Bad shot in the rain...to look or not to look

[MnArch]

This is a situation that happened to one of our customers on his first deer hunt with a bow ever.  I got to thinking and thought I would see what all you die-hards would do in this situation.  Feel free to give your input.  Happy Hunting!!!

-Matt

[Big E]

This is exaclty what happened to me on Sunday. When we saw some poo in the blood we followed the blood just a little ways so we could get an idea which way she was going to head. She went out on a 4wheeler trail so we marked the blood and backed out. At first light only 2 of us went out and we ended up finding her.
 I'd go out at first with only a couple good trackers so the "crime scene" doesn't get trampled. Then if we didn't find anything then bring in the search team. Always wait if possible on a bad shot is my motto.

[Mayfly]

Thats a tough call. Rain and more rain means possibly no blood trail.

I would have to wait a couple hours and slowly attempt to track and spot the deer. Who knows maybe you'd surprise yourself and it was a good shot afterall. I feel if I waited over night for this deer I may never find it. I also think that if I did do a slow track and bumped it I would maybe stay still hoping that the deer bedded down again, mark my spot and return in the am. I would prefer to wait till the next day but it would be good to get a better idea of where the deer is, what he/she is doing and find out how bad the hit is.

[Stensethfan]

For me it would depend on how well I knew the land I was hunting.  If you know the property well and saw what direction she headed I would wait.  If I didn't know the land I would probably give it a few hours and then try to track her.  I say this because if you know the land odds are she will probably head to a swamp or thicket to bed down.  If you know where those places are then you can afford to loose the blood in the rain and check those places in the morning.  Otherwise you will need all the clues you can get your hands on, which might mean picking up the trail before she expires.  Tough call though!!

[deadeye]

If it's raining and you have blood, I would get one or two others to help.  One guy follows blood trail at snails pace while others follow about 10 yds to either side searching ahead for the deer.  The way I see it, if it's raining it's probably warm and if the deer dies soon, it will be spoiled in the morning anyway so you may as well try to recover it right away.   

[Cody Gruchow]

i would hop on that trail right away and slowly follow it as if i was still-hunting

[Paul M]

I think the question for me would be should I be hunting in the rain in the 1st place?

[Auggie]

I'm with Paul.

[Grute Man]

Im with Paul and Auggie but I have been out there in the rain.     It was dry to begin with and I wasn't going to give up.  It was a Metro Bow Hunt so my time was very limited.

[guythathunts]

I think the question for  me should be. Should I be hunting with a bow in the first place...?

I would pry do what Tim said. That makes sense. Depends on how bad the shot is and if I have to work the next day. Also, is it morning or night time? That would play a factor for sure. Morning Iwould go back that afternoon, night I would wait. tracking in the dark is horrible.

[Fallenhorn]

I have no problem with hunting in the rain except that my clothes get soaked! When your out there no one plans on hitting them bad, but mistakes happen and you have to roll with them when they do. Thankfully we ussually hunt with a big group which makes driving the woods the next day easier. A lot of assumptions can be made depending on the weather, shot placement, etc. But I would just like to say that shots that many times are not lethal will kill a deer. Be persistant! Many of our deer have been found on the last drive when everyone has been looking for three hours and doesn't believes its hopeless. Several presumed non lethal shots that have killed deer in our group are muscle neck shots (not jugular), muscle shoulder shots, shots into the very bottom of the legs of deer. Oh, and from our past experiences, never push a gut shot deer ever, even in the rain. You should always get a gut shot deer. If you don't push em' they should be bedded within 100 yards.

Tony

[MnArch]

I think the question for  me should be. Should I be hunting with a bow in the first place...?

 

What's wrong with hunting with a bow?

[deadeye]

Fallenhorn, Not picking on you but I had to laugh when I read your post.  Two things, "But I would just like to say that shots that many times are not lethal will kill a deer."  Just how does a shot that is not leathal, kill a deer.  And  "Be persistant! Many of our deer have been found on the last drive..." Well I wouldn't expect you would continue to look once you found the deer!
Just having a little fun with ya.   Cheers. 

[Fallenhorn]

You got me there! I guess trying to pump a post out before class without proofreading it won't be in my near future again!

[guythathunts]

I think the question for  me should be. Should I be hunting with a bow in the first place...?

 

What's wrong with hunting with a bow?

I was making an observation. Should you hunt in the rain if it is harder to track a deer? Well... Should you hunt with a bow if it is harder to kill a deer? It was more me being a smart Ask than anything. Bow hunting is a good thing.

[jigglestick]

I hunted yesterday evening in the rain.
I hunted for an hour and a half.
I pulled out fifteen minutes earlier than I normally would have, thinking that if I didn't get a shot by then, it would get to dark to follow a blood trail that would be washing out in front of me.
I figured if I got the shot before I pulled out, I'd have a little time to search for the animal before sign was lost.
I also was concious of the kind of shot I would have taken.
no low chance shots, only good square shots at twenty yards or less, to minimize the chance of an iffy shot.

I think I would have given that deer the most amount of time I could to stop and bed, which on a decent shot with a bow, won't be long, and then head out to look.

[mathews4ever]

I would say that the most important piece of info in this story has been left out. Where was this bad shot placed. that is the first thing to determine before tracking. if it were a gut shot I would back out and come back later(min 12 hrs). A gut shot deer usually doesn't leave good blood anyway and they usually only travel a short distance before bedding. muscle or one lung hit I would track right away. liver shot or similar wound I would wait 30min and stalk in the direction the deer went with hope of a second shot.