- Jan 17, 2013
- 1,683
3 of my last 4 deer on my property. Two in the snow. In fairness the one didnt run, it rolled when I hit it and slid down the ravine in the snow.
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Question about whitetail behavior after getting shot
- Thread starter Huuman
- Start date
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There is no way to say which way they will run. I also bow hunt in my backyard and for the most part they run back in the woods, but i have had a few awkward moments with the neighbors when deer die in their yard
Usually not in to the open is my experience. That said, who knows.
I’ve only had three bow kills, so not extensive bow experience. One ran at about a 20 degree angle to where it was standing straight up hill 75yds after a 15yd double hit from my stand. Next was a neck hit at 19yds and it flopped only a few yards before taking another neck hit. Last one turned 90 degrees and took off back in to the woods and went about 80-100yds with an arrow through the heart.
Gun kills they’ve either flopped, gun straight ahead, turned 90, or spun 180.
So...you know, no f-ing clue where they will go. So far none have headed towards open ground it seems. All seem to be head either up or down hill or in to the woods. Can’t think of any that have headed across a hill (if they were on one).
My heart struck doe ran right in to my neighbor’s woods. Fortunately they are cool with me retrieving and even hunting on their 5 acres.
gizzard
Active Member
most run into cover
That's much more likely with vertical bows. Especially ones that have been silenced. They sometimes don't react (likely in shock) from the actual arrow itself. They WILL react to the sound of a gun shot or the thwak of a crossbow discharging. 100% of the time in my admittedly not super extensive experience (I think I am up to 12 or 13? 9 or them harvested in 5 seasons of hunting now, the rest clean misses).
As someone mentioned, the odds DO seem higher of them trying to run back the direction they had been walking. Not necessarily directly, could be circling. But again, I've still had them head in all directions. The odds also seem higher that they will head towards a thick patch of whatever. my most recent one, turned 90 with a bolt sticking out of her heart and in to her opposite shoulder, tucked up the shoulder with the arrow in it and tore ass back the way she had come out of the woods in to my clearing straight for a gnarly thick piece of dense woods. Fortunately died 30yds from it. Also fortunately the patch is only about 30yds around. So even if she did make it in, it would suck to get her out down by the creek in that dense stuff, but it wouldn't be THAT hard to have found her.
Several other ones have also ran straight towards something thick a hundred or two hundred yards away that they had wandered out of a few minutes before.
Fortunately with my property if I hunt my back woods, the deer would need to run down hill in to the creek and then try to (along most of it there are no fords/low spots) jump a 3-7 foot tall bank and then try to run up the otherwise. The other side is not my property, but I think those neighbors are tolerant (well, one has a deer stand up right between their properties). Absolutely doable, but I see it being harder to do if it is running 50+ yards down hill with an arrow (hopefully) through its lungs and/or heart and then manage to not just pile up in the creek and then also be able to have the energy to jump that high and continue up hill. Doable, but hard unless it was a bad shot.
If it runs along the hill, if I hunt vaguely near the center of the woods, it's gonna have to go at least 100yds before its off my property in either direction. If it goes up hill, its going to run in to my small fenced back yard, my house or have to run around my house and keep going to get on to another neighbor's property. One of those "along the hill" would end up in my "cool neighbor has asked me to kill deer and is fine with me hunting on her property" property.
IMHO, I know I asked just a month or so ago about that on here. I'd go with "it depends". Yes, it is smart to get it in writing. That said, I've got one neighbor who'd almost certainly feel insulated if I asked them to put it in writing. I am also 99.9999% sure she isn't going to change her mind that its okay for me to retrieve and hunt there. And in some cases, so long as the safety zones are observed, if you've got a neighbor you know will say no...don't ask.
I've got one where my daughter is friends with their daughter. I know the father is a gun owner. He is also not comfortable with hunting. Not anti, but I am very confident if I asked for permission to retrieve a deer, he'd tell me he doesn't want me hunting anywhere near his property and no.
Don't need to mess up the relationship there as he is nice otherwise. So that just means that part of my property is my no hunting zone. He's got an acre and I've got 4.4 with 13 neighbors (maybe 12?) who border my property. Most are smaller 1.3-1.6 acre properties. One neighbor is also 4.4 acres, she is cool with me hunting on her property. I've asked a couple of other neighbors and they are cool with it. I've got a decent swath of "safety zone permission". Technically if I hunted my fenced back yard (I could absolutely bait them in), I even have a tiny zone that is outside of any safety zone and I wouldn't need to ask any permission to hunt.
And though I would NEVER risk it, the law says no hunting within 150yds of an OCCUPIED dwelling or camp. If the person isn't home and I know when some of my neighbor's aren't home...
I haven't talked (yet) to a couple of my backyard neighbors, but again, there be hung a deer stand just across the creek on one of their properties right between their two properties. I'd certainly ask permission to retrieve if I haven't talk to them yet and a deer ran over there, but harder for one to get over there wounded. And some of that woods is okay safety zone wise.
The one squeamish neighbor I won't talk to and I won't hunt near his property. Same with a few of his immediate neighbors. No point stirring that pot when the odds of a deer running on to one of their properties is extremely low. They are all wide open "lawn"ed properties, not wooded. So no cover and the deer are tending to head out of my woods through their properties to yummier things in the evenings. Likely to run back where they came from, not towards the open. And my hunting spot right now is about 200yds and a LOT of obstacles, and a small hill from reaching the property of anyone I haven't talked to and I am not sure about.
It might happen one of these years...but maybe not also. Most of my neighbors hate the deer.
If they did ANYTHING predictable after being shot, they'd be a lot easier to find
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danb
dont be a dumbass
Untrue...I have killed many dozens of deer with my crossbow. The trick is to let them relax before you shoot them. Let them put their head down and start munching. I grant you, it's very difficult to to when the adrenaline is pumping.
... but I have also seen deer run 200 yards after getting shot in the shoulder at close range with muzzeloader and also with 12 gauge (I suspect the bullets did not expand). The worst time to shoot a deer is when they are on high alert.They will travel forever, and its impossible to predict.
bigdv
Ultimate Member
I've shot and killed many deer with bow and gun. Impossible to predict what they will do. Great question and post. I have often wondered the same. I do know this. If you hit them in the head with a rifle they will drop. Other than that they will run anywhere. Especially with a bow shot
Archeryrob
Undecided on a great many things
I have killed deer that run like their Azz is on fire. They are in a panic and I don't think applying a rational thought to it will work. Other than they will run where they might remember and maybe think of safety.
I have also killed deer that didn't even know they were shot. I shot a buck two years back and the arrow scared him. Kind of slide off ribs on both sides entering and leaving. He probably felt as he was pushed. He startled out on to the access trail, 10 yards and then settled down and calmly walked right up next to me, looked around. Then coughed heavily while spitting blood everywhere, lost his balance and rolled over.
Shot a doe last year with a 30-06 SST round and it broke the front leg, went in one side of the heart and opened the far side like a flower. You'd think she would have collapsed right there. No, she ran like her Azz was on fire 40 yards before falling.
What you would expect them to do, won't happen!
I have also killed deer that didn't even know they were shot. I shot a buck two years back and the arrow scared him. Kind of slide off ribs on both sides entering and leaving. He probably felt as he was pushed. He startled out on to the access trail, 10 yards and then settled down and calmly walked right up next to me, looked around. Then coughed heavily while spitting blood everywhere, lost his balance and rolled over.
Shot a doe last year with a 30-06 SST round and it broke the front leg, went in one side of the heart and opened the far side like a flower. You'd think she would have collapsed right there. No, she ran like her Azz was on fire 40 yards before falling.
What you would expect them to do, won't happen!
remrug
Ultimate Member
Reminds me of a doe i shot with an arrow,a perfect broadside double lung.It ran 50 yrds straight ahead,then made a 90 to the right went 75 yrds then double backed for 40 yrds made another 90 to the right ,went 40 yrds,crossed a road and died right on the shoulder of the road.So....not an easy find
There was a really good blood trail all the way,but it took me at least an hour to figure out the doe had doubled back.It was dark by that time and a shitty flashlight wasnt helping much.I was surprised she made it that far with a sharp broadhead thru both lungs.I was happy that someone didnt pick her up after laying there all that time.
I got my truck and gutted her using the headlights and drug her to the back of the truck.....easy peasy
remrug
Ultimate Member
In my experience,deer shot through the heart with a bullet almost always run in a panic as hard as they can.Usually not far,but once had a buck someone else had shot it in the butt,make it almost 100 yrds. after a 270 Core Lok totally shreaded its heart.
Welp, this mornings deer was 18yds away at my salt lick. Shot a bit low. Plus one for lighted nocks. I am glad I took the advice. Saw the arrow zip out and was sticking out by its lungs. So helped me better gauge a good bit. Tucked it’s leg up and went tearing and falling down towards my creek almost straight ahead. Waited 20 minutes and my younger son helped me find the blood trail and where I had hit it (I found it in the grass easy, but he found where it had been hit standing on the meadow and leaves).
Went about 80yds or so. From the blood, it looks like it thought better of either jumping the creek or heading one direction on a deer trail, turned around and headed the other direction on the trail by the creek and dropped. Found a fair amount of blood 5 or 6yds from her. Looked puddled like she stood there for a second. No way she would have made it across the creek if she’d tried, but it would have been 9 kinds of a B to get her out right there (drops 5ft to the creek bed).
Gotta do better accounting for where the leg is when they are bent over feeding. Arrow smashed the upper leg, tore through the ribs and I think hitting the leg cause the arrow to plane forward, as she was directly broadside, but the arrow went through her at an angle. Anyway, only a single lung hit and barely pushed out the other side of the hide. Shredded the front lobe of the one lung and ripped a nasty hole in the opposite hide. Anyway, really should have aimed either a few inches further back and/or slightly higher. Always worried about shooting too far back and gut shooting one. My shots also almost always end up being pretty far forward lung, or heart shots.
Of course in revenge she smashed the arrow in 3 pieces and the arrow head was mysteriously missing from the end of the arrow. It wasn’t inside of her.
Lighted nock was still working. So I guess that’s reusable.
CaptainAwesome
Active Member
Yessss, so true.
In my experience and I haven't killed a whole lot of deer, maybe 20 or so. But none of them ran uphill or through the thickest brush after the shot, they always took the path of least resistance. As a matter of fact, I've killed some deer that didn't bleed much, but I just walked the path of least resistance and found them.
I've only taken about 20 deer, too and in my experience, they try to run downhill and into cover if possible. I think this is where the "they run to water" notion comes from, since a creek bed is generally downhill and heavily vegetated. They also normally run in the direction they are already facing since it's a panicked run. If you hurt one of their front shoulders, they will often arc towards that side. But deer are all individuals and the shot placement affects everything. The one thing I've read that seems to be true is that if you get a really good heart/lung shot, they will kick high with their back legs before running. That seems to be an involuntary spasm and I always interpret it as a good sign that the animal will be down quickly, suffer little, and be easy to recover. Definitely get written permission to recover deer as needed, as others have mentioned.
ralph.mclean
GOC (Grumpy Old Cop)
I'd think they'd head to where they feel safe. So, I'd say the woods, but you never can tell....
