Back around 2003, I had driven out to Ft.McKavett with an astronomy club for a weekend star-party, and had decided to pack up and leave early about 04:30am sunday morning. The start of the drive home was about 25miles of gravel road lined with barbed wire fence on either side. Deer where everywhere, so was driving about 40mph. One had crossed in front of me, but instead of jumping the fence, pivoted and came back right into my right headlamp. I got down and approached, it's back was broken, and I dispatched it with a head shot from a .380 carry pistol, then I noticed the stomach moving, it was a full term pregnant doe. I did a very unskilled peri-mortun C-section with a leatherman tool, and supinzingly had a live fawn which I took to an animal shelter because I had no idea how to care for it. Still feel really bad about that one.
The deer that wouldn’t die....
- Thread starter YZ-80
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That's an amazing story! I wouldn't feel bad about it! With the .380, one of them died. Without it, they both would have.
Shouldn't feel bad, out of your control and you actually saved one life, what you did for that fawn was pretty cool.
ATH
Well-Known Member
When I was in high school and had not yet killed a buck...good number of does...my cousin and I were stillhunting 50 yards apart through a woods. Suddenly there I was with a bedded buck in front of me. Shotgun only zone I swung my Mossberg 500 to my shoulder and delivered a slug to the chest. The buck jumped to its feed, I sent a second, which went low as the deer was rising and broke a front leg.
I approached the deer and took in the full context. The area around the deer was flattened, it was clear it had been on the ground in a small area for a number of days, already injured by another hunter. Back leg was also broken. Wanting to save meat, I sent another slug through its neck. That just caused it to start breathing through the hole in its neck (to this day I hate neck shots). A slug to the head of a buck is an ugly thing so I took out my Buck knife and cut the throat.
In gutting and cleaning that deer, my knife cut and two slugs aside, that deer had been hit by 3 other slugs and 10 pellets of buckshot. Ended up having to throw out all the meat due to gangrene. Yet it had lived a good number of days. I always felt bad about that one, but at the same time was glad I happened across it to end the suffering.
I approached the deer and took in the full context. The area around the deer was flattened, it was clear it had been on the ground in a small area for a number of days, already injured by another hunter. Back leg was also broken. Wanting to save meat, I sent another slug through its neck. That just caused it to start breathing through the hole in its neck (to this day I hate neck shots). A slug to the head of a buck is an ugly thing so I took out my Buck knife and cut the throat.
In gutting and cleaning that deer, my knife cut and two slugs aside, that deer had been hit by 3 other slugs and 10 pellets of buckshot. Ended up having to throw out all the meat due to gangrene. Yet it had lived a good number of days. I always felt bad about that one, but at the same time was glad I happened across it to end the suffering.
matt_3479
Well-Known Member
The worst I had I can't believe it. My area is shotgun muzzle loader and I shoot a 20 gauge savage 220 with Remington accutip slugs. I sat for 3.5 hours and had a buddy sitting in the field. Well my friend got antsy and I told him we could meet in between and take a slow quiet walk down this trail which opens up into this swamp. Well 4 seconds on the trail a beautiful 8 point steps out 75 yards to my left. We pull up (buddies wearing a go pro) and I send one slug just behind his shoulders double lung and top of heart. The buck jumps falls and gets up. The deer took off like it had been startled not injured. Myself and my buddy take a running poke and hit hard quartering mid section exiting front of left shoulder. Deer had dropped again! We reloaded and waited a few minutes before making our walk through the thick swamp.
The buck had dropped just feet from a tree line which would of been ugly. As we make it within 10' of the buck a doe jumps from her bed startled the heck out of us, which also jumps the "presumed dead buck" and off he goes through the trees. We back out of there and go back to the truck to watch the footage and see two clean hits. We wait an hour and go back after him.
By gps we tracked him 850 yards, through the tree line, over an old stone fence, across the open hay field, through a dividing tree line, across a plowed field, into a bush, and the trail went cold once he hit a super wet, muddy swamp!! We marked on the gps and called a buddy with dogs, and we found him piled up, expired this time another 50-75 yards in the swamp!! After gutting him both shots were good! Nothing out of the ordinary and not my first deer with that particular set up. I've shot 7-8 deer with this exact set up and 4-5 were drt, 2 ran less then 30 yards and piled up, and then this guy just wouldn't quite!
The buck had dropped just feet from a tree line which would of been ugly. As we make it within 10' of the buck a doe jumps from her bed startled the heck out of us, which also jumps the "presumed dead buck" and off he goes through the trees. We back out of there and go back to the truck to watch the footage and see two clean hits. We wait an hour and go back after him.
By gps we tracked him 850 yards, through the tree line, over an old stone fence, across the open hay field, through a dividing tree line, across a plowed field, into a bush, and the trail went cold once he hit a super wet, muddy swamp!! We marked on the gps and called a buddy with dogs, and we found him piled up, expired this time another 50-75 yards in the swamp!! After gutting him both shots were good! Nothing out of the ordinary and not my first deer with that particular set up. I've shot 7-8 deer with this exact set up and 4-5 were drt, 2 ran less then 30 yards and piled up, and then this guy just wouldn't quite!
shooter7
Well-Known Member
My first elk didn't go as like I thought it would. I was shooting a 7mm Rem Mag with 168 Berger Classic hunters. Muzzle velocity was about 2950.
I was driving home from work at about 4:30 in the afternoon. I just so happened to catch a glimpse of a small herd running from the timberline down towards the willows on the state management area. I raced back to the office and hopped in my rig. It had most of gear in it already.
I arrived to the access point and it turns out no one else had seen them. I had the place to myself. I closed to about 500 yards using very minimal topography to hide my movement. I then decided to hop into the creek and use that to close another couple hundred yards.
When I knew I was close enough, I crawled out of the creek and stuck my nose just over a small rise. I saw a herd of about 30 animals at about 300 yards. I picked out the cow I wanted and waited for about 15 minutes for her to separate from the group. The whole time I was hoping no one would bust up my hunt. The herd was about a mile and a half from a state highway and completely visible out in the pasture. Luckily for me, no one else wanted to kill an elk that night.
The moment came. She stepped away from the group. I ranged her one more time to confirm. 297 yards. As someone who grew up in northern Michigan, this was hands down the longest shot I had ever had the opportunity to take. I had a solid rest with the bipod and actually used a large ant mound as a rear bag. The rifle was rock solid. After laying there for 15 to 20 minutes I was quite calm. Buck fever had come and gone. I knew it was as simple as dialing for 300 yards (2.75 MOA) and squeezing the trigger.
I broke the shot. Shortly after I heard the bullet impact. The herd immediately clumped into a tiny ball confused at what had just happened. They stayed clumped together for about 5 minutes before they began to relax again and slowly disperse.
At this point I was confused. There should have been a dead elk on the ground, but there wasn't. I managed to find her in the group again she was standing still but her breathing was quite labored. I waited for another couple minutes for her calf to clear away and sent another shot. They all clumped up again.
Another 5 minutes had passed and they had once again begun to disperse. She was still standing. Once again, I waited for a clear shot. The third shot finally dropped her and that was enough for the rest of the herd to get outta Dodge.
I stayed behind the rifle for another couple minutes to make sure she wouldn't get up again. I collected my gear and began walking over to her. At about 20 yards she picked her head up and stared at me. I closed to about 5 yards and she stood up. I put one more in in the boiler room to finish her off.
Once I gutted her, I found zero intact lung tissue, the bottom half of the heart and about half a liver. All 4 shots went into the vitals, never contacting bone except for a couple ribs. Not a single bullet exited the animal and all I found was a couple copper fragments. From. First shot to 4th shot it took about 20 minutes.
I was driving home from work at about 4:30 in the afternoon. I just so happened to catch a glimpse of a small herd running from the timberline down towards the willows on the state management area. I raced back to the office and hopped in my rig. It had most of gear in it already.
I arrived to the access point and it turns out no one else had seen them. I had the place to myself. I closed to about 500 yards using very minimal topography to hide my movement. I then decided to hop into the creek and use that to close another couple hundred yards.
When I knew I was close enough, I crawled out of the creek and stuck my nose just over a small rise. I saw a herd of about 30 animals at about 300 yards. I picked out the cow I wanted and waited for about 15 minutes for her to separate from the group. The whole time I was hoping no one would bust up my hunt. The herd was about a mile and a half from a state highway and completely visible out in the pasture. Luckily for me, no one else wanted to kill an elk that night.
The moment came. She stepped away from the group. I ranged her one more time to confirm. 297 yards. As someone who grew up in northern Michigan, this was hands down the longest shot I had ever had the opportunity to take. I had a solid rest with the bipod and actually used a large ant mound as a rear bag. The rifle was rock solid. After laying there for 15 to 20 minutes I was quite calm. Buck fever had come and gone. I knew it was as simple as dialing for 300 yards (2.75 MOA) and squeezing the trigger.
I broke the shot. Shortly after I heard the bullet impact. The herd immediately clumped into a tiny ball confused at what had just happened. They stayed clumped together for about 5 minutes before they began to relax again and slowly disperse.
At this point I was confused. There should have been a dead elk on the ground, but there wasn't. I managed to find her in the group again she was standing still but her breathing was quite labored. I waited for another couple minutes for her calf to clear away and sent another shot. They all clumped up again.
Another 5 minutes had passed and they had once again begun to disperse. She was still standing. Once again, I waited for a clear shot. The third shot finally dropped her and that was enough for the rest of the herd to get outta Dodge.
I stayed behind the rifle for another couple minutes to make sure she wouldn't get up again. I collected my gear and began walking over to her. At about 20 yards she picked her head up and stared at me. I closed to about 5 yards and she stood up. I put one more in in the boiler room to finish her off.
Once I gutted her, I found zero intact lung tissue, the bottom half of the heart and about half a liver. All 4 shots went into the vitals, never contacting bone except for a couple ribs. Not a single bullet exited the animal and all I found was a couple copper fragments. From. First shot to 4th shot it took about 20 minutes.
