Mercy shots.

[royinidaho]

I simply cannot stand to see a wounded game animal suffer.

What if you were watching a couple of wolves gnawing on the hind end of a decent buck or, any other animal for that matter, as it was dragging the dinner guests and itself with its front legs?

Which would you dispatch first? The dinner or the dinner guests?

 

[HARPERC]

What if you were watching a couple of wolves gnawing on the hind end of a decent buck or, any other animal for that matter, as it was dragging the dinner guests and itself with its front legs?

Which would you dispatch first? The dinner or the dinner guests?

I'd wait a bit to see if all three lined up!
First deer (buck) I ever shot was limping on a gangrenous front shoulder (bullet wound) I've tagged wounded antelope does. If I'm honest-I have to admit in these days of hard to draw tags it would be tougher to just do the right thing.

 

[pressman]

i had a lesson well learned. I live in Indiana and every year i would travel to a great friend of mine's ranch who lived in Wyoming to hunt Mule deer. after a few year of killing some nice mule deer and some great stories. a close friend of mine in Indiana asked if i would take him to Wyoming with me the following year. i made the arrangement with my rancher friend all was well, my friend had practiced a lot all summer ....so i was told. Well we made it to Wyoming and the hunt started i stayed with my friend to get him a deer first. this would be his first mule deer. We had a nice deer about 200 yards but he was with a few smaller bucks. my buddy was so excited. I tried to calm him down and was telling him to wait until he had a clean shot at the nice buck. He shoots and hits the nice buck in the neck.. not sure he was aiming their. but doing so i noticed that he shot the bottom jaw off of one of the small buck that was standing behind him... not being very happy but i quickly took aim with my rifle and made an killing shot on the wounded deer. and i used my tag on the smallest buck i have ever killed.. makes a nice story but that was his last trip with me.

 

[MrMajestic]

Years ago, I had just counted 13 rounds fired up the gap from me when a crippled little yearling came down to me. It was doe season and I dispatched and tagged it. The militia came down dragging a much larger doe and when questioned about their knowledge of the hit on the cripple they were clueless. I guess it's not illegal to be a slob! Also had to shoot a car-hit 4 point buck one year. It was the second day of buck season and I could not tag it because of the 3-on-a-side rule. Called the PGC and offered to remove it but they declined and said they would send somebody out to get it. I guess I understood under the conditions.

 

[WildRose]

What if you were watching a couple of wolves gnawing on the hind end of a decent buck or, any other animal for that matter, as it was dragging the dinner guests and itself with its front legs?

Which would you dispatch first? The dinner or the dinner guests?

In that case nature is taking it's due course.

Unless I were having a wolf problem I'd leave it be after finishing off the deer knowing they'd be back at some point to finish dinner.

 

[njbowhntr]

Here is the question. I am not looking for anyone to post their true thoughts, just give it some good hard thought:

You are in the woods. You have a tag for either sex, but you can only harvest one. Out walks a really nice buck. Just behind him is an badly injured very small buck, but is of legal size. You notice that the injured deer is in alot of pain. He is dieing a very painful death. Now for the question: Do you shoot your trophy or end the suffering of an animal?

I think this is the question that we need to think about. This is the kind of question that makes us hunters/conservationist, stewards of the woods you may say.

 

[rscott5028]

I worry about things I can control like concentricity and load workup and hand warmers and toilet paper.

I don't worry about a badly injured inferior deer showing up along side a trophy.

If that happens, I'll make the call right then and there.

-- richard

 

[bigngreen]

If I can put a wounded animal down without ticketing issues I most likely would, if someone wounds one or makes a bad shot I most certainly will help get it done. If I'm faced with tagging a nasty piece of meat just to have warm fuzzy feelings, ain't happening. I hunt for pounds of meat in the freezer!!!!

 

[WildRose]

Here is the question. I am not looking for anyone to post their true thoughts, just give it some good hard thought:

You are in the woods. You have a tag for either sex, but you can only harvest one. Out walks a really nice buck. Just behind him is an badly injured very small buck, but is of legal size. You notice that the injured deer is in alot of pain. He is dieing a very painful death. Now for the question: Do you shoot your trophy or end the suffering of an animal?

I think this is the question that we need to think about. This is the kind of question that makes us hunters/conservationist, stewards of the woods you may say.

I'd shoot them both, tag the trophy and call the game warden and tell him about the other and ask him how he'd like me to dispose of it.

Of course I make it a point of being on very good terms with the game warden in any county I'm hunting in and they know me by reputation to be a very honest and ethical hunter.

If I were hunting out of state where I was less sure of the outcome I'd probably do the SSS's.