After the shot

With so many newbies hanging around these threads, a good discussion of key tips in retrieving deer seems in order.

Let me start it off with a couple points, those being seeing the shot and listening closely afterwards.

In most cases, seeing the shot so that you can recall the deer's reaction is a very good thing. With experience and spending time listening to others, you can make at least a fair determination of where the deer was hit, so long as you keep in mind that sometimes a hit deer will show little or no reaction. However, seeing the shot can also mean losing concentration on the specific aim point on the deer's body to glance at the antlers or size of the deer. When this happens, the shooter allows the aim point to drift, often resulting in a miss or even worse, a non-fatal hit on a deer that will never be recovered. An old timer I knew had a term for it- losing him in the cross hairs.

The second point is to listen closely as the deer bolts away after the shot since you can often hear the sound of the deer as it crashes through the brush. In some cases, you might even hear the deer as it crashes into something or even when it hits the ground.

Now of course, these and other comments to be shared mean nothing to those who always have their deer fall dead right there (DRT). As for the rest of us, I'm sure there are many who would enjoy hearing from those who have become very knowledgeable on what you should do after the shot.

I just shake a lot.
Seriously though, this is good advice.

If I don't see the deer go down I always wait 15 minutes or so for it to die before going and looking for blood at the place he was shot. With a bow id wait even longer not to jump a wounded deer. I also try and look for reference points so its easier to find where he was at when I shot and last place I seen him. Its also a good idea to take something you can mark the blood trail with especially if its a long trail that way if you get off the trail its easy to find it again.

I always find myself taking deer in thick country, and never out in the open. The first thought no matter how seasoned a hunter is always to go towards your kill. I have to tell myself every time to start at the location he/she was standing when I took the shot. If you take a late evening shot time can be of up most priority. Therefore, getting on the blood trail and setting a course to find him (when you don't hear it) is imperative.

For sure, give the animal time to expire, almost any dog will find a dead deer if it comes down to it.

True, but more important to give them time to die. Many hunters start the track too early. They jump them up where they probably would of expired if they gave them more time to do so. You are also really stressing the deer out if you jump them before they expire. This usually results in gamey tasting table fare if you are luck enough to find them.

Completely agree with you Pitchfork. I will usually have a celebratory drink while giving the time to wait him out. As far a gamey flavor that is another discussion. I have found the quicker you get the animals hide off the better. Never heard anything about the flavor of fear?

You are correct getting the meat cooled down ASAP, which skinning does better than anything else.

There were interesting studies done that showed deer that were stressed out before dying were tougher and gamier tasting than ones that were not.

ALWAYS make sure to make instant mental note of where the deer was standing when you shot him. Sometimes that is the key to even having a decent chance of recovery when they run.

There are a lot of variables to consider after the shot. First, did I feel very confident that I put the bullet on the mark. If so, I wait 5 minutes then get out to look for the animal. Or, do I think that maybe the shot may have been a bit off (perhaps a long shot), then I may wait 30 minutes before I go looking. If I think I may have missed or hit the animal, then I may wait longer. If darkness is coming fast then I will get out of the blind after 5 minutes and go to the spot and start tracking (we have lots of coyotes that can get to a wounded deer quick.)If its a morning shoot then I will definitely wait longer. But, every time I do shoot and the deer runs, I do wait with my rifle ready for a second shot just in case the deer comes back out again, wounded or not. I shoot a .243 rifle so knock-down shots behind the shoulder are very rare. Of course, a neck shot will put a deer down very time. If you aim at the neck and it runs, then you just missed!

I also say make a mental note of the last place you saw the deer run. Mark the tree, rock, brush, etc. Go to the spot where the animal was standing when shot and look for blood. then go to last place you saw the deer running. We did that one time and discovered there was a dry creek bed just past the brush where we last saw the deer. I remember reading or hearing someone say that deer usually run to water when wounded. We got in the creek bed and while looking both directions found blood in the spot i was standing. 20-30 yards down the dry channel there was the deer.

There is much to be said in using a double mantle, gas or propane lantern when looking for a downed deer at night. You'll be amazed at what you can overlook with that $150 super bright flashlight.

Agreed and this is more challenging that you'd think sometimes.

The blood trial often goes on a very different angle than the angle you pictured when you shot it.

Even when shot by a feeder the depth the animal was standing can be drastically different than you pictured during the shot

Exactly right. On Sunday, I shot a pig right under my feeder and it ran 20 yards. An hour later, I shot another pig under the same feeder and it dropped dead right there. When I went to recover them, I was surprised to see that the pig that I had shot earlier in the morning had actually been standing about 15 yards farther than the 2nd pig. I originally thought that they both had been standing around the same spot.

One of the oldest and most unsubstantiated claims I've ever heard is that wounded deer usually run towards water. Lots of theories behind this one. I have first hand knowledge of two deer that were found next to ponds, and have helped retrieve at least three deer out of creeks.

Grab a few paper towels and tear off small pieces and lay them on the ground as you are tracking a deer. It can help you to visualize where the deer ran and so you don't loose track of last blood.

I think most of us will give up a hunt to help someone track a deer. I have. Ask for help if you have it, another set of eyes is a big help. I helped a veteran hunter track a great 8 point with a perfect shot, heart/lungs. He was tracking the blood trail, but the buck was running what looked to me like a horse race. I followed the hoof prints through the thick cedars. I found the deer just before he did. The buck was a mudder....

I also have first hand experiences of deer running towards water when shot... somebody told me one time that the water helps heal their wounds. Also I think most deer try to travel downhill when wounded

After the shot. Jack another round in the chamber and stay on the deer. Do not pull the gun back in the window and stand it in the corner.
I have witnessed too many gut shots that have put a deer on the ground immediately, only to watch the deer stand after a few minutes and walk away to never be found. A second shot would have been easy and would have ended a 4 hour search for nothing.

My approach is a mix of old and new. After the shot, I wait about 15 minutes. And these days I use the RF to range the spot the deer was standing. That helps solve the problem of where the deer was standing, because it often looks different standing downrange than it did from the stand. Much quicker way to get to where the blood trail starts. Then I put a bit of pure white TP at every spot I find blood. If the daylight is dimming, that white TP glows in the light from a flashlight. After tracking deer for over 55 years, I have found that if terrain allows, fatally wounded deer tend to move in a somewhat straight line or follow a familiar trail. If you can’t find the next blood spot, look backwards to see if you are generally following the path the deer has been on. If blood remains hard to find, and if the leaves on the ground are damp, look for disturbed leaves. Fatally wounded deer will drag their hooves as they weaken. Look on saplings, brush, palmettto, or trees at the chest height of deer, as they will rest and lean on trees as they weaken.

As for seeking water, I do believe that gut shot deer often go to water if it’s close. Gut shot deer will live longer than a heart shot or lung shot deer, and must get thirsty from the wound damage.

I’ve tracked hundreds of deer, and the above is what comes to mind right now. I will say that the most important thing to do first is to wait long enough for the deer to get too weak to run. If you go storming into the woods and making a racket, adrenaline will get that buck up and running and make it near impossible to find. The noise of being pursued will associate the pain with your noise. Otherwise, the deer is getting weak and has not associated the pain and weakness to any dangerous thing that needs to be run from, so it feels Ok to just lean on this tree and rest a bit, and then slide down the tree to the ground.

As a newbie, I really appreciate the fact that all you experienced guys take time out of your days to put info like this together. I took my first shot at a deer today and when I went looking I used a lot of this info. Came to the conclusion that I just flat missed, but I ended up spending more of my day looking for sign than sitting in the blind. Time to practice some more! Anyways, appreciate all y'alls info. Don't know what the requirements are but this would be a cool thread to have stickied.

You need to believe that the bullet went where your crosshairs were when the rifle fired. You know if you shot high or low, or in the guts, or right behind the shoulder. It the bullet went into the guts, good luck with the tracking. Into the lungs or heart, the tracking shouldn’t be too long.

If you find blood, it will tell you a lot. Dark red with Green stuff in it...gut shot. Dark red...probably non-fatal. Bright red...maybe heart and always fatal. Bright red with froth and maybe pink stuff...lung shot and fatal.

To summarize, if the crosshairs were where they should be, there’s a dead deer somewhere, so close your eyes and remember that instant.

As i’ve aged, I don’t blood trail as well as I did when young. It’s good to have young eyes

Good on you for making sure. Here's another tidbit: Anyone who says they've never missed...is a liar.

The close your eyes and remember part I have used many times while guiding. Sometimes it takes a hunter 30 minutes or more for the rush to go away and really relive the shot. After a while they will know what went wrong or right, and we will find a deer shot exactly as they described.

Deer will sometimes expire in the most hard-to-find places that can be easily overlooked if you're not careful.

Anyone have a story to share about a deer that was found in a place that searchers had overlooked earlier?

Although it wasn't an out-of-the-way spot, I remember when I found a deer for a friend that had expired right at the edge of a pond. He had been looking for it some time before coming to my camp and asking for help. The pond had a short bank around it and the deer was laying at the bottom of it where it could be easily overlooked in the dark. I was using an old single mantle Coleman lantern at the time and noticed it while walking around the edge of the pond. It brings to mind the countless times I can remember when someone found a deer in a spot that others had walked past several times.

And let's be honest guys, some folks don't look as closely as others out of fear of the dark. Maybe they're just afraid of what they might see in the beam of their flashlight. Whatever the case, you sometimes have to keep that in mind and look more closely for them.

Wait even after they are down. Several years ago I shot a buck walking away from me from an elevation of 15ft. I shot between the shoulder blades and he went right down. When i pulled the trigger I saw a 5 inch piece of hide disappear between the sholders telling me I hit my mark. So many times in the past when a deer was hit that hard they were DRT. I gathtered my rifle and pack and came down the latter. Just a few feet away, I saw that this buck was taking a few large labored breaths. As I moved to one side to finish him off, he opened his eyes, looked at me jumped up and bounded away. This was a close encounter of the venison kind! This was in Wood county and in thick cover. To top it off it had been raining. As I stood there cussing my self, I heard a twig break and looked to see the buck standing broadside about 40yrds away. A second round behind the shoulder put a finish to what I had started. Had I waited he may have been done right there or had he gotten up I would have had a quick finish shot. Won't make that error again.

Z

Yes, Texas Dan, the overlooked deer. I was hunting with my cousin, who’s an excellent shot, and who loves to give me grief if, God forbid, I miss. So, I was up a tree and was looking for a fat doe to walk out in the bean field. And here came 3, so I picked the fat one. She was quartering toward me at 80yards, and I shot her in the front left quarter, where the bullet should hit heart/lungs. Waited a while and went to get her. No deer. I walked all over. No blood. Here came the cousin and he helped look and we found no deer. That got him to wildly laughing that I had missed. Honestly, no way I missed. No way at all. Still though, no deer. Finally gave up looking, went to the house, and came back the next morning. There HAS to be a dead deer here somewhere in these woods. It was a fairly open wooded area and all the leaves were down. Here came the cuz again to have more fun over my alleged miss. He was having the time of his life over my misery and just would not believe that I made the shot. So, we gave up again and I got ready for the next 10 years of kidding, but while walking out I saw a hoof. It was sticking out of some leaves. And there was the fat doe. I had shot her in the heart, and she took off like a rocket, as they often do, died in mid stride and slid under the thick carpet of leaves. The cousin shut up, thank goodness, and I haven’t heard any guff from him in a while.

Heck yeah. One of hour guys anchored a 10 point buck but was still moving its head. He left blind 5 minutes later to get his truck not too far away and when he got back, the deer was gone. We looked for hours. Only blood was where he dropped. Pretty frustrating he didn't put another shot in him. He lost 2 bucks that year and shot a 2 year old 8 that was outside the ears... He fixed his gun luckily.

^^ this - exactly.

Should even be practiced at the range (reloading WITHOUT taking eyes off target and firing 2nd round ).
I teach my 8-year old 4-H'rs to reload their bb-rifles without taking eyes off target; surely you big-boys with your 300wsm can do the same . . .

What? you guys only take 1 round up into the blind ????? One Shot Heros ???
The whole mindset here is wrong; shouldn't be thinking 'After THE shot' ... should be 'after the FIRST shot' . ..
Instead of 'waiting', checking your email/txt-msg, etc you should be 'Scanning like a hawk - instantly ready to fire that 2nd round should that buck suddenly move/stir/stand up'.... You LOST that deer the second you take your eyes off it, less you watched it do the 'death dance' ...

The last hog I shot hit the ground immediately and started kicking as if it had been hit solid. About 15 seconds later, it politely got back on its feet and started to trot off. It took another round from my 30-30 to put him down for good.

X2 Tracking at night sucks in general. I much prefer some other kind of light than a super bright LED flashlight, it seems to fade the color and make it harder to pick out blood for me.

To follow up on this, in my experience if you shoot an animal and it falls over and kicks for a minute and then gets up you better get another bullet in it or you probably will not find it.

Also remember that if a deer is running in a straight line just after a shot, it may peel off in one direction or another as it get close to expiring. That may also be right about the time the blood trail starts to fade since the deer is likely losing blood pressure in the case of a good lung shot.

I've had two instances like this that come to mind where I was following a good blood trail and then it petered out. One fat cactus buck I shot was going up a hill, and I followed in the general direction it had been heading but couldn't find it. I got my wife and son to help and we started doing search patterns knowing it could not have gone far based on the good lung blood trail I had. When we found it the trail had curled off to the left in a wide spiral as he got weak and then crashed under a big mesquite and cactus patch.

Another was a doe I shot with a 300wsm. Perfect behind the shoulder shot and she ran across a wide sandy creek bed and up the other side. I had a great blood trail. When I got to the far bank, the trail faded and I thought she had continued up the bank in the same direction she had been running. I searched for the better part of an hour before I found that she had veered left just as she got up on that bank , ran another 20 yards or so, and then fell back into the creek bed behind a clump of tall grass.

Good post.

I've often wondered if the loss of blood pressure causes a deer to go blind during those final seconds so that it really doesn't know where it's headed. I can remember two instances where I watched a deer that I had shot run straight into trees. The first time it happened I wasn't sure if it was the bullet wound that killed it or breaking its neck on the tree. An old timer had a term for this too which he called "running dead". I took his point as being that deer and other wild animals can still run with fatal wounds to the heart and lungs until their blood and blood pressure is totally exhausted. But then, bow hunters would likely call this a fact.