Texas Hunting Forum

Anticipating and adjusting

Posted By: Mike Mathena

Anticipating and adjusting - 08/06/17 01:27 PM

Watching pig man bow hunting yesterday, he took a shot a doe that had her head down and the doe dropped as soon as she hard it, arrow went over her back. The next one he said he aimed 8 inches below the heart and and made a perfect kill shot. I'll be xbow hunting for the first time this year and was wondering if anyone anticipates this on every shot at a deer.
Posted By: Curtis

Re: Anticipating and adjusting - 08/06/17 01:40 PM

I think for the most part that comes from just studying the deer pressure in the area your hunting. Under high stress you can expect them to jump or be very wary. Learn how to watch a deer posture will tell you a lot about how alert they are. Most rifle hunters I meet don't get that but a lot of the well experienced bow hunters do. Watch the ears. They will tell you a lot on how alert the deer is. If it's relaxed, I aim where the vitals are. Sometime i aim a little lower if i feel they are nervous. It just depends on what i see them doing. Distance will make me adjust for a different aim point along with how alert they are.
Posted By: kmon11

Re: Anticipating and adjusting - 08/06/17 02:15 PM

Curtis is right on with that post. I have seen deer not react at all and another I shot a limb on a tree that was hidden by the deer's chest at heart height without touching the deer. Of course the closer you are the less time there is for them to react to the shot but can make it more difficult to get the shot undetected.

If I can find a good frequently used trail leading to a feeder or other food source I prefer to hunt it than the actual food source especially of man made food source like a feeder. Sure I have been successful hunting feeders but deer seem to react to the shot less in my experience when comfortable One such setup is a tripod set back in an oak tree with tails on either side of it and mostly open between the stand and feeder. Deer often walk right past the stand giving a good quartering away shot while they are looking at the feeder and the noise comes from behind and the side of them and have bot seen them react to the shot much at all.

But like Curtis said study deer and pay close attention to their ears and other body language. Smooth movements when walking not jerky with head or legs and relaxed ears make for a good target. But just in case I like to shoot at the lower vitals, if they do drop you might still have a good vital shot and if they don't react a heart or lower lung shot leaves a better blood trail than a high chest shot.
Posted By: kmon11

Re: Anticipating and adjusting - 08/06/17 02:17 PM

One thing all those videos that are out there to watch now can teach you a lot if you pay attention to the bod language of the deer pre shot. in a short time you can watch what would take years of hunting to see.
Posted By: Mike Mathena

Re: Anticipating and adjusting - 08/06/17 04:02 PM

excellent info guys, thanks
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