I was just wandering this....I was told that the impact of an arrow hitting a deer was like the impact of a 30-06 hitting a deer. If thats the case why do deer (90% of the time) seem to run forever after being shot by a bow, but 90% of the time when shot with a gun(30-06) they dont go far. Not trying to piss off bow hunters just wanting to know the truth to this. Im thinking of getting a bow soon but as of right now I think its kinda cruel... just my opinion guys.

Kinetic Energy, and shot placement.

Hydrostatic shock effect

With a bow they die from blood lose and from shock from a bullet. I think deer die less painfully from a bow than a gun. I have had many deer run a few yards and look back like what happened? and keel over and die.

I have seen the same thing myself many times.

When I shoot a deer with a bow they typically go about 40 yds. When I shoot a deer with a rifle they typically go about 40yds.

A good bow hunter will kill just as fast as a rifle hunter. The deer I shot this weekend had a complete pass through both lungs and he went maybe 25 yards and dropped like a ton of bricks. I have seen a significant difference with pigs though.

Cool guys. I was just wandering the truth to it all. Ive been wanting to get a bow so I can start hunting sooner but I hunt on 11 acres. We are in a great spot and see lots of nice deer but I was scared to get a bow and shoot cause I figured I would have to cross a bunch of fences to get him. So with a little practice I could make it work. Thanks for the info guys.

An arrow does not create the same impact that a 30-06 does. Have you ever seen a deer get knocked down by an arrow? A 30-06 has true knockdown power. First it is moving MUCH faster than an arrow (about 10 times faster) and it is able to TRANSFER that energy to the animal by mushrooming out. An arrow kills by blood/oxygen loss.

Right now, I just can't bring myself to shoot an animal with a bow. I watch too many bow hunting shows and the animal is often lossed. It's my personal opinion. To each his own.

That being said...I've had a lot of deer run way off after being lung shot with my 243. Go figure. I have seen alot of shows where the deer run off a ways to turn around as if to say "what just happened"?

I knocked a deer flat on his butt with an arrow last year with a high double lung shot at about 30 yards. He went straight to his knees, rolled over and did a couple death kicks, then he was done. The arrow never made it all the way through though, busted a rib on the opposite side and the broad head was sticking out barely. Maybe there was enough shock transferred to the spine to knock him down, dunno but it was a first for me other than a spine shot.

You are entirely correct, however I took his post to question which was more effective. A bow can be just as quick and effective as a rifle if shot properly, and death can come equally quick. But you are definitely right that the transfer of kinetic energy from a bow isn't even in the same ballpark as a rifle.

Thats pretty much how I feel. I watch a ton of hunting shows and the deer just seem to suffer more with a bow. 9 times out of 10 if you shoot one with a gun hes not going far. I heard one hunter say he hit his deer with a great bow shot and tracked the deer til there was no blood. Found the deer a mile away dead two weeks later. CRUEL

to say bowhunting is cruel is far from true.. a bad shot will make an animal suffer and live longer than intended no matter what weapon is used.. a bow is just as effective with good shot placement but a lot of people just grab a bow shoot a few times and hit the woods and thats no where near the shooting experience needed to be an ethical bowhunter

Shot Placement Shot Placement Shot Placement
Whether it be a rifle or a bow. I think it is CRUEL to gut shoot a deer with a rifle.
But I can promise you this, when and if you ever shoot a deer with a bow, you will put the rifle up!!!

I just get tired of 99% percent of hunting shows using a bow. That's why I'm against bow-hunting.

Hey Sqiggy, I believe you and I met a few year's ago down at Freer hunting with the soldier's.

so much misinformation

Shock wave exists, but it does NO DAMAGE.

bullets kill by interruption of brain activity or bleeding to death. thats it. there are only two effects of bullets that matter, Crush and stretch. this is permanent cavity and temporary.

kinetic energy is overrated, its all about how the projectile interacts with its target. thats why arrows do so well, very little kinetic energy but cutting tissue is easier than crushing it. hence their ability to still kill big game.

http://ammo.ar15.com/project/Fackler_Articles/shock_wave_myth.pdf

http://www.rkba.org/research/fackler/wrong.html

I have gut shot a deer and it went 40 yards and died. I plan on becoming a bow hunter someday. Thats why I dont know why some of the guys are trying to be smart arses. I never said it was wrong, just in my opinion it seems cruel. It might not be. I have just seen tons of bow hunts on tv where the deer walked around after being shot breathing hard and suffering before it layed down to die.

I agree with Sqiggy "SHOT PLACEMENT" I've killed more deer with a bow than my gun. After shooting my first one, it is such a rush, and IMO a bigger challenge. Dropping a deer at 10yds with a bow from a ground blind is more challenging to me than a 150 yd shot with a gun.

But for the record, I hunt rifle, bow and muzzle. But bow is my favorite.

HAPPY HUNTING

And I would have to disagree with you, the bow hunting is the reason I watch the shows more than the rifle hunting. Hiding a camera in a tree stand 15yds from the deer, while getting a shot off is much more difficult than doing so in a box blind 200yds from the animal

SEE THIS IS THE PROBLEM IM HAVING. ALL YOU BOW HUNTERS ARE SAYING THERE IS NO SKILL IN RIFLE HUNTING. I BET 95% OF YALL WERE RIFLE HUNTERS BEFORE BOW. AM I RIGHT. SO WHY GET SO PISSY ABOUT RIFLE HUNTERS. THIS TOPIC SAID NOTHING ABOUT DOGGING BOW HUNTERS SO WHY ARE YALL DOGGING RIFLE HUNTERS. ITS THE BOW HUNTERS WHO ARE SEPERATING THEIRSELVES FROM THE RIFLE HUNTERS. WE'RE ALL HUNTERS GUY SO DONT GET ARSE HURT OVER A TOPIC.

BORN2HUNT, you are writing out of ignorance. A good number of the deer I've shot with my bow have only gone 20 yards or less. Most less than 100 yards and were dead in 30 seconds to a minute. Have I lost a deer with a bow? Yes. I know several rifle shooters with '06s or 300 mags that have lost several because they have too much confidence in the reach and power of their weapon and will take any shot presented. With my bow I have to wait for the right shot at the right range.

I hunted on a lease with a "traditional" long bow hunter that shot 5 deer one year and only recovered one. Irresponsible at best. I also hunted with a guy with a 7 mag who shot 3 over 2 years that he claimed he missed because they didn't drt and we found all three of them within 100 yards. 2 of them after it was too late to use them. The 3rd one he came and got us and we were able to get his tag on it.

It's not about what you hunt with it's about being good with it.
(My apologies to the crossbow crowd) Bad shots happen, with all of the weapon choices. Bullets not designed for the game we shoot or the speed shot at and other factors can turn a good shot into a lost animal too. Bad broadheads make for a long or fruitless blood trail as well.

As far as starting early look at it like this. There is a reason deer are going nocturnal by the third week of gun season. The #s of people, the 4 wheelers, the noise and gun shots. I often shoot deer in a group and the others don't know what happened and just wander off after the shot. I had them watch their herd mate laying there drt and go back to feeding on the rye grass I planted and had to wait for them to wander off to recover my deer. That's why we need it earlier. It's up close, personal and infinitely tougher. Even for a crossbow.

So get the heck of it. This is your second thread pounding this issue and it's already old.

Deer that are shot with a gun, die from shock, especially from larger calibers, the central nervous system cannot take that immediate amount of trauma. When shot with a broadhead they die from hemoraging. When shot with small calibers, like a .223 or even a .243 I have seen deer acutally run farther than they do when shot with a broadhead tipped arrow or bolt. I have seen deer run 300+ yards when shot straight through the lungs with a .243 when the bullet did not fragment properly, and deer die in 6 seconds when shot with a properly placed arrow.


I agree, several times I have double lunged deer with a bow and they did not even know they were hit, only to fall over seconds later.

I think the key to any shot whether gun or bow is what has been said...shot placement....It's been my experience that the margin of error is much smaller with a bow...thus wounded or lost deer....I have guided many, many hunters, both gun and bow.....and have lost more from bow than gun...typically from shot placement and typically from less experienced shooters (either way). So having said all this....my advice to my hunters comes after I watch them practice at the range and evaluate their skill is quite simple. I won't let them take a shot that I feel they cannot take. Now I'm not knocking bow hunters. You give me a bow hunter that can shoot....I'll take them everyday over a gun hunter...It just boils down to shot placement...either way...you just don't have the margin of error with a bow like one does with a gun...JMO