Lost a good 8 or big 6

[Al Bundy]

Made what I thought was a good shot. Found blood, no arrow. Figure arrow stayed with the deer. Great blood trail, followed and followed. Got permission to go out in the dark and track on adjacent land. Followed again, nice blood, very frequent blood. Then... Gone. No more blood. Searched and searched. Went to last known looked like crazy. No more blood to be found. Sucks.... Got a call into deer search. No response yet. Hoping for a miracle. Grrrrrrrrrr

[Lawdwaz]

What time did you shoot him?  When you say "good shot" what did it look like?  IE; quartering on or away, head on, going away or broadside?  What was the reaction at the shot?  How long after the shot did you wait?  How far was the shot? How far did you track him before you lost the trail?

 

The coming rains aren't going to work in your favor but hopefully he'll be recovered in the morning.

[Al Bundy]

Shot at 415, quartering away at about 35 yards. Thought I heard a lung collapse noise when I shot it. Deer went into the corn field briefly but then came back out. My guess is the arrow was in somewhere and the deer did not enjoy walking corn with it. Went to find the arrow and blood after 10 mins. I could see the deer and it rounded the corner of a corn field so I knew it was not laying down close by. Waited about two hours after seeing blood. Tracked over a mile, maybe mile and half. Bled like a stuck pig and I kept expecting to see it dead. No such luck. I'm wondering now I did not hit vitals and it's really a lost cause. I'll look and hope in the morning. I did see some clotting type blood. Seemed like it was trying to close up the wound.

It rained hard here 20 or so minutes ago. But it only lasted a few minutes. Hope no more rain..

[Lawdwaz]

It could be a gut shot if you heard that noise??  I've never heard a any such sound from a lung hit and only shot at one deer over 35 yards.  It was a big bodied thing and there is no way I heard that lung hit that piled him up in about 75 yards or so.

 

Gut shots or bone hits are the only ones that i've ever heard a sound from.  Could be guts/liver etc??

 

Maybe it was a high hit?

 

Luck to you..............

[SteveB]

If you start searching after 10 minutes on a suspect hit, all you do is make the odds of recovery go way down.

[growalot]

Good luck...good rule of

thumb...even if you think it's a good hit...sit tight at the very least 30 mins, if you can't see the deer down.....then go to hit area and look for arrow...if you don't see it....back out for at least 2 hours....

[Uncle Nicky]

35 yards is a long poke with an arrow. Just sayin.....

 

Sound like a shoulder or brisket shot. They bleed a lot at first, but not usually fatal. Good luck on your search.

[phade]

Hope you find him. Ive shot a couple bucks where they made a really distinct sound when dbl lunged. Its like a grunt gurgle. Best way I can describe. They take off like rockets when that hit/sound id made.

[thphm]

I have to agree you did Not Wait long enough,Your not gun hunting, shooting a deer 1/2 hour before Sunset Bow hunting not a very wise thing to do . A gut shot deer can travel for miles before dying.Yotes and Bobcats will have a free meal if they get to it first. Hope you find it first.

[Mr VJP]

I'm concerned about the distance the deer went while bleeding.  Most deer hit by an arrow will not go far unless they are pushed.  If it wasn't disturbed, it should have laid down after 200 or so yards and just bled to death.  That could have taken hours though.  The deer must have seen you, or heard you coming, to keep going after the hit.  I would go to the spot I last saw it's blood trail and spend the day combing the area around it, in ever expanding circles.  If luck is on your side, you may find it nearby.

[2012_taco]

Sounds like a shoulder or muscle hit. They will bleed a lot but that won't kill him. Also if it went over a mile it would have bedded down several times in that distance if it was a lethal hit. Sounds like you might have pushed it. Back off for a few days you may see him again. 

[Al Bundy]

I waited actually three hours after thinking about it. Threat of rain, and landowner telling me to get a move on. I could see the deer round the corner and leave anywhere near the shot area. No chance I was spooking it looking for an arrow after 10 mins. None whatsoever. It was gone gone gone.

I tend to think shoulder or brisket as well. I'm leaving soon to look again. Nothing from deer search. They must be overwhelmed or out of my area.

[Al Bundy]

Also I did not see any evidence of it bedding down or laying down. I was able to follow blood and for a while tracks. No disturbances in the ground along the way.

[Doc]

When a blood trail suddenly ends, a lot of times that means that blood pressure has zeroed out. Time to do the old concentric circle trick.

 

Of course it can also mean that the hit is superficial and that it has clotted up or been licked to stem the flow for awhile.

 

It can also mean that the deer took an unexpected sudden change in direction and you missed it. That's also another last second maneuver just before they croak.

[upstate]

Sounds like a shoulder or muscle hit. They will bleed a lot but that won't kill him. Also if it went over a mile it would have bedded down several times in that distance if it was a lethal hit. Sounds like you might have pushed it. Back off for a few days you may see him again. 

 

I was thinking the same thing. When you hear that whack of hitting a shoulder you're in trouble. 

 

I hit a beautiful 8 point at 25 yards in shoulder. Knocked him right over, all sorts of noise and then he got up and took off. Tons of blood. , got him with gun a week later. Shoulder had gangrene, bad. 

[Al Bundy]

This story does not end well. Searched all land I was legally able to. Looked and looked for more blood. Did circles, did a grid type search, and walked forever. No luck. Deer search got back to me and didn't want to try. Not a good day today.

[DirtTime]

Shot at 415, quartering away at about 35 yards. Thought I heard a lung collapse noise when I shot it. Deer went into the corn field briefly but then came back out. My guess is the arrow was in somewhere and the deer did not enjoy walking corn with it. Went to find the arrow and blood after 10 mins. I could see the deer and it rounded the corner of a corn field so I knew it was not laying down close by. Waited about two hours after seeing blood. Tracked over a mile, maybe mile and half. Bled like a stuck pig and I kept expecting to see it dead. No such luck. I'm wondering now I did not hit vitals and it's really a lost cause. I'll look and hope in the morning. I did see some clotting type blood. Seemed like it was trying to close up the wound.

It rained hard here 20 or so minutes ago. But it only lasted a few minutes. Hope no more rain..

 

 

I think most people are looking at this part of your post. The part in red.

Patience.

 

 

Sorry you lost that deer. Best luck on the next hunt.

[Lawdwaz]

It sounds like you put 110% effort into the recovery attempt.

Good for you and take some lessons from it and go forward.

[thphm]

Sorry to hear the results, you tried , just chalk it up to experience.

[Bowshotmuzzleloader]

http://www.thehuntingbeast.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=2311

This is interesting info , IE if you already don't know

Sorry about you losing your deer ,,get back in the saddle and try again plenty of time left..

[grampy]

This has or likely will happen to just about every hunter in their hunting career. Take what you can from it as far as lessons learned and experience. Seems to me you did all you could do to find him.You're probably feeling a bit down now, but pick yourself up and get back out there. And good luck for the remainder of the season!

[Nivk]

I just went through a similar thing last week. I know how much it sucks to loose something after making what you think is a good hit & doing your best to track it down.  It is really amazing what these animals can endure and keep on going. Better luck next time.