The blood trail.

[First-light]

So I posted I hit a real big one opening day. Long story short we jumped him three times but never got off a shot. He bled from 10:50 am until about 3:30 pm. Neighbor said he hit him high once. The deer had trouble making it through the real brushy area between us. When he did I saw he was at least a giant 12 pt. It was about 75-85 yards and I shot 5 times. He was in a bunch of saplings with not much openings. My third shot hot him and he stumbled but kept going. That was the last I would see of this deer. He made it to a big pine forest and bedded. I started tracking about 11:30. He took me right where I thought he would go. Got in at about 40 yards and he jumped and ran. Followed him for a bit more and saw he hit a logging road. He started to go down the road to a swampy area. I stoped called my neighbor and met up with his crew at his cabin. There were 8 of us. We came up with a plan to push this deer. The plan we put together was wrong and the deer went back into the pines. My neighbor and I tracked him again and he turned north then west. I stoped in my track at one point and told my neighbor I smelled him. Sure enough he was bedded about 20 yards from us but it was too thick to see. We got in touch with the crew to move them north but less than 20 seconds later the deer bolted into open hardwoods. We tried one last time but did not push him. I did find a pile of blood by a scrape and told my neighbor I had to continue. He agreed and the both of us tracked to later in the afternoon. All the time finding blood but specs of it here and there but where he stoped the pictures show you what we found. In the end the blood dried up and My neighbor said he saw the buck bounding across a golden rod field. We called it but hope to run into him again. I talked to my processor and he thinks yhe shot in the back hobbled him from the shock of the slug. My shot hit some meaty area with no vitals and thats where most of the blood was from. Just thought I would share the story. Damn tough animals. 

[airedale]

Finding even a good amount of blood does not always equal a fatal shot or even a debilitating injury. Deer are tough and can survive  an injury that bleeds bad, from the way this episode sounds it was just not a good hit as what was first thought.

Speaking of blood trails I was clued in on supposedly a really great blood tracking tool made by Primos. A light that when shown on blood in dim light will make it stand out and glow, the guys telling me about this thing were really fired up about it because it works so well. I believe these lights have been around for some time but I personally never paid too much attention to them but after listening to these boys on how well it works I did a little investigating over on Amazon reading reviews. Same thing over there the reviews were raving.

So what the Hell, another gadget in the hunter's toolbox is on the way but from the way, it sounds it is a winner. Whether it works or not I have a good tracking dog that I have total confidence in so I am covered.

Al

Edited November 24, 2023 by airedale

[chrisw]

That is very little blood. That was the most blood you saw on the track? What did the beds look like? Blood loss doesn't directly equate to knowing if a deer will live or not obviously. The fact that you kept jumping him is strange for having so little blood. Could be a multitude of spots he was shot. Hopefully he lives, for the deers sake, but many don't.

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[landtracdeerhunter]

Heart shot deer don't bleed much. They also don't go far 

[First-light]

6 hours ago, chrisw said:

That is very little blood. That was the most blood you saw on the track? What did the beds look like? Blood loss doesn't directly equate to knowing if a deer will live or not obviously. The fact that you kept jumping him is strange for having so little blood. Could be a multitude of spots he was shot. Hopefully he lives, for the deers sake, but many don't.

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Some spots in the beginning were more. Beds had a football size area of blood. My thought the same on jumping him. I think he was hit in the leg. He was very easy to trake even without blood. He wasn't walking right. 

[chrisw]

Some spots in the beginning were more. Beds had a football size area of blood. My thought the same on jumping him. I think he was hit in the leg. He was very easy to trake even without blood. He wasn't walking right. 

Leg hit would make sense based on what you've said.

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[GreeneHunter]

Unfortunately this happens ! Hunt long enough and it happens to everybody !

[First-light]

Just now, chrisw said:

Leg hit would make sense based on what you've said.

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I also sat in the stand I shot him from this afternoon. A lot of saplings in the way not many clear shots. I will fix that. 

[airedale]

So like the 'gadget sucker" I am I got one of those tracking lights mentioned above, had some deer blood from the Doe I took the other day and gave the light a test to see what it does. It definitely will make any blood stand out when the light hits it, I can see it would help recovery of a deer in some cases.

Al

[First-light]

2 hours ago, airedale said:

So like the 'gadget sucker" I am I got one of those tracking lights mentioned above, had some deer blood from the Doe I took the other day and gave the light a test to see what it does. It definitely will make any blood stand out when the light hits it, I can see it would help recovery of a deer in some cases.

Al

Anytime of the day or does it have to be night?

 

[airedale]

It is most useful in dark conditions, that is when blood will show up best. In the daytime I can pretty much spot blood on my own.

Al

[Four Seasons]

2 minutes ago, airedale said:

It is most useful in dark conditions, that is when blood will show up best. In the daytime I can pretty much spot blood on my own.

Al

Not sure they even make a gadget for daytime blood trailing? I think I saw some kind of spray one year they were pushing for blood trails but that I believe faded away. Maybe they make some kind of glasses for folks that have issues with different colors. 

[grampy]

Having been on more than my share of bloodtrails, I can tell you no two are ever the same. Also, even under perfect conditions, things can and do happen. Not recovering a deer is the worst part of deer hunting. It happens to most all of us at one point or another. Hope the deer the OP shot makes it. About a 50\50 chance they survive a non vital, or non gut hit.