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Disappointment.

moundhill

Senior Member
Supporting Member
5,327
103
Hebbardsville..
Well guys, I made the mistake every bow hunter dreads. Wednesday morning, as some of you probly read, my morning started out a bit shaky. After all the chaos, at 10 am on the nose, I see legs walking from my left towards me. Before I ever saw the body or head, I could tell it was a buck. So I grab my bow and as he approaches, I determine I'm going to shoot him. He was a pretty good 10 I'm assuming. Dark chocolate rack and a real big body. He walks right by my trail cam, and was standing 30 yards away, perfect broadside, peeing into a bed. I come to draw and settle my pin behind his shoulder and let it fly. Initially I knew I had him him low. I still have the image in bedded into my mind where I hit him. He turned a 45 and ran like hell. I knew the shot was shaky, so I climbed down and backed out. Around 7 hours later my brother and I began tracking. The blood was fairly sparse, but had moments when it was dark blood, and a decent amount of it. I found my arrow a little ways in, and it was covered in guts, and had some blood. We tracked him about 200 yards and decided to back off until Taylor came with his dog. The dog helped us down the trail a little ways, but it was a weird situation, and nonetheless, it was unsuccessful. Taylor's dog did great, but I didn't have and good enough trail for him to follow. So anyhow, we found the last blood, and began searching the perimeter for another speck. Just one more..nothing. so I went back out today, and was out from about 1 to dark. I looked high, low, every creek around, everywhere. .and nothing. I decided to maybe go to the last blood again and look around, and to my suprise found a bed he had been laying in, about 60 yards from the last blood. It had some deep blood in and, looked promising. No guts at all were in the bed. So I'm not giving up, I'm going to find this deer. I'll be back out in the morning, and I'll stay all day if I have to. Regardless if I find him or mor, I'm done for the year. I don't deserve to be in the stand. As for the hit. .ill try to find a pic. But it looks to me like I hit his guts and maybe liver? Any advice on tracking?
 

rsmith

Member
1,835
52
That's so upsetting to hear/read... Don't give up on finding him I'm sure he has to be close with a deep red bed close to last blood. Maybe grab a dog again and see if you can get him to pick it up again?? But don't give up on hunting either!! That's not te right thing to do at all, get back out their and keep practicing! Good luck on it and keep us posted!
 

bowhunter1023

Owner/Operator
Staff member
48,879
274
Appalachia
Water. Keep checking it all. Don't abandon the general area around the shot either. He could very well circle back as he originally felt comfortable in that area.

Good luck brother. Text me if you want another set of eyes. I'm off tomorrow.
 

jeremy44230

Senior Member
2,370
76
Medina County
Sounds like it could be liver. The bed is a good sign. Keep at it and keep your head up. Put in the time looking for this deer and exhaust all efforts, but don't hang up the bow!

Circle that bed tomorrow and you may pick the trail back up. He's hurting, check watering holes. Good luck.
 
Like jesse said check water. It sounds like you might have hit the liver. Start shooting as much as you can to biuld your confidence back up. Shoot only from unknown distances and different angles if you can. Learn from it and move on.
 

teej89

Senior Member
2,288
48
NE PA
if you find him or not don't give up man! It's part of hunting, it sucks but it happens to all of us. Go out and keep on hunting for all the others that wish they could be hunting but no longer can.

Best of luck to you with finding him, and like they've said before check the water sources. If I was off tomorrow i'd give you a hand, if you're still looking saturday I'll be down in the athens area if you need some help.
 

RedCloud

Super Moderator
Super Mod
17,381
193
North Central Ohio
Take Jesse with you tomorrow and I just about bet you 2 will find him. Don't worry much about bumping him either. I would run that deer as much as I can to keep him bleeding inside. Chances are fat has now plugged the holes so new blood will be a no go. Every step he takes hurts like hell and he will slow down and finally give up and give you another shot at him. Just keep him moving.

If you got liver he will be dead by 8-12 hrs after the shot but if you got straight guts he could go 3-5 days. Just depends on the amount of damage done. It sucks but it's not the end of the world either. Give it your best to recover him is all you can do. If you do that and you still don't find him you better get your ass back up that tree sunshine.
 

RedCloud

Super Moderator
Super Mod
17,381
193
North Central Ohio
just texted him. Gonna lend a hand hopefully

Keep me updated tomorrow via text. I think Jake has my number if not I know Taylor does and so does Jesse.

Jake, after you shot him did he run straight the way he was already heading or did he loop out about 30-40 yards and go back toward the way he came in? Just wondering because almost all of the deer I have hit and died looped out and back to where they came from. The only one that didn't was the doe I shot at Taylor's and I think she is a tri pod doe now and just fine last I heard. Just wondering if you went back onto one of the trails he could have come in on and started back tracking and looking about 20 yards off that trail if you could find him that way?
 

Boarhead

Dignitary Member
Supporting Member
Sorry to hear this Jake but am pretty sure several of us here have been down this road before.
Like Jesse said check the water sources in the area.
And even if you dont find him just keep at it and get back out there and hunt.
Good luck.