In post #1, the OP states that the "sabot didn't pass through." I have only shot one deer with a saboted bullet. He was facing me and I slipped it down his carotid artery into the chest and into the abdomen. I did not recover any part of the sabot or bullet; I was focused on dressing him out and dragging him out, not doing a necropsy.
So my experience with saboted bullets is limited, but I always thought (imagined?) that the plastic sabot would separate from the metal bullet after they left the barrel, much like a cloth patch separates from a round ball. Apparently this is not the case? Do those of you who have a lot of experience taking deer with saboted bullets expect the plastic sabot to remain attached to the bullet all the way through the animal?