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Sounds like you hit the shoulder and didnt get enough penetration.
Shot placement
Hey, this is my first time posting on this site and I'm also a first time bowhunter. I have a question that I can't figure out.
I bought my first bow back in the winter and all spring and summer I've been practicing my butt off. By time the season rolled around I felt confident I could take a deer as far as 40 yards. So the other night, a small 6 point walked out under my stand at just under 20 yards. It was getting low light but I still could see him very well. I waited until he was standing broadsided, and I a placed my 20 yard pin just behind his left shoulder and fired. I heard the arrow hit.
The deer turned and ran into the woods. I waited to hear a crash, but it never came. After a few minutes I climbed down and went to the spot I shot the deer. I found no blood, but about 10 yards away I found my arrow, snapped into. The broadhead had a small amount of tissue on it and some hair, but no blood. The broadhead itself was in perfect condition, no sctatches or dings. The shaft had a fatty substance on it, but again, not a large amount of blood.
That was it, that's all I found. No blood trail or anything. I searched for the deer until midnight, when my flashlight finally gave up.
Anybody, know what happened? I feel bad about wounding one and not finding it. How did I not hit any vital organs? Did the arrow pass through muscle? How is it there was no blood? How is it that the braodhead was is such pristeene condition? I can't figure it out. Thanks for any comments or advice.
I bought my first bow back in the winter and all spring and summer I've been practicing my butt off. By time the season rolled around I felt confident I could take a deer as far as 40 yards. So the other night, a small 6 point walked out under my stand at just under 20 yards. It was getting low light but I still could see him very well. I waited until he was standing broadsided, and I a placed my 20 yard pin just behind his left shoulder and fired. I heard the arrow hit.
The deer turned and ran into the woods. I waited to hear a crash, but it never came. After a few minutes I climbed down and went to the spot I shot the deer. I found no blood, but about 10 yards away I found my arrow, snapped into. The broadhead had a small amount of tissue on it and some hair, but no blood. The broadhead itself was in perfect condition, no sctatches or dings. The shaft had a fatty substance on it, but again, not a large amount of blood.
That was it, that's all I found. No blood trail or anything. I searched for the deer until midnight, when my flashlight finally gave up.
Anybody, know what happened? I feel bad about wounding one and not finding it. How did I not hit any vital organs? Did the arrow pass through muscle? How is it there was no blood? How is it that the braodhead was is such pristeene condition? I can't figure it out. Thanks for any comments or advice.
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you shot low bro! When you get that fatty stuff on your arrow is when you hit that grease he probably gonna be alright! or you coulda shot him right behind the shoulder and if he hikes that leg up he coulda sealed the exit wound kinda hard to say without being there
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grazed him low....he'll be fine. Keep at it!
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i was gonna say you probably shot high. where the arrow was broken, did you find both halves? and if so, was there any meat or anything on the jegged edges where it broke?
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Nothing like that first encounter!!!
Good luck!the arrow was broke. found the broadhead half and about 4 inches of shaft. Never found the back half, I assume it's still in the deer. There was just a small amount of tissue on the broadhead. Kind of white and red tissue. The end of the shaft where it broke had red tissue in it as well.
When you make a good hit in the vitals, will the broad head be dripping blood?
When you make a good hit in the vitals, will the broad head be dripping blood?
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Was there anything at all on the fletchings?
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when you jsut lower your arm to shoot from an eleveted stand it changes your geometry of the shot and your anchor point so you will be off....when you need to move the bow down you should bend at the waist like your bending over and not jsut drop your shooting arm......sounds like you hit low and got into the fat...if you didnt have a lot of blood hes prob jsut fine and just skinned him so no worries i would think.....lessons are learned the hard way :wink:
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Not if it is stuck in the ground on the other side.
If that fletching was still inside that deer there would be blood somewhere. Are you sure you circled the area where he was standing? I have "THOUGHT" I was following the path the deer took out of an area only to find I was off by 10 feet or so and found blood in another place. Do circles around the area while someone else or another flashlight sits at the spot of the hit.
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Pretty much sounds low in the fat. I did the same thing once on a nice little 12 pointer. I know I didn't bend at the waist then. It happens. He'll survive and hopefully you get another shot at him.
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