This is something I don't like to post but I figured maybe someone might be able to help. I shot a doe last night and couldn't seem to find her. The shot was just over 20 yds and she was quartering away. The arrowed entered the deer just behind the last rib about 6" from the bottom of the deer. Here's the weird thing, I thought I saw the fletching sticking out of her side as she ran away but when I got down to look my arrow was driven into the ground about 10" indicating that is was a pass through. What's also peculiar is that there was guts on the fletching with some blood. At the angle she was at and the entry, I don't think that it was possible that it was a pure gut shot. I'm guessing the arrow came out right in front of the opposite leg. We had blood for about 150-200 yds. before losing it. She started bleeding pretty good after about thirty yds. and didn't become sparse until about 30 yds. before we lost it. She ran through a thick creek bottom and then down the creek for about 30 yds then came out and we still had good blood until she came out to an alphalfa field. We tracked her about thirty yards out into the short alphafa field and then lost blood. I walked the field edges looking to see if I could find blood where she exited the field with no luck. We tracked her for about 2 hrs. before stopping....we were on our hands and knees the last 30 minutes but couldn't find anymore blood. The soonest I can get back out is this afternoon after I'm done teaching. I swore as we were tracking that I could smell her....maybe she circled back down into the creek bottom and was down there but couldn't see her. I'm going to take my dog(gsp/gwp mix) down with me and see if she can be of help. With the shot angle and what I saw after the shot I thought this would be a dead deer in 100 yds or less. I'm puzzled.:embara:
Wounded deer
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That may be true but besides the fact that with the earn a buck restrictions her in my area in WI that I need my sticker before I can shoot a buck, I want to find that deer for piece of mind. I just can't believe with the shot angle and where I hit her that we couldn't find her. I'm sick about it. With teaching I can't take off a couple of hours in the morning to go look for a deer especially since I took a sick day on Friday to stay home with a sick 1 year old.:sad:
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You mean with what you thought you saw. Just like your incorrect thought of seeing the fletching as she ran off, I am betting you didn't hit where you thought. I agree, if you were right about the hit, she would've been down very fast. Good luck.muckdog said:
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maybe not it's worth a look..sounds like a pushed deer...see guts 4-6hrs.to even start....jman21050 said:
Regardless of meat spoilage, we should always do everything we can to recover game.jman21050 said:
Sounds like you may have only gotten one lung?? You may have been pushing her while you were tracking. If so, she is going to stay just far enough in front of you to feel comfortable. Once you stop pushing, she should lay down and eventually expire. I'd go back to the last spot you found blood and stopped tracking and try again. Do a grid pattern, circles, etc... The meat may be spoiled, but I'd still want to find her.
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when you see guts on the arrow, don't even start looking until at least a 6 hour wait. the deer will lay down, but if you show up it will get up and go for a long way. It's doubtful that you will find it. but it does deserve an effort.
just make believe that it is a 12 point record buck. Good luck on your search.
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What kind of sound did the arrow make when it hit?
What color was the blood? Bright red, dark red or greenish? What was on the tip of the arrow? Guts? Bone? Bile? Bubbly?
I would be willing to bet you entered farther back than what you thought. You probably drove it through the "guts" and caught some liver. This would be my guess. She was definitely covering some ground from the sounds of it. Is it possible you went lower and what you thought was fletching was white hair from her underbelly upon the arrow exiting?
What color was the blood? Bright red, dark red or greenish? What was on the tip of the arrow? Guts? Bone? Bile? Bubbly?
I would be willing to bet you entered farther back than what you thought. You probably drove it through the "guts" and caught some liver. This would be my guess. She was definitely covering some ground from the sounds of it. Is it possible you went lower and what you thought was fletching was white hair from her underbelly upon the arrow exiting?
When we had good blood it was bright red and had bubbles in it. The tip of the arrow had dirt on it since it was driven into the ground. It sounds as if we pushed her when we shouldn't have. I can't take that back now......I'll have to pick up where I left off last night.
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good luck and keep us posted. I bet you caught one lung.
I found her!
Well, I hit her right where I thought I did......right behind the last rib and the arrow angled sharply forward and exited even with the front leg on the opposite side but really low(only 2" from the bottom of her body). I hit guts(obviously), liver, the lung nearest the exit hole. She traveled another 150 yds. from where we had last blood. My german shorthair/german wirehair mix tracked her like a champ. She was 3 rows deep in a cornfield and I wouldn't have found her if it wasn't for the dog. I was walking a ditch line looking in the ditch and the dog pulled me in the cornfield. I'll post pics with the dog and her prize in a little while.
Well, I hit her right where I thought I did......right behind the last rib and the arrow angled sharply forward and exited even with the front leg on the opposite side but really low(only 2" from the bottom of her body). I hit guts(obviously), liver, the lung nearest the exit hole. She traveled another 150 yds. from where we had last blood. My german shorthair/german wirehair mix tracked her like a champ. She was 3 rows deep in a cornfield and I wouldn't have found her if it wasn't for the dog. I was walking a ditch line looking in the ditch and the dog pulled me in the cornfield. I'll post pics with the dog and her prize in a little while.
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Thats great. It's good to have a piece of mind in a situation as this. Good for you and give your dog an extra treat tonight..:darkbeer:
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WAY TOO GO Muckdog!!
There's a reason why we call them man's best friends!
There's a reason why we call them man's best friends!
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Muck dog what part of wisconsin are you in... there are a lot of people around west central part that i know will pay good money to have a dog like that "walk" through the woods with them after wounding a deer
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