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<blockquote data-quote="Jungleexplorer" data-source="post: 1017449" data-attributes="member: 56322"><p>You make some really good points and I agree with what you have said. As I have stated before (in this thread), I personally will only make a head shot if I feel sure I can make it. As we all know, hunting is an exercise in chaos. There are many ever changing variables that occur in the field that a responsible hunter must consider before pulling that trigger.</p><p></p><p>To make it redundantly clear; I am not in anyway advocating that hunters should be head shooters in exclusivity. What I am addressing here is the general prevailing mentality among American hunters, that the "Chest Shot" is the, "Best" or "Correct" shot to make on a deer. I have never said or implied that a chest shot is not a good or effective kill shot. My concern is that the chest shot is promoted and taught in exclusivity as the best or correct shot. </p><p></p><p>Take this thread for example. Even though I have not attacked anyone directly on here and have gone to great lengths to openly demonstrate my respect for everyone on here, many posters have attacked me, ridiculed me, implied that I am an unethical hunter and more. Almost every poster has reacted to my statements as if I were attacking them personally, simply because I am talking about the benefits of the head shot. I dare say that, not a single other poster that has commented, has come down on my side of the discussion.</p><p></p><p>It is this prevailing mentality among hunters that I am talking about. American hunters seem to take offense, get very defensive and will attack you if you even suggest that a head shot might be an acceptable or preferred alternative to chest shooting. The reactions on this thread alone provides enough evidence to support what I am saying here. The reaction can be so strong as to even threaten friendships in some cases.</p><p></p><p>There seems to be a loud voice among American hunters that is say <strong>"The chest shot is the RIGHT shot on a deer."</strong> I believe the ideology of the chest shot being the "Right" shot on a deer is in error and is actually harmful. The chest shot is certainly a good shot and if done properly can be an effective shot, but it is not the "ONLY" shot and it is certainly not the "Right" shot in all cases.</p><p></p><p>I know a couple of professional cull hunters that shoot literally hundreds if not thousands of big game animals each year on on high fence ranches for population control purposes. They are hired by the ranch to thin out the herds. I have had many discussions with these men about shot placement. Everyone of them, and all the people that they know in their line of business, are all head shooters. The only reason they would ever consider shooting a big game animal anywhere else then the head was if they wanted the head for a trophy. I myself have operated as a cull hunter, (though not professionally) on a high fence ranch that had thousands of deer and other big game exotics. This ranch required that I pass a test before they would allow me to cull hunt. The ranch mandated that a cull hunter must exclusively be a head shooter. When I asked them why they had this rule, they answered, "Because chest shooting results in too many wounded deer." They drove me out on the ranch and pointed to a whitetail deer about 100 yards away and said shoot that deer. As I lined up on the deer's head to shoot, a massive trophy whitetail buck stood up 10 yards on the other side of the of the deer I had my scope on, with it's chest region directly in line with the head of the deer I was aiming at. The ranch manager whispered, "Take the shot". BOOM! I shot and the deer I was aiming at dropped and the big buck ran off. I asked the ranch manager, how much was that big buck worth, if I would have missed and killed him? $10,000 dollars! I was like, DUDE! Why would you tell me to take that shot? "Because, to cull hunt on this ranch you will always be shooting in a crowd of deer with trophy animals walking around. If you don't have the confidence to do a head shot on a deer in a crowd, you can't cull hunt on this ranch." </p><p></p><p>Out of 4 hunters that were being tested that day, I was the only one to qualify. It was on that day that I saw my one and only drop jawed deer. One of the other hunters (that was being tested) was lined up on a front facing deer and the manager gave the shoot command and said "DO NOT drop jaw that deer". Boom! Down went the jaw and out went that hunter. I cull hunted for that ranch for over a decade with many other cull hunters, killing countless deer. All head shots. Not a single wounded deer.</p><p></p><p>My concern is not that some hunters chest shoot deer. My concern is that most American hunters promote the idea that the chest shot is the "Only right shot" on a deer and attack anyone who suggest otherwise, when the facts clearly support that the head shot is a much better choice in most (but not all) cases. </p><p></p><p>I am not against the chest shot. I have used it myself when the situation warranted it. I know lot's of people that I highly respect that are chest shooters for one reason or another ( bad eyesight, hand tremors, lack of confidence, disagree with me. LOL! etc.) I respect every hunter here and the choices you make and I am not trying in the slightest way to say that you are doing anything wrong by choosing to chest shoot a deer. I guess my goal is not to eliminate the idea of the chest shot, but to encourage hunters to consider the head shot as a viable alternative to the chest shot under the right conditions.</p><p></p><p>Anyway, I have to go out and check on my smoker. A friend shot three 200 pound wild hogs yesterday and brought out them to process them at my ranch. He gave me a fat sow and I put the ribs and front shoulders in the smoker over night. I pre-smoked them over mesquite wood and sealed them in two layers of heavy duty tin foil to slow roast. They should be juicy and falling off the bone right about now. Wish you guys could come over and help me eat them.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Jungleexplorer, post: 1017449, member: 56322"] You make some really good points and I agree with what you have said. As I have stated before (in this thread), I personally will only make a head shot if I feel sure I can make it. As we all know, hunting is an exercise in chaos. There are many ever changing variables that occur in the field that a responsible hunter must consider before pulling that trigger. To make it redundantly clear; I am not in anyway advocating that hunters should be head shooters in exclusivity. What I am addressing here is the general prevailing mentality among American hunters, that the "Chest Shot" is the, "Best" or "Correct" shot to make on a deer. I have never said or implied that a chest shot is not a good or effective kill shot. My concern is that the chest shot is promoted and taught in exclusivity as the best or correct shot. Take this thread for example. Even though I have not attacked anyone directly on here and have gone to great lengths to openly demonstrate my respect for everyone on here, many posters have attacked me, ridiculed me, implied that I am an unethical hunter and more. Almost every poster has reacted to my statements as if I were attacking them personally, simply because I am talking about the benefits of the head shot. I dare say that, not a single other poster that has commented, has come down on my side of the discussion. It is this prevailing mentality among hunters that I am talking about. American hunters seem to take offense, get very defensive and will attack you if you even suggest that a head shot might be an acceptable or preferred alternative to chest shooting. The reactions on this thread alone provides enough evidence to support what I am saying here. The reaction can be so strong as to even threaten friendships in some cases. There seems to be a loud voice among American hunters that is say [B]"The chest shot is the RIGHT shot on a deer."[/B] I believe the ideology of the chest shot being the "Right" shot on a deer is in error and is actually harmful. The chest shot is certainly a good shot and if done properly can be an effective shot, but it is not the "ONLY" shot and it is certainly not the "Right" shot in all cases. I know a couple of professional cull hunters that shoot literally hundreds if not thousands of big game animals each year on on high fence ranches for population control purposes. They are hired by the ranch to thin out the herds. I have had many discussions with these men about shot placement. Everyone of them, and all the people that they know in their line of business, are all head shooters. The only reason they would ever consider shooting a big game animal anywhere else then the head was if they wanted the head for a trophy. I myself have operated as a cull hunter, (though not professionally) on a high fence ranch that had thousands of deer and other big game exotics. This ranch required that I pass a test before they would allow me to cull hunt. The ranch mandated that a cull hunter must exclusively be a head shooter. When I asked them why they had this rule, they answered, "Because chest shooting results in too many wounded deer." They drove me out on the ranch and pointed to a whitetail deer about 100 yards away and said shoot that deer. As I lined up on the deer's head to shoot, a massive trophy whitetail buck stood up 10 yards on the other side of the of the deer I had my scope on, with it's chest region directly in line with the head of the deer I was aiming at. The ranch manager whispered, "Take the shot". BOOM! I shot and the deer I was aiming at dropped and the big buck ran off. I asked the ranch manager, how much was that big buck worth, if I would have missed and killed him? $10,000 dollars! I was like, DUDE! Why would you tell me to take that shot? "Because, to cull hunt on this ranch you will always be shooting in a crowd of deer with trophy animals walking around. If you don't have the confidence to do a head shot on a deer in a crowd, you can't cull hunt on this ranch." Out of 4 hunters that were being tested that day, I was the only one to qualify. It was on that day that I saw my one and only drop jawed deer. One of the other hunters (that was being tested) was lined up on a front facing deer and the manager gave the shoot command and said "DO NOT drop jaw that deer". Boom! Down went the jaw and out went that hunter. I cull hunted for that ranch for over a decade with many other cull hunters, killing countless deer. All head shots. Not a single wounded deer. My concern is not that some hunters chest shoot deer. My concern is that most American hunters promote the idea that the chest shot is the "Only right shot" on a deer and attack anyone who suggest otherwise, when the facts clearly support that the head shot is a much better choice in most (but not all) cases. I am not against the chest shot. I have used it myself when the situation warranted it. I know lot's of people that I highly respect that are chest shooters for one reason or another ( bad eyesight, hand tremors, lack of confidence, disagree with me. LOL! etc.) I respect every hunter here and the choices you make and I am not trying in the slightest way to say that you are doing anything wrong by choosing to chest shoot a deer. I guess my goal is not to eliminate the idea of the chest shot, but to encourage hunters to consider the head shot as a viable alternative to the chest shot under the right conditions. Anyway, I have to go out and check on my smoker. A friend shot three 200 pound wild hogs yesterday and brought out them to process them at my ranch. He gave me a fat sow and I put the ribs and front shoulders in the smoker over night. I pre-smoked them over mesquite wood and sealed them in two layers of heavy duty tin foil to slow roast. They should be juicy and falling off the bone right about now. Wish you guys could come over and help me eat them. [/QUOTE]
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