Question

[usmcvet06]

Heres a question guys.. I shot a buck saturday 10yards from the base of the tree. Im aboout 17' up and hit 4" below the spine quartering away maybe 5" behind the front shoulder. He ran 20yrds stopped with the arrow sticking out. The pictures below are of the blood he dropped in the first few feet. I tracked him about 500yrds. With blood the entire way. Then we lost blood. The blood was thick and very bright. Do you think I hit vitals?

 

[usmcvet06]

Other pic

More blood

 

[Cantmisum]

Looks like a some of lung and lots of liver.

He's dead and not far from where you last found blood.
Ive seen them burry themselfs in the under cut of a creek. under logs and once seen one fall right in to a ditch and disipear right in front of 10 people standin on the road. It crawled half way into 12" culvert, under the driveway
Unless somone draged him off He should be dead. Thats my O2

 

[quackrstackr]

A deer's spine is a lot lower in their body than people think that it is from looking at them. It's possible that you actually shot just over his spine, even though you were 4" below the top of his back.

 

[NonTyp]

If you hit below the spine, you hit vitals.

 

[DEERMD]

my guess is

he is around there somewhere... watch for buzzards... also you might look for a crash spot, and see if it looks like someone else couldve drug him out. All bleeding eventually stops (an old medical term) and its true if you think about it. It either clots up or you bleed till your heart stops pumping it. Its hard to tell whether the tissue is liver or not from a photo, could be coagulated blood that looks like organ tissue such as liver or heart, Although, a liver shot would be consistent with what your telling. Definetely not lung or heart tissue, this deer will die no question about that. I would allow for it to die while lying down, versus running away from you onto someone elses property. might even see if you can borrow someones dog to track it.

 

[usmcvet06]

We are going to look again today. Hopefully we find him. I suspect the arrow stopped in the opposite shoulder. Keep you updated!

 

[dray223]

If you hit below the spine, you hit vitals.

I agree, but i will say that deer is capable of recovering from an extreme high lung shot.

 

[Mountain wolf]

That deer is down somewhere. Almost every deer I have had to track has tended to run down hill and toward water or of course to the thickest possible area around. Look for these kind of spots from where you last got blood. Good luck finding him. Semper Fi

 

[deerhunter2]

If you hit vitals he wouldnt have ran 500 yards. or at least ive never saw one run over 100 yards if you hit the heart or lungs. why was you using a bow during gun season anyways? Hope you find his head.

 

[usmcvet06]

If you hit vitals he wouldnt have ran 500 yards. or at least ive never saw one run over 100 yards if you hit the heart or lungs. why was you using a bow during gun season anyways? Hope you find his head.

I strictly bow hunt. After the Marine Corps shooting them with a gun just isn't as apealing to me. I enjoy the adrenalin rush of the up close and personal hunt.

 

[predator]

I bowhunt only also. But as dh2 said, a mortally wounded deer rarely goes over a 100 yds unless it's pushed. At that steep of an angle, quartering away and only 5" behind the shoulder, you may have gotten meat only or just clipped the top of a lung.