couldn't find a deer

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sam05

sam05

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Dec 29, 2008
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paducah, ky
so i shot a doe, not a real good shot, hit it too far back and it took off like a rocket, tried to get a couple of follow up shots but missed. so i searched for almost 2 hours and can't find the deer, i'm pretty upset about that. i'm gonna go back tomorrow and look when i get off of work, but i know the meat won't be good as it was too warm, so i'm really just going to go look because i would like to know it is dead. i guess i'm just upset and needed to talk about it.

thanks
sam from kentucky
 
sam05,
sorry to hear that, bud. I know how ya feel.
All I can offer ya is to go back, and scour for buzzards, yotes, or other scavengers that might lead you to her carcass. If you got a neighbor w a good trackin' dog, see if ya can't rent 'em out for a coupla hours.
Whatever you decide, good luck. Yer a good man for being that concerned and going back. Too many "brown and downers" out there just leave 'm if its a poor shot.

dan
 
Yea well...it happens. Just resolve to make better shots or else you have to pass on a deer or two. I have had to pass on a few that were in range. You'll be surprised how often you get a second chance later on.

The coyotes have probably already taken good care of your deer for you.

I've seen right here on THR that some people think whitetails are "easy" to kill. That is NOT true. they are pretty tough, determined critters. IMHE those big bucks are very tough game animals.
 
did you give it a few hours to lie down after you shot it too far back? sorry to hear that man.
 
It happen's to the best of us sooner or later. I'd rather miss a deer completely than make a bad shot. All of us hunters should strive to make a clean kill as much as humanely possible.
 
i waited a good 45 minutes to an hour before i went looking, not wanting to push it if it was down or was about ready to go down, maybe that wasn't long enough, and the coyotes have probably already torn into her, or heaven forbid finished her for me. at any rate i will be back out tomorrow to look for it. thanks for the kind words, i WILL do better next time!
 
well the coyotes and buzzards had a good time i guess, went out early this morning before work and found the doe layin about 40 yards from where it was shot, curled up in a small hole in a thicket, chewed all to pieces, not alot left. hate that it happened that way, but i guess mother nature needed some deer meat. thanks for the support guys.


thanks
sam from kentucky
 
sam05,
I am relieved to know it's over. Sure you are as well. Thanks for going back and checkin'. Thanks for lettin' us know.

Best of luck in your future hunts. Take some kind of markers (ie, golf tees, irrigation flags) and mark the last place you KNOW you saw the animal. Makes tracking and gettin' your bearings for a search a whole lot more efficient. I keep a bundle of cheap landscaper's flags in my back pack. I can mark my last known spot, or a blood trail, and find it later if I have had to leave and come back.

dan
 
In hunter safety class I heard a story about a man who joined a club, and went hunting..
He said attempted to shoot two does, but neither were hit, he went back to the clubhouse to say it, and was upset, a member of the club went out looking, and found both does shot dead. they were given to the hunter and he was kicked out of the club, because if the other man had not found them they would have wasted.
He got the deer, and was kicked out of his club.
dont let this happen to you.
 
i'm am relieved that it is over, still don't feel good about what happened, but such is life and we must learn from that, i will be practicing the rest of the season, and not on live game, going to the range. Thanks for the reply fellas.
 
Sam, don't get discouraged. Hunt long enough and it will happen to anyone. I have never lost a deer in rifle but have lost a couple in archery because of poor penetration and lack of blood trail. It is what prompted me to get one of the best tracking breeds on the planet. A Jack Russel Terrier! They are great for blood trailing deer and absolutely NEVER give up. Little buggers are stubborn as hell once they get on a trail. They are the top breed used in Africa for trailing game so that should tell you something in itself. Check with your local Game Commission as far as legality, but if I recall correctly, all states allow you to use a dog for recovery as long as you are not armed and most states require the dog to be leashed. Va. and a couple of others actually allow you to run deer with dogs so those states wouldn't be an issue.
 
i had it happen to me last year. i know how you feel...it sucks. Since i dont have the time to set aside to practice with my bow to ensure this wont happen again, i dropped the cash on a cross bow with a red dot sitting on top. problem solved for me!
 
I must say I have been there before.
In my younger days I rushed a shot on a spike buck that was at a very fast walk and hit him too far back.
He went down but after that I got up much sooner than I should have and he got up and took off.
My brother and I searched for that deer for at least four hours,maybe more.
Never found him.
Gut shot deer when pushed can cover a lot of ground before they give it up.
Many times leaving little or no blood trail.
This is why even if I clearly see the deer lying dead I wait at least 15 minutes before approaching it.
If the deer runs out of sight I give it at least 30 minutes of time.
More times than not if shot placement is right it's very close by.
Hunt long enough and this kind of thing will more than likely happen to any of us.
It certainly is not pleasant and we just have to do our best to not let it happen again.
Good luck.
I understand your agony.
 
Bad shots happen im sarry that it happend to you or anyone. keep looking watch for birds yots or other scavengers. I hope that you find her I hate to see or hear of anyone loosing a deer or any other critter. good luck
 
Daniel that isn't really a fair thing to say when we dont know the terrain the guy hunts in.
I can gurantee you in the thick brush of south Texas where I hunt there are places that are so dense with catclaw,cactus,mesquite,and whitebrush that you would battle with the elements just to shove your body through that terrain five yards.
I should know because I have already done it.
 
It's happened to me twice... both times were situations in which the deer ran to another person's property, that I did not have permission to enter (and in one case was told not to enter). The thing about hunting live creatures is that you do not know what they will do both before AND after the shot. Using bullets that cause a lot of shock helps but even that does not guarantee an instant drop. It happens. It happens to all of us. The fact that you cared and didn't just say "oh well" says a lot about you. Is it your conscience or your empty freezer talking? Either way, it sucks but it's life.
Sounds to me like you should take up predator hunting. Over night is awful fast for them to pick it clean.
 
it was late in the afternoon, and i had an obligation later that night, so i only had so much time to look, it was a poor shot and terribly bad judgment on my part, but i have learned from this (i also didn't know we had that many yotes, but some other guys told me that they have seen large numbers this year while hunting) and next year i will be better prepared, and will not take a shot if i'm not sure or if i will not have more time to track. i found the doe about 40 yards from where i shot it, and that was about 80 yards from where the blood trail i followed ended, i followed the trail close to 35 yards one direction and it just disappeared, i later found it in the opposite direction from the trail i'd been following. thanks for the replies again guys, i'm glad that this one is over and done.
 
If you hit one too far back, give it several hours before taking up the trail.
A liver or gutshot deer will run if pushed, and there is usually little blood.
Given a bit of time, a deer shot like that will usually lie down and die.

My first deer with a bow was not found until the next morning. I liver shot it,
and we searched diligently. I decided to go back the next morning and found
her. Fortunately, the weather was cold and the deer was still edible.

Nothing goes to waste in nature. I have seen dead deer in the woods that were completely gone in a few months.
Even most of the bones were gone.
Don't let it get you down...just take it as a learning experience.

Best of luck in your future hunts!
​
 
i'm am relieved that it is over, still don't feel good about what happened, but such is life and we must learn from that, i will be practicing the rest of the season, and not on live game, going to the range.
Click to expand...

Good for you.

Hey, it happens...you did what you could. But the important part is you realize the problem and are fixing it.

Yes it sucks. No we don't want it to happen. But it does happen from time to time so don't let it get you down that bad. Look at the bright side...That deer still died quicker than starving to death or from disease and nature will use more of that deer than you ever would.
 
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