Wounding Game

[35 Whelen]

Well it happens from time to time........on Thursday afternoon it happened to me. I have been after this Buck
for the whole season and finally caught up with him! We are now in BP season so had the old smokepole with 245gr Powerbelts n 100gr powder in it. Caught him with a doe on the far side of the river, standing with her right at edge of the woods broadside!( Slam dunk shot for the .270W) First error was I misjudged them to be about 225 yds. At this point both deer had "made me", and were on high alert; so I knew I needed to shoot, and soon! The gun is lined up, dead on at 100yds. I got up against a tree and held right up the front leg just under the top of his back because of the distance.
This was at 3:30pm. At the crack of the shot the buck hunched and took off. The ice though thick enough for them didnt suit me.So I had to run back up over the ridge to the Jeep then drive a mile and half to get over to where they were standing. When I got there I imeadiately noticed blood spurting out of the offside every jump. So I started following it and it was steady for about a 1/2 mile . By now it is getting dark fast ;he is not running, but walking faster than I can ever overtake him. So darkness over took me 3/4 of a mile from the road with no flashlite and no buck.....it was now 4:30pm. Yesterday at daylight 3 of us went right in, took the track were I left it within a couple hundred yards we found where he had spent the nite, under a big Hemlock, the bed had what looked like maybe a pint of blood in the snow, but have no way of knowing how long he lie there?? And sometime during the nite, he had got up, and walked straight back to the lake NOT hardly bleeding at all (few drops) every 75 yards..... And his tracks went right straight across the lake to far side.
I went back and ranged the tree I fired from and it was actually only 183 yds....... All blood was bright red, the deer was hit from his right side but most of the blood was from the left side exit hole. (See pic below, towards the end of him leaking.)Not really sure where the deer is hit though we did find some short brown hair, right where he was standing??? Brisket???? Anyway the older I get the more this stuff bothers me. As the very thought of the coyotes pulling him down; this winter, because of my lousy shooting. Is certainly one that Does NOT appeal to me....... :x
It sucks but it happens.

 

[NYDAN]

Earl, I am sorry you lost the buck. That always hurts. My guess is that you hit high above the backbone. As you know, the backbone dips down the further forward you go. Above the shoulders, there is a lot of room above the backbone. I have seen several deer hit there and it didn't stop them. My first wife put a 12 gauge slug through the top of the shoulders and the buck ran. Her follow-up shot through the chest stopped the buck. However, I couldn't believe the size of the slug hole above the backbone.

 

[mjcmichigan]

I too hate loosing a animal to the winter or coyotes. I share your pain. Right now, I have a stand I don’t care for as the deer will often face me or face away. I took one of those odd angle shots... tracked for an hour... then the deer looped me and I ended up on the trail again.. spent 40+ minutes trying to figure out the loop. There’s a two track that runs the south edge of the woods.. figured if it crossed I could find it again... it didn’t, so started back into the woods.. got lucky and caught the eyes reflecting at 70 yards.. so I did recover that one.. turns out the shot angle I took gave me a single lung shot high...I was feeling pretty bad when i was stuck on that loop.

Wishing you success.
Mark


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[truck driver]

Very unfortunate Earl but it happens and if we all are honest about it probably has happened to all of us at some time or another.
Mine was a big doe that was coming straight at me head on and I skimmed her brisket with a 12ga slug, found meat and hair but no blood to track and she ran as if she had been stung by hornet.
Searched for over an hour with know results. This was over ten years ago when the area I use to hunt in went to shot gun only with slugs and wasn't use to shooting slugs.

 

[rodell]

My son wounded a deer on his first opportunity at his first deer (he's 11) on Kodiak last week. Even without experience, he felt it. We looked for a long time but couldn't find any blood, only hair. He was really bummed and I didn't really dissuade him from the feeling.

He got one on our last day of hunting and I believe he was much more careful with the shot!

 

[DrMike]

A painful experience that all of us who hunt have passed through. You are correct, E, the older we get, the more this type of thing bothers us.

 

[Thankful Otter]

Earle, first and foremost I am sorry you lost him. Are you not allowed to use dogs to track wounded game ? Not hunt them but track them. Our little dog has saved our bacon several times, but tracking down wounded game.

 

[salmonchaser]

Sucks, hate loosing game.


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[Africa Huntress]

I feel your pain sir. I HATE the wounded animal scenario. Many times for us we have the addition problem of becoming the hunted by the injured animal. Also if not recovered quickly we can also lose it to other animals. We sometimes will change firearms if an animal is wounded ( especially leopard ) and use a "drilling". We have them both ways, double rifle on top with single shotgun below or double shotgun on top with single rifle below, preference, depending on which animal we are tracking. The one thing we dont have sir is that white stuff on the ground, which can be an asset when tracking ( we do have it in Sweden (-; )

Best Regards

Jamila

 

[Guy Miner]

Fair possibility that the deer will just heal up, and make it through winter. They're tough that way.

If you didn't get anything vital, didn't take out the lungs, he may do just fine. And he'll be smarter about standing still anywhere around you!

Ya, I had to go back and get a deer one morning. I'd shot it at last light. It ran. I couldn't find it. Backed off. Went back out first thing in the morning and located the deer, not 50 yards from where I'd called off the search the night before. It was a cold night & morning, so the meat was still excellent. I had been worried about that deer all night long!

Guy

 

[mjcmichigan]

Lol. Cheyenne, you are so right about dogs. That black Bear I shot in sept, ran down the trail we’d come in on. Then turned off to the right. One of the guys that came to help me drag it brought his short hair German pointer. She locked up on the bear and correctly pointed it. I’m sure it was her first bear.
Her name Is Tikka.


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[ozarkpugs]

My wife put a shot high over the shoulder with a 7/08 on a big 8 point a couple years back and we lost him .a week later he showed up on game camera and the wound was healing and about a month later he was on camera fighting another 8 pt. I think as far as yours went and no pink blood he isn't lung/ liver shot and likely as not survived the shot.

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[hunternyny]

Earle.

I always enjoy your posts,, your posts are interesting and enjoyable, thank you. Hope you found him today.

jamila, same with you young lady. Although I do not have any experience in your hunting area or firearms you use, i enjoy reading about them. I have never seen a drilling or a leopard for that matter that wasn't in an enclosure

 

[noslerpartition]

Sorry to read you lost him.

I don't have enough money to pay for the look on a dog's face when it wants to tell you 'C'mon guy - where's the problem? I know it's over there. Just follow me!'

It is always amazing how their noses lead them, if they are trained. They don't even need blood, just the hoove-prints.

Especially the bloodhound-breeds. Fascinating to watch them. Very calm and following game like on tracks.
Don't know your rules, but if possible, I would give it a try. Depending on terrain, even 'backpack-sized dogs do the job. A friend of mine sells 'Teckel' to the US on a regular basis. Small and reliable...

NP

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[noslerpartition]

I feel your pain sir. I HATE the wounded animal scenario. Many times for us we have the addition problem of becoming the hunted by the injured animal. Also if not recovered quickly we can also lose it to other animals. We sometimes will change firearms if an animal is wounded ( especially leopard ) and use a "drilling". We have them both ways, double rifle on top with single shotgun below or double shotgun on top with single rifle below, preference, depending on which animal we are tracking. The one thing we dont have sir is that white stuff on the ground, which can be an asset when tracking ( we do have it in Sweden (-; )

Best Regards

Jamila

Which calibers do you use in the Drilling for that purpose?
I have an old one in 8x57 IRS/16-70, but I don't know if I want to face a leopard with it...

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[Africa Huntress]

Well heck guys, please accept my apologizes. My ONLY purpose for mentioning the "drilling" was because it was a thread about wounding animals. I was not thinking that it would rub people the wrong way. You guys have a great Christmas.

Best Regards

Jamila

p..s. Frank, it would work. Those who use a shotgun usually like a 12 or 10. I sent you the details about ours via p.m., which as you will note, it was made in your country. Albeit a tad before I was born.

 

[noslerpartition]

Well heck guys, please accept my apologizes. My ONLY purpose for mentioning the "drilling" was because it was a thread about wounding animals. I was not thinking that it would rub people the wrong way. You guys have a great Christmas.

Best Regards

Jamila

p..s. Frank, it would work. Those who use a shotgun usually like a 12 or 10. I sent you the details about ours via p.m., which as you will note, it was made in your country. Albeit a tad before I was born.

Hi Jamila,
I guess most Drillings out there were built in Germany.
You are probably right - a good 8mm bullet or a 16 gauge slug from a short distance will probably kill most game.

With modern powders and bullets, you can actually teach that caliber to be good for mid-range hunting ;-)

Thanks for the pm!

PS: mine is a few decades older than me, too...

 

[Europe]

Well heck guys, please accept my apologizes. My ONLY purpose for mentioning the "drilling" was because it was a thread about wounding animals. I was not thinking that it would rub people the wrong way. You guys have a great Christmas.

Best Regards

Jamila

p..s. Frank, it would work. Those who use a shotgun usually like a 12 or 10. I sent you the details about ours via p.m., which as you will note, it was made in your country. Albeit a tad before I was born.

Jamila, only those with small minds will have no interest in things they have no knowledge of. Drillings are an entirely different type of firearm, but like muzzleloaders, doubles, AK,s,
combinations, etc, they are firearms, that are still made today--in Germany and not far from where Frank hunts. I have never owned one but had the opportunity to use one many years ago when visiting your country. We did have combinations, but never really liked them, but they also have a place and are liked by some. I would love to go leopard hunting but have no desire to track a wounded leopard with or without a combination firearm. However the one I used was used to hunt Buffalo and it was a double rifle on top with a single shotgun underneath. I however did not use it personally to hunt Buffalo, but used it on a plains game hunt and birds. as a bird gun it was terrible.

Frank, that is a sweet drilling that you have, which is it--double 8's on top or double 16 on top?

 

[Guy Miner]

Well heck guys, please accept my apologizes. My ONLY purpose for mentioning the "drilling" was because it was a thread about wounding animals. I was not thinking that it would rub people the wrong way. You guys have a great Christmas.

Best Regards

Jamila

p..s. Frank, it would work. Those who use a shotgun usually like a 12 or 10. I sent you the details about ours via p.m., which as you will note, it was made in your country. Albeit a tad before I was born.

It rubbed someone the wrong way?

Apparently I missed that one. Huh.

Never had or fired a drilling, have seen a few. Thought they were pretty cool.

Regards, Guy

 

[mjcmichigan]

I’m with Guy. I missed it. Not offended.

I’ve never tracked a wounded cheetah and will likely never get the opportunity.

I’d think it would be exhilarating!

As the drilling goes.. I had never heard the term and enjoyed reading on the and browsing gunbroker to see some pictures. Looks like a weapon that’s versatile.

Thanks for making me a little more knowledgeable!


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