Archery question ...

S

saands

New member
I live in a place that allows the harvesting of deer in a suburban/rural area (the lots in the neighborhood are ~0.7 to 1.0 acres). It is an archery only proposition, but cross-bows are allowed. My question is this: If I am extremely picky about picking my shot, is there any combination of hardware (broadhead, mechanically expanding broadhead, etc) and shot placement that will give me a 95+% chance of dropping a deer within 20yds of where it is shot? I am a little concerned about having a deer with an arterial bleed running across the deck/driveway of a neighbor that might not be a hunter :eek:

In case it matters, the local deer appear to be smallish ... ~125-150 lbs would be my guess.

TIA,

Saands
 
Not even a 300 Win mag could give you that guarantee. I shot a lot of deer with rifles, recurve, compound and crossbows And nothing is guaranteed. Last year I shot 3 deer with a crossbow and hit all three perfect about 20-25 yards away. All three ran about 30-40 yards away and looked around like they were trying to figure out what that noise was then feel over. All with thunderhead 100 grain broad heads. Most with any bows will run usually from 20 to 80 yards before expiring. But every once in awhile you'll drop one instantly with a bad shot (vertebra shot). I've killed maybe 50 deer with different bows but usually you have to shoot them and see what happens.
 
Absolutely not. Like BackRub said - even a high-powered rifle seldom drops them where they stand.

A bullet kills by hydrostatic shock. An arrow has very littel kinetic energy. It kills by hemmorage. Every so often, you'll see an arrow-shot deer drop right away. Those shots found part of the central nervous system and paralized the animal. Even the best archers can't make that shot on purpose though.
 
70+ deer with the bow and I only remember three dropping where they stood. All the rest probably averaged 50-60 yds before dropping from blood loss. Several went into the hundreds of yards. Some only went twenty or thirty.
 
I agree with the rest most deer run. I have taken part of their hearts and lungs and had them run a good ways.

I was hunting in an area near Boulder Colorado that had a lot of anti hunters and private property. I stayed long way away from any private property but a few people out hunting got deer that ran and property owners would not let them retrieve them.
Then some of the property owners called news papers, DOW, PETA, etc, and tried to make a huge deal of it. It took one deer like 2 days to die and they just tried to use it as a anti hunting mascot and smear it all over the media.
 
Happiness is a warm, Gut-Pile !!! ..... only to us

I am a little concerned about having a deer with an arterial bleed running across the deck/driveway of a neighbor that might not be a hunter
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It's a valid concern but it's going to happen sooner or later. In our area, there are incidents like this and it even makes the local news. On one occasion, a deer decided to drop dead on a bike path and scared a bunch of folks. ... :D

They call them city hunts but they are actually more of a conservation effort. Gardeners don't like us shooting deer until they start eating their beautiful flower garden. As stated, we can only do our best, in our own best ways. Go the extra mile, in the city than you would, in the woods.

Case in point;
Last year some hunters shot a deer in a very exposed area. They drug it about 50yds. into some trees and then proceeded to gut it. .. :)
They left a broad blood trail in the snow as well as the Gut-Pile. .. :mad:
We all know that with a little extras effort, they could have covered the trail and removed the Gut-Pile ....... :)

Be Safe !!!
 
I saw an arrow head that carried that kind of guarantee once. I saw it on video reportedly in Vietnam. Anybody else recall seeing that one?

Otherwise, having bow hunted since 1987, I agree with what everyone else is saying: there are no guarantees like that.
 
I screwed up and hit one in the shoulder bone (Heard the arrow coming and started to drop back). It took a piece of bone out about 1 1/2" round, went through the heart and was just coming out the other side of the heart. It ran at least 50 yards on 3 legs. I always dropped them on the spot when hit in the flat bone of the shoulder with a rifle.
 
Just take all your neighbors cakes or pies occasionally and maybe they won't be mad. I wouldn't worry about it if it happens it happens. Come to think of it the more people you got helping you might be better. Ask all the neighbors to help track your deer! Lol
 
Thanks for all the replies ... I figured that there were not likely to be any guarantees, but I had to ask ;)

I'm brand new to the neighborhood, so I think that I will get to know the neighbors before I do any hunting. If even one of my next door neighbors has it in for the quadrupeds, then I can always bias my shot so that the 100 yds will either be on my land or theirs ... and I'll just take my chances on the rare one that will make it farther.

Thanks again,

Saands
 
You live dangerously. Someone in your neighborhood is probalby feeding the deer. Anytime something like deer in your yard happens, someone starts feeding them like feral cats...then some of lady even starts to recognize some of them and maybe even names them. If that old gal even gets wind of you shooting one of them, you might as well move to Siberia...you are evil for the rest of time.
 
In 47 years of bow hunting, the only deer that ever dropped in their tracks when shot, were those I accidentally hit in the spine. While a perfect heart/lung shot will generally put an undisturbed deer down within sight, that still is 30-40 yards, which in a sub-division where lots are .7-1 acre, means the neighbors yard. If this happens, you will need the neighbors permission to retrieve the animal. From my experience, it is best to get this permission BEFORE you even start to hunt. Hunting a one acre parcel without permission from surrounding land owners, hoping to drop an animal within that one acre using standard archery equipment, is a foolish proposition and a invitation to a neighborhood feud that will last forever.
 
From my experience, it is best to get this permission BEFORE you even start to hunt.
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I think that there is a lot of wisdom here and it will define my approach to this. I'd love it to be an opportunity, but I don't need years of ill-will if it goes less than perfectly.

I have never hunted with archery equipment, only rifles and I while it is true that no rifle will guarantee a DRT result on an average shot, if a person is willing to be patient and wait for (and only take) a perfect 30yd head shot on a deer, I believe that it would be possible to make good on a DRT bet with a rifle. That being said, you guys have educated me on the reality that this doesn't apply to archery hunting. I am very glad that I asked :eek:

Thanks again,

Saands
 
I have never hunted with archery equipment, only rifles and I while it is true that no rifle will guarantee a DRT result on an average shot, if a person is willing to be patient and wait for (and only take) a perfect 30yd head shot on a deer, I believe that it would be possible to make good on a DRT bet with a rifle. That being said, you guys have educated me on the reality that this doesn't apply to archery hunting. I am very glad that I asked
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FYI...I have personally seen three deer with jaws shot off and two with large holes in their snouts go by me during gun season in NY and PA. I'm still waiting to find out what a "perfect head shot" is. It's a shot I don't try for and I'm a really good shot, both off hand and off rest.
 
The starting points !!

From my experience, it is best to get this permission BEFORE you even start to hunt.
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Would agree that this is always a good policy but for these types of hunts/ conservation effort, not easy or realistic. Practically all are conducted in City/County areas, housing additions, city and county parks that border on houses. Even some golf courses. Most of these areas are not directly controlled by private homes. All are heavily publicized through the media. Some areas even conduct public meeting where folks can express their concerns. So far, they have all been approved in our area. Sure, you get Bunny-Huggers that will always object and their feelings are respected. Surprisingly, you also get some folks that question why their areas were not included. ... :confused:

A few years back, I was one of many volunteers that helped facilitate such a conservation efforts. Really wasn't much fun or hunt but it did get the numbers down. .... :rolleyes:

Forgot to mention that all hunters had to apply for a special permit and required to take a Hunter Safety course, of sorts. .... ;)

Respect and;
Be Safe !!!
 
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Head shot with a suppressed rifle...
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See NoSecondBest's post about why deliberate head shots are a BAD idea on deer. WAY too many deer get wounded by idiots who THINK they are good enough for a consistent head shot.
 
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