Home Forums Hunting & Shooting General Big Game Have You Lost Any Big game You've shot?

One buck shot with a bow...........sucks!!!

Some things can be taken too literally.

Yes with Archery, muzzleloader, rifle and shotgun. I have never lost one I shot with a pistol.

Perry

That's true, but I didn't know you weren't serious.

Yes, out of the hundreds I've shot, I've lost several. It's a bad feeling for sure. Spent many many hours looking for them.

The thing that gets under my skin a bit is the hunters that hardly look at all. You'd be surprised how many hunters give up looking within minutes.

I've lost a few, unfortunately. I lost a nice blacktail to a brown bear on Admiralty Island. I made a good shot on him across a small ravine, and he dropped in his tracks. While I was figuring out the best way to get over to him, a young bear stood up in the alder less than 50 yards from my deer. I watched him weave through the alder right to the kill site.

I've lost a couple of whitetails, too. Both with my longbow. One was a liver hit that crossed a river. Found her remains the next day. Coyotes had made quick work of her. The other was a one lunger, shot from too steep an angle. Never did find her, even after pushing her for over a mile. I will say that if I hadn't had tracking dogs available, I'd probably have lost 3 or 4 more. Never lost one with my rifle, though.

Hogs are another story. I've lost several. Most were just bad hits, no blood trails, and thick swamp. The craziest one, though, was a young boar I shot with my longbow. I put an arrow through both lungs, complete pass through. He made a mad 40 yard dash for the Santee river and literally dove off the bank into the water. He never came up.

I also lost a turkey to the brush in the swamp. Found my arrow and a pile of feather a couple of days later. Now, I use a string tracker.

South TX brush can get thick. Have trailed more than a few for an hour or more to find them.

I"ve taken over 100 with bow alone, I don't like it, but I feel lucky that I've only lost a few deer period over the years to any weapon.

There are a few wounded ones too that survived, so I dont' count them in the lost category, only the well educated category.

Yep, and it super sucks and not something one ever gets over.

Two that really busted me up. I have replayed these scenarios over and over again and they still bust me up.

Back in about '00, arrowed a BIG 6-point Rocky Mtn bull elk my third or so year out archery hunting. As big as they get in the area. Text book. Season opener. Buddy set up to call downwind and down ridge. I was kneeling at the edge of a small opening about 40 yards up the ridge. He proceeded with his sweet cow calling, sweet mountain music. About 5 minutes and here comes the antlers - OMG! Just like the big time! He passes behind a little fir and I draw. Perfect! Coming to broadside at about 25 yards I let it fly. Wack! I thought I'd done it good, he busts down and away over the ridge. Buddy comes up and asks me if I'd seen it? I am like, "Seen it - Dude I nailed a BIG bull!" He immediately crushed my enthusiasm saying, "Sure didn't hear him pile up, where'd you hit him?" Right in the sweet spot I replied,"I SAW THE ARROW STICKING OUT." He's like, dude (we were younger then, that's how we talked duuuude!), "that's not good!" I'm now certain I hit him a few inches forward of the sweet spot, right in the scapula. Wasn't using a super powerful set-up either. Damm little blood but was able to track him about a mile and found the arrow, then nothing. Spent all afternoon and evening looking and no findy and the next day, nothing. Killed a raghorn two days later on the same ridge with a neck shot! My buddy has concluded maybe I ought stick to rifles... A few years previous, on the same ridge, I killed my first archery elk, a yummy heifer that was TROTTING along with a group heading for the same buddy's cow call. Hit the rear end taking out the femoral artery, certainly not pretty but she was anchored! Poor young gal. That's definitely a special ridge that will likely always have elk if any do. FS surrounding a huge primo private parcel, just sooo many many more a-holes up there anymore... After many conversations, we think that big ol' bull likely suffered through it to meet his end via another fate.

In 2012, I drew a neat blacktail rifle tag, actually hybrids up there, and had scouted things out enough to know I better take whatever I can, it's brushy, dry, they're still nocturnal. Evening of the opener I chanced upon a little buck just stepping out from behind a little fir at a whopping 30 yards. Don't think he ever met a man before, just following his mom or sister... I drew up, aimed for the big spot, fired and he hunched up and gimped a couple steps out of sight. I was elated, easy peasy. Purely a meat hunt, no hurries and no worries. Gave it a couple minutes and walked over there to tag my dink, and sunsabeich there's no deer! I mean he's small and it is BRUSHY as hell, so I look around pretty good, but he's not there! WTF WTF WTF! Sonsabeich there's no blood! No chance of tracking in the dry forest litter and powdery soil, NOTHING! I spent the next several hours searching well into the night, and half the next day and never found the slightest bit of crimson. I mean crawling around on my belly looking at every larch needle, twig, and speck or dirt. NOTHING! Just really gave me a bad taste for screwing around! I had bought a super super accurate Rem 700 SS Mtn Guide 243 on here, worked up an super accurate, get this, 70gr NBT load that consistently shot cloverleafs at 100. Just pissed me off. I sold that super accurate rifle. I honestly cussed the Campfire in general for giving me such silly ideas! Gawd darnedest idea I ever had, using a varmint bullet on deer (the price is sure right)! In hindsight I think I learned a few things and realized even more. That bullet probubly works further away. I should'a head or neck shot him at that range. Uber accuracy doesn't matter if you don't practice. I likely hit him in front of where I'd thought, on the shoulder, and there's a very good possibility he was not clear of the little fir tree yet and the bullet contacted something before striking him... Still, NO BLOOD, that pisses me off to this day! I wish we could use dogs to find wounded game and had access to one. I think he had the fate of being cougar, bear or coyote food... Late in the season I shot a hella nice mature 3-pointer (that's 8 back East, sounds bigger that way, eh?), but loosing that tender little buck still busts me up.

That might apply in your area
Around here you could be 10 feet from an animal in the woods and still not see it

Yes. One. Happened on a Missouri Breaks rifle elk hunt. Still makes me sick after 9 years. mtmuley

Yes

no. 1 shot, 1 kill for the past 41 seasons. not bragging, just facts

Yes.

Yes.

I think anyone that has bowhunted much has lost one or more. I have and it is not pleasant.

Several in Pa flintlock season. We used to be required to use round balls and they are not real effective. With a double lung or heart shot they often run 100 or more yards with little or no trail. You find them shortly later if you can find the sign. I finally quit hunting if we did not have snow. Now we can use better bullets.

A bigger cal ball helps. They'll blow right through.

Unfortunately yes - one whitetail doe with a rifle and one spike elk with a bow. Both late afternoon and unable to find before light ran out. Unsuccessful following up the next day - I very seldom pull the trigger late in the day due to this, and never with a bow...

Yes two whitetails and one sika deer, all with a bow..... Just don't bow hunt anymore. All were shot in heavy cover and wet conditions. The one whitetail was found by a beagle two weeks later while rabbit hunting, less then a 100 yds, from where I shot it......