to wait to take up the chase. Wait too long and warm weather can spoil your venison or coyotes will beat you to it. Allow 10-12 hours for a poor hit before taking up trail. If your are hunting in the morning you have all day to find your deer. If you're hunting in the evening, come back the next morning to take up the chase on bad shots. Weather is the one factor that could change the above rule of thumb. Rain and heat require that you take a chance and try to find the animal quickly. My personal opinion is that with any hit, bow or gun, hunters should wait a minimum of three hours unless the weather isn't cooperating. I'm learning the patience lesson the hard way because I have a zillion incidents I could write about where I have either goofed up on the tracking job or something else weird has happened. I still find 99% of the deer I track because I don't give up. Experience is the best way to improve and hone your tracking skills. Get in on as many tracking jobs as you can this season whetehr it is your deer or not. Each one presents a unique challenge and you won't forget any of the lessons. Here is another valuable tip that I've learned. Wounded deer will often head to the nearest available watering hole. Perhaps they do this to get a drink or quench their thirst, or maybe to help begin the healing process to the body. Summary It is our duty to do all that we can to recover an animal no matter what kind. We owe it to the critter itself and to our God who was gracious enough to give us these wonderful creatures to nourish our bodies with their flesh. Genesis 9:1-3 says: And God blessed Noah and his sons and said unto them, Be fruitful and multiply, and replenish the earth. And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth, and upon every fowl of the air, upon all that moveth upon the earth, and upon all the fishes of the sea; into your hand are they delivered. Every moving thing that liveth shall be food for you; even as the green herb have I given you all things. Recovering the animal is also our duty to our families who rely on us to put meat on the table every season. So don't give up on finding that next whitetail or other animal you hunt. If there is no blood or sign, follow the tracks and trails or disturbed ground where your deer might have rustled through the leaves in its exit. Keep pushing and look in every nook and cranny. Don't worry about spooking other deer in the area and don't worry about messing up your next hunt. The deer that you shot is your first responsibility and you should be focused solely on that one animal until you recover it. Good luck on all your tracking this year and God Bless. hunter profile-Keith Pinson | Whitetail Feeding Habits All Year Long | The Ridge Stand by Matt McAnally | Off & Running--J.P. Mahn | Elk Photos | Confidence Doe | Shed Hunters | Chad Goetten Buck | hello M.B.B. Rob | Mud Lick Monster | | Return Home | Taxidermy Shop | Hunting Photo Gallery | KIDS TRAIL! | Wild Hog Mania! | Fishing Photo Gallery | |
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