ANNUAL shot selection/placement/anatomy thread

[Oneday121o]

I always go for the double lung, never the heart. My deer usually make it out of sight. A heart shot deer will run farther.

[nmc02]

I swear! It was a perfect shot, but didn't find him

[not on the rug]

I know Jack mentioned it in the original post, but don't forget to picture the exit hole and adjust for your height and distance.  The dots he posted are fine if you're hunting from a blind.  Adjustments need to be made depending on how high your treestand is and how far away/close the deer is standing. 

[dlist777]

Thanks for the info.  Bowsite had a good game where it shows you various deer configurations and where to aim: http://bowsite.com/bowsite/features/articles/deer/deergeometry/.  

 

One of the things I find a bit difficult is when I'm 20 feet up.   A lot of these diagrams are from ground level.  I found the bowsite game helped me for tree stand shots.  Another note: I shot my first bedded buck last year....it was with a slug gun, but my first shot gut shot him.  He didn't get up and I shot him a second time and killed him...but field dressing was  mess.  Figuring out where the vitals are on bedded deer is another tricky one.  

Edited July 12, 2017 by dlist777

[JHbowhunter]

This is classic quartering away 45 degrees or slightly more, 17 feet up a tree, 23 yard shot...  This was the trifecta shot and produced a bloodbath in the snow. The arrow entered high on the furthest back part of lung, clipped some liver on the way down toward the heart, and exiting out the opposite armpit.  Entrance/exit shown...  It is one of my favorite shots and as far as I can recall, I have 100% recovery rate with this angle in over 30 years of bow hunting deer.  

 

 

 

 

[Swamprat]

No mention of broadhead. Slight quartering too me. 20 yards. 15' up in ladder stand. Entrance hole.

[Swamprat]

Exit hole. Deer went about 50 yards but started to stumble after 25 yards or so.

Edited July 12, 2017 by Swamprat

[Rusty]

 don't forget to picture the exit hole and adjust for your height and distance.  

 

I couldn't agree more, I focus on the exit more than the entrance.  Our son and daughter are both very patient with their shot selection and always focus on the exit hole.  They line up with the opposite front leg and we've never had a deer go more than 50 yards.  Our daughter shot this buck during winter bow this past year, that's the exit hole, the deer didn't go very far before it piled up.          

 

Edited July 12, 2017 by Rusty

[Pathman]

. There is no void. There is a loin

The way I like to explain it is, there is a "void of vital organs" if your POI is in that area above the dip in the spine. May seem like splitting hairs, between experienced guys, but to the newer hunters it is a bit easier to understand when stated that way.

[Rusty]

The way I like to explain it is, there is a "void of vital organs" if your POI is in that area above the dip in the spine. May seem like splitting hairs, between experienced guys, but to the newer hunters it is a bit easier to understand when stated that way.

 

You are correct Pathman, but using the term void is misleading to many because in hunter lingo the void means an empty space within the rib cage, between the spine and the lungs.  

[buckfever1974]

I've been showing both my kids pics each season and always discuss shot placement.  Currently, on broadside deer, they are looking at the opening of the "C" made by the the bone going forward from the elbow and then the scapula coming back up and high.  It kind of forms a "C" or rather a "".  That opening, at the mid-line or a smidge below, from the ground blind gives the most foregiveness if you are off 2-3" inches.  No substitute for practice and accuracy but I'd rather the center of the boiler room be what the kids and I shoot at.

 

We also discuss the desired location of the exit hole being the best way to aim/lineup on the quartering away deer in the near side.

 

I am amazed though in what I have seen as a perfect shot where the damn deer still makes it pretty far from time-to-time.  

Edited July 12, 2017 by buckfever1974

[GhostBear]

After the hit, I always watch where the deer runs, late fall is easier when the leaves are down, but if on the rare ocation I lose sight of it, I make a mental note of a tree or other object as a starting point for looking for the deer, but I'll always look for blood to follow.

But for me at least while bow hunting, it's been 10 or more years since I had to really track a deer as they've all piled up within sight.

 

In 2014 on the opener of 6 day I had a deer get out of sight after hitting it twice with 12ga Hyrdra-shoc slugs, the deer ran quite a ways leaving next to nothing to trail, so don't be afraid to call in a dog to help find the deer!!!

[Pintail]

One thing I always do is wait for the leg facing me to be extended forward. This offers the highest percentage of ribcage and puts the animal somewhat off balance at the sound of the bowstring. If you look at the doe standing on the first page of this thread and note where the spot is drawn it is very close to the leg/shoulder area when the leg is not extended forward. Deer will crouch down almost one and one half times their body width at the sound of a bow string thump and will often times get hit in this leg/shoulder area. This usually results in bright blood spots the size of nickles at the beginning of a blood trail right next to the shot sight then coming to an end after a couple of hundred yards. Many times the leg is broken with a non lethal hit to the organs.

[Rusty]

One thing I always do is wait for the leg facing me to be extended forward.

 

   

[Rusty]

An advantage of hunting over bait is that it keeps the deer at a known distance for an extended period of time.  This lets a hunter wait for the perfect shot.  

Edited October 19, 2017 by Rusty