Neck Shot Disappointment

[lancetkenyon]

You are correct, meat shot through the neck, I hope he's still alive and recovers, I saw the impact and how it missed any bone or arteries is beyond me, it just hit that not so sweet spot, 1 in a million chance of that happening just passed right through. I knew when he started bulldozing that something was up, that has never happened before, it always been dirt nap instantly, I wanted to put another 1 in him but too many animals behind him to risk collateral damage on top of disappointment!

I witnessed the dreaded "behind the crease but above the lungs/below the spine no-man's land" shot on a great mule deer buck once. Shot looked perfect, buck dropped from the shot, but regained his feet and boogity. Saw him 7 days later like nothing happened.

 

[7.62 Gunner]

I witnessed the dreaded "behind the crease but above the lungs/below the spine no-man's land" shot on a great mule deer buck once. Shot looked perfect, buck dropped from the shot, but regained his feet and boogity. Saw him 7 days later like nothing happened.

Yep I've had the same thing happen with a 6x6 bull, got one lung a little high, watched him drop, tracked him for 3 days. **** those ethical shots..

I really don't care how confident you are with your equipment. There is absolutely zero excuse for shooting game anywhere but the heart/lung area. If you shoot behind the shoulder there is very little meat damage.

Funny you posted this
I just neck shot a buck this morning at 90 yards with a 180 vldh MV 2800 fps, I squeaked a shot through tight timber at the only exposed body part.
I definitely hit the meaty tissue well below the spine and he died instantly.
It's not a shot placement issue the OP experienced it's a bullet issue, which is why I use bullets that expand rapidly with massive wound channels i.e. Berger vld hunting or ELDMS.
Here's a few pics of the shot placement and exit wound.

Entrance wound dark blood shot area lower 1/3 of neck

Exit wound approx 4" in front of shoulder, nothing but flesh

 

[TopPin]

This last Monday, I was whitetail hunting in the Central Texas Hill Country, out of a blind of course. About 30 minutes before it got too dark to shoot a huge Axis Buck wanders into the feeder, I ranged him at 125 yards, my 6.5 Grendel shoots a .4 group at that range with the 120 Gr Nosler. I place the crosshairs about an inch behind his skull connection with the spine and squeeze one off, I see the bullet impact, it looked to be a perfect shot hair flew off the other side, he went nose down in the dirt, buckled front legs, bull dozed with his back legs for about 10 yards, he then tumbled into a little ravine out of site. I know he is dead, just out of site, never hear anything like legs kicking or any movement, I wait about 10 minutes and walk to the ravine. To my surprise, there is no Axis in the ravine, as a matter of fact there was not a dead Axis anywhere to be found and not a drop of blood at the impact point or in the ravine. I looked that evening until it was too dark to see, I got friends to go out with me the following morning, we looked for 3 hours and never found a sign of the Axis.
I have shot a bunch of Whitetail deer, hogs, Black Buck and Axis with that little cartridge and not once has anything even taken a step, all DRT. I am just sick that I wounded it and couldn't be found, I am sure that he eventually died. All I can think of that could have happened is the impact was just a little low and impacted meat only. I have chosen that very impact spot many times in the past and it has always resulted in a quick end to everything until this time.
I guess this incident just shows the need to keep shooting as long as they are moving, to say the least, probably the most disappointed I have been in a hunting situation in a very long time.

My guess is you grazed his neck, high or low is irrelevant, if you would have hit where you intended aiming point was he wouldn't have made it 2 feet after flopping around. I however do side with previous comments of it was a very low percentage shot, and I would consider chalking this one up to a learning experience. If you want to take a neck shot there is way more room in front of the shoulders vs back of the head. But if you aim center of the shoulder however opens up you point of impact from center of shoulder, neck, head to lungs and liver. Not giving you a hard time about your shooting, but in reality it is a much higher success rate.

 

[Hard rock]

Well, I have beat myself up plenty over the animal getting away, this is the 1st animal that I have lost in about 40 years and only 1 of 2 I have had to look for over 10 minutes after the shot to find, and that adds up to well over 100 hundred successful harvests from 80 lb whitetails to 900 lb elk. I have several rifles from 458 Cal to 17 Cal, each has its best use area. I develop loads for each and every one of them and all of them are tack drivers nothing I own, with exception to a 7.62x39 and a 458 SOCOM shoots more than .5 MOA at 100 and 3 shoot 1 tiny hole at 100 consistently. The reason I use the Grendel is due to the fact that, up until 4 years ago when I got the Grendel I used a 225 Winchester Model 670 with a 55 Gr Sierra pill to harvest the whitetail, smaller exotics, hogs etc., exclusively and have since I got the rifle when I was 12 years old from my old man, that was 1969. The Grendel added 65 Gr of projectile, about the same or less recoil than the 225 and was a little bit more accurate and held up better ballistically on longer shots.
When I have either of those 2 rifles or my 257 Bee in my hands there is no doubt about what the end result is going to be, until Monday afternoon.
My original post was not seeking advice, I know where all the kill zones are located on almost every 4-legged animal on the North American continent and several from Africa and Asia. My post was to vent about losing a viable game animal, with a shot placement that has been 100% effective until now. Maybe a heart lung shot would have dropped him right there but then again, I've helped look for animals shot in that kill zone and never found them, so nothing is certain 100% of the time.
I thank you all for your comments and laments, woulda, coulda, shoulda is all that I have, I would really rather be bragging on how good that back strap is.
Another big animal will come into range again this year and following years to come I hope, and I am cautiously certain of what the end results will be.

I fill your disappointment , sounds like your no novice , better luck in the future. I built a Grendel a few years ago , a real tack Driver , didn't skimp on anything 3000 plus , my bullet of choice in the near future is going too be the 85 gr hammer , I think it will make that cartridge shine up too 200 yds or so.

 

[wernerpd]

This last Monday, I was whitetail hunting in the Central Texas Hill Country, out of a blind of course. About 30 minutes before it got too dark to shoot a huge Axis Buck wanders into the feeder, I ranged him at 125 yards, my 6.5 Grendel shoots a .4 group at that range with the 120 Gr Nosler. I place the crosshairs about an inch behind his skull connection with the spine and squeeze one off, I see the bullet impact, it looked to be a perfect shot hair flew off the other side, he went nose down in the dirt, buckled front legs, bull dozed with his back legs for about 10 yards, he then tumbled into a little ravine out of site. I know he is dead, just out of site, never hear anything like legs kicking or any movement, I wait about 10 minutes and walk to the ravine. To my surprise, there is no Axis in the ravine, as a matter of fact there was not a dead Axis anywhere to be found and not a drop of blood at the impact point or in the ravine. I looked that evening until it was too dark to see, I got friends to go out with me the following morning, we looked for 3 hours and never found a sign of the Axis.
I have shot a bunch of Whitetail deer, hogs, Black Buck and Axis with that little cartridge and not once has anything even taken a step, all DRT. I am just sick that I wounded it and couldn't be found, I am sure that he eventually died. All I can think of that could have happened is the impact was just a little low and impacted meat only. I have chosen that very impact spot many times in the past and it has always resulted in a quick end to everything until this time.
I guess this incident just shows the need to keep shooting as long as they are moving, to say the least, probably the most disappointed I have been in a hunting situation in a very long time.

I'm kind of surprised you found an axis. I live in the Hill Country and I thought that all the axis died off on the Freezemageddon in FEB 21. I have not seen a single one since the big freeze. I agree with others that a head shot is likely pushing the envelope of viability due to the small target area and so many other factors that could throw the trajectory off just enough to make a miss.

 

[Fester Bestertester]

Neck/head shots for bragging rights work until they don't. They result in painful, cruelly wounded animals. Reconsider it next time.

 

[Pdvdh]

The bigger the neck, the more often I hear of this result. Moose necks are BIG. Most commonly have heard this on moose here in Alaska. Bullet hits in the muscle adjacent to spinal cord. Shocks the spinal cord but doesn't sever or permanently damage the spinal cord. Animal drops in their tracks

Heard stories of guys walking up to moose on ground. Set rifle down to take pictures. Moose jump up and take off. Worse yet, sometimes the moose comes after the hunter. Know one guy that got speared by a brow tine, when the moose came back to consciousness. He took off running for dear life. Bull caught him in the butt with a brow tine and tossed him up in the air.

Fortunately it missed his femoral artery. Doc said it was a near miss.

 

[Philward]

Well, I have beat myself up plenty over the animal getting away, this is the 1st animal that I have lost in about 40 years and only 1 of 2 I have had to look for over 10 minutes after the shot to find, and that adds up to well over 100 hundred successful harvests from 80 lb whitetails to 900 lb elk. I have several rifles from 458 Cal to 17 Cal, each has its best use area. I develop loads for each and every one of them and all of them are tack drivers nothing I own, with exception to a 7.62x39 and a 458 SOCOM shoots more than .5 MOA at 100 and 3 shoot 1 tiny hole at 100 consistently. The reason I use the Grendel is due to the fact that, up until 4 years ago when I got the Grendel I used a 225 Winchester Model 670 with a 55 Gr Sierra pill to harvest the whitetail, smaller exotics, hogs etc., exclusively and have since I got the rifle when I was 12 years old from my old man, that was 1969. The Grendel added 65 Gr of projectile, about the same or less recoil than the 225 and was a little bit more accurate and held up better ballistically on longer shots.
When I have either of those 2 rifles or my 257 Bee in my hands there is no doubt about what the end result is going to be, until Monday afternoon.
My original post was not seeking advice, I know where all the kill zones are located on almost every 4-legged animal on the North American continent and several from Africa and Asia. My post was to vent about losing a viable game animal, with a shot placement that has been 100% effective until now. Maybe a heart lung shot would have dropped him right there but then again, I've helped look for animals shot in that kill zone and never found them, so nothing is certain 100% of the time.
I thank you all for your comments and laments, woulda, coulda, shoulda is all that I have, I would really rather be bragging on how good that back strap is.
Another big animal will come into range again this year and following years to come I hope, and I am cautiously certain of what the end results will be.

Could this buck have just hid away and is dead. We've had more than one that was shot but couldn't find. Went in next day and see a leg sticking out from under a small hemlock. That was my father. Him and mom had another big buck they shot and looked everywhere for him and on the 3rd try going him tucked up under a large rotten log. He crawled in and died. I shot a 5 point Rosie that died in the ditch of road and when they drove up to help asking where is it. I pointed right there about 20 get away.

I have no idea what the terrain is like where you hunted, just a thought.

 

[Philward]

Best neck shot I pulled off was at 290yd on a blacktail buck, he was needed and all I could see was head and neck. Was hunting with a new England firearms handi rifle in 270win. He died right there. I normally don't shoot in the neck.

 

[cantfixstupid]

My guess is you grazed his neck, high or low is irrelevant, if you would have hit where you intended aiming point was he wouldn't have made it 2 feet after flopping around. I however do side with previous comments of it was a very low percentage shot, and I would consider chalking this one up to a learning experience. If you want to take a neck shot there is way more room in front of the shoulders vs back of the head. But if you aim center of the shoulder however opens up you point of impact from center of shoulder, neck, head to lungs and liver. Not giving you a hard time about your shooting, but in reality it is a much higher success rate.

It's wasn't a graze, with the Grendel there is no appreciable recoil you can see the impact every time the impact was about 2 inches behind the base of the skull and dead in the middle of the neck was shooting downhill maybe 5 degrees, very slight angle. The bullet had to have just missed the spine and any of the arteries. Meat shot pass through. I have harvested over 40 animals with this same shot and not one of them went anywhere but straight down

 

[Pdvdh]

I have harvested over 40 animals with this same shot and not one of them went anywhere but straight down

Except this one...

 

[HOOFER]

Head or lungs.neck has too much meat around it.

I do high shoulder things with certain bullets and if I don't/can't afford to chase them as tracking would be too difficult.

 

[fordy]

Gday
Trying to stay away from these threads but I have trouble with this one as head & lesser extent neck shots were a necessity of my shooting job as if it wasn't head shot I didn't get paid with one of the businesses I use to supply
& I still love the crack / knock sound of head shots today
Yes I love head shots


So here we go
I personally think 7.62gunner is partly onto the way we should look @ a pill if you are a head/neck shooter with respect sir a Berger is not your pill as it's iratic consistency on opening it can be long gone before opening ( penciling like traits ) if it's deer size game & neck shooting is your preferred placement ( depends on which part of the neck we are talking to be fair & im broadly speaking) the eld is a very good option on head/ neck shots with many other brands with a couple monos also fit this application but definitely not the Barnes like pills & yes if things all go well any pill will basically kill & a true solid even like impala bullets definitely do , so not disputing that .
it's the insurance the pill offers that if things are a little different than we imagine ( not having a go @ the op or disputing him I'm just going off observations in my life )


Thinking outside of the square here can someone please tell me what's the difference from a head neck shooter that has a 1 in very very minimum vital cns aiming point & a 1/2 Moa rifle & a shot @ a 100 yard & the same 1/2 Moa rifle to 1000 yard & a deer with a 6 to 8 in vital & our errors in wind reading added to the mix which is a easier target to impact

From my lack of shooting skills & wind reading abilities it only leaves me with animal behaviour & knowing the anatomy of the critter I plan on taking out & while I no longer take my 200 plus yard head shots I'm way happier taking a head shot @ a 100 than even trying for 1000 yard these days

Ea to their own & no offence intended to anyone
Cheers

 

[Joefrazell]

I think what you and anybody else who attempts neck shots can take away from this incident is STOP TAKING NECK SHOTS!

I've been saying it for years. You owe it to
The animal to aim for a bigger target. Put one through the ribs and into the lungs and it won't ruin any meat.