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You are here: Experts > Recreation/Outdoors > Hunting/Shooting > Hunting > Deer hunting
Hunting - Deer hunting
Expert: Keith Patton - 11/2/2009
Question
I hit a 7 point in the left shoulder this year with my bow and the blood trail ended up stopping, and i didnt know if the deer was dead or not. About two weeks later i talked to this guy who hunts across the road from me, and he said he saw that buck limping on the his leg left leg where i hit him. Then he said he ended up shooting that deer in the right shoulder with his bow and didnt find him either. So i was just wondering if this buck will die since he got hit in both shoulders or will he just limp on both legs?
Answer
Craig:
He will probably die of infection after being weakened by hunger. Why shoot him in the shoulder? You want to hit him in his engine room...just behind the shoulder in the lung and heart area. I would not even shoot a deer in the shoulder with a 30-06 since there is too much bone and muscle to guarantee a kill but more than enough to get a cripple that runs off and dies. What chance do you think your arrow had in penetrating that hunk of muscle and bone? Broadheads are designed to bleed an animal out, but that only works if you put it somewhere there are lots of arteries like deep in the chest. The best angle is slightly from the rear in behind the front leg about level with and just above the front leg "knee" joint. That will put those razors into his lungs and heart and if he runs it will only chew his plumbing to ribbons. A good shot like that and the deer will be snorting blood and leaving a nice clear blood trail and will not be able to go very far.
Adrenaline is a powerful drug. Pump enough into a creature, even a human and they can run and do things that you would not think possible.
After you shot the deer, how long did you wait before tracking him? If you didn't wait 30 minutes or more, you probably just pushed him. Given enough time an injured deer will lie down and either stiffen up or bleed out. In your case, a shoulder wound was far from fatal and you most probably ended up feeding the coyotes.
Better luck on your next hunt.
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