Yep……I’m just surprised to see some of Aldeer’s own be the ones that are doing the most crying.

Exactly ^^^^^
That I’m always right and your always wrong crap is ridiculous

Have you ever been to a public shooting range? There are lots of individuals that have no business pulling the trigger on an animal. I’m amazed at the number of people I’ve heard of that got a new scope boresighted at a sporting goods place and go hunting with it without shooting it. Or they shoot it at a pie plate at 25 yards and it’s on

I hear you….there is some truth to that I don’t disagree. …..But no matter how much everyone practices there’s a large portion of these shots that are just a natural part of hunting. For every 100 deer we kill there will be a certain % that get marginally hit and they will stem from a variety of reasons from lack of practice….to bad shot angles….. to buck fever…..to grown men using .243’s….to just the fact that “chit happens”, etc…etc…. . Whether that % is 5% or 20% though is a difference of there being 10,000 wounded deer or 40,000 when you’re talking about killing a total of 200K annually….. Sure, we can improve that number through better shooting skills, taking better shots, etc……but we’ll still have marginally hit deer to try and salvage in the thousands. Tracking dogs help to further reduce this number to the lowest amount possible. Isnt that the intent of the law that talks about doing everything to recover the deer? To reduce waste? Well, that's what is occurring at the end of the day.....reducing waste.

Yep people need to learn to shoot and make better shots. The last time I lost a deer was probably 15 years ago. I hit it in the brisket. I knew I messed up as soon as I pulled the trigger. It should have been an easy shot, Standing broadside in a greenfield at 150 yards with a good rest. Still think about that one. As I have stated before I am a dog hunter. That means taking a lot of shots at running deer. That is no excuse for taking shots at deer that you know you will likely not kill. The last time I lost one while dog hunting was 20 years ago, I was trying to shoot too far with buckshot. That was a lesson for me, and have since let a lot of deer go by that were out of range. I do not claim to be the best shot. I just know my weapons, the weapons limitations and my limitations, and do not take shots that I can't make.

I grew up at a time when running dogs was a standard in west central Alabama. In all those years I don’t remember a non-fatally wounded deer ever being caught by the dogs. Dogs had to go and get pulled off the track often times several miles from where they were put out…. With the deer still going. So to assume a non fatally wounded deer was bayed up, walked up on and killed by a tracker in a distance less many miles, is a far reaching assumption. A fatal wound can be inflicted, as stated here earlier, with any leg or hoof injury. It may not be a rapidly fatal wound, but rest assured for a wild animal it will be fatal. I’d much prefer to see the dog assist in preventing that animal from suffering than have someone say, “oh well, couldn’t find them after looking for 50 yards so reckon they’ll live”.

That’s nonsense!

Going back to the post a month or so ago, i said if tracking involves a gun, it’s hunting. If a guns involved to finish the animal, it’s hunting. Right or wrong, good or bad, like it, don’t like it. Now what to do with a wounded animal ? Idk

Alright Harold, you done gone to meddling now. Ain't nothing wrong with a .243 for sure. Both my daughters shoot .243 caliber rifles and ain't neither one of them ever lost a deer nor had to call for a tracking dog.

Carry on with yer analyzing and leave our .243's outa this conversation.

Well dang. Maybe one day I’ll grow up 😀

I'm guessing you have never missed a deer or wounded 1?

Clean missed a couple with a bow never missed or wounded one with a rifle

That great Beadlescomb, I have only had 1 I wounded but it did survive and I couldn't believe it. I'm not a expert in this but its amazing how much a deer can overcome.

Good info right here.^

Just to be clear, it’s nonsense to blame the need for a tracking dog on a small caliber. I too will not grow up! I love my .243

A .243 will definitely get the job done. But I have yet to be walking through the woods tracking a deer and hear the words “I sure wish I had of shot it with something smaller”

I’ll say this…….There’s some truth to both sides of the .243 argument. Folks post a lot of pics where things go right but we get called to track…..”When .243’s go wrong…..”

When a 275 lb grown man is calling me out to track that hard quartering away or quartering to shot…..or maybe the one he tried to put a Texas heart shot on……I have to just pause and give it a silent “WTH man” when he tells me he was using a .243……..Why man!?!?......Why!!!!.......

This infection and death talk has me thinking. I killed a buck two weeks ago that had clearly been scrapping. He had a wound on his nose area that was really swollen and full of puss, to the point it was draining out. Upon skinning him out I found multiple stab wounds in his hams and he had marks all over his hide. Y'all think that deer would have died from the infected nose wound? Never really considered that, maybe I did ole boy a favor even if he was a year younger than I thought.

wounds, cuts, broken bones in the body or upper legs will usually heal on their own. In my experience with foot, and very low legs wounds with broken bones is that those wounds are nearly 100% fatal in a few weeks.

I’ve killed several 3 legged deer over the years. For what it’s worth. That were healed over. Deer are tough as Hell.