Aldeer.com Forums Alabama Deer Talk Aldeer Bow Talk Lots of discouragement from rifle hunters

So, this year I am 2 for 2 on slinging an arrow and not making the recovery. I bought a bow about 2 weeks before gun season started and worked to get proficient enough to not feel like i was a threat to be wounding animals. The my first non-recovery was a doe. I was running a fever and it was too late to be shooting. Had a clean pass thru but shot was high and didn't make a great hit. I pulled a rookie mistake and pushed the deer and gave up when she hit a briar thicket.

I absolutely smoked a huge boar yesterday about 11 am. He sat down with his right leg in the air twitching, stood up motionless for a minute then commenced to walk off with my broadhead. The shot was well placed bright "lung blood" all along the trail. The trail ran out after about 80 yards and it started to shower, futher diminishing my chances at a recovery.

Since then I have been talking with folks and nearly everyone says that they always hear bowhunters with the same types of stories. I had one guy tell me that unless I was really, really good I would only recover 1/3 of the animals I shot. I was pumped about that shot I made yesterday, and had high confidence when I left the woods.. even without the pig. Now all these debbie downers have me second guessing.

Sorry for the long post.. What do y'all think about the things I have been told?

its called you dont hunt like me so you are wrong syndrome...
Hunt HARD, hunt how you want, with what you want, as long as its LEGAL
and thats BS on the 1/3 thing...

If I thought I was only going to have 1/3 chance of recovery I wouldnt Bow hunt.Thats BS

Typical rifle hunter mentality.

I have killed over 100 deer with my bow since I started bowhunting at the age of 15, 34 years ago. I have lost 6 deer during this time, due to poor shot placement. Two of those deer died and were later found, the others I assume survived.

Patience is the key to bowhunting, not to mention good scouting, stand placement, scent control etc. etc. Just be disciplined and a do not allow yourself to take ill advised shots. In my book, that is anything over 35 yards, I prefer 25 within. Make yourself hunt areas that only present these type of shots. You may not see the numbers of deer that your "climb up in a shooting house and hunt rifle hunters" will see, but you will learn to be more selective of where you hunt and will ulitmately become a much better hunter as result. A predator.

Ignore those lead chunkers and hang in there. You will be a better as result.

i hate to lose an animal. i think its the lowest feeling i have ever felt. but i will say this IT HAPPENS! GUN OR BOW IT HAPPENS! i have shot several deer with a bow and even more with a rifle. i have lost 3 deer with my bow in my entire life. all 3 were my fault. i was just getting started and in the excitement i pushed them. i think the majority of deer shot with a bow or gun can be found if given enough time to expire. i have helped find a lot of deer and LONG tracking efforts that were shot with guns. dont let them make you believe a bow is not an effective hunting tool. its all about shot placement no matter what the weapon. be confident in your shooting and be patient. good luck!!!

You bowhunt long enough, you are going to lose a animal or two. Thats life. If you put a sharp broadhead Through the heart lung area you are going to find that animal not too far away. Hogs are tough to trail, that hair will soak up a lot of blood. It sucks losing a animal, but the ones you find will keep you going back for more.

I think they are full of IT. Just practice all you can and work on your shot selection. You will find many more than you won't. Hogs are difficult sometimes, lots of fat and hair. I try to get a quarting away shot and keep it in the bottom 3rd.

I feel the same way guys.. I really don't feel bad about not finding the pig other than the g5 that is stuck in him. He's probably frozen solid out there somewhere and I feel confident that I will catch up with him this weekend.

The comment that really got me was the 1/3 comment. I thought to myself that if it was true then bowhunting would be illegal.

I'm not about to quit bowhunting.. I was so fired up after shooting that big ol' boar and it was amazing, nothing in the woods was disturbed.. I've been rifle hunting all my life and am so accustomed to the whole world knowing when an animal had been harvested. I have been mainly turkey hunting for the last 9 years but the old stick and string got me back interested in deer hunting. What a thrill!

Thanks for the replies..

Just hang in there man. So far this year I am 4 for 4 on deer and 3 for 3 on hogs that I hit! LOL Yes, I did have a couple clean misses!

Bowhunting is a huge rush!

If you shot that hog and aimed behind the shoulder like you do a deer, your shot was probably too far back. I like to shoot those big hogs in the neck!

That 1/3 junk is total crap. I've helped plenty of people blood trail deer that were shot with rifles and not find them. Guns aren't a guarantee either. If you enjoy bow hunting keep bow hunting. You'll get better the more you do it and you will become a better hunter. If the right shot doesn't present it self just don't shoot don't try any marginal shots. Just practice all you can. Don't shoot untill your tired or you will develop a bad form. I like to shoot about 6 shots in the moring and 6 in the evening. Practice with your hunting jacket on so you'll be use to it. Try some practice shots in low light conditions and see how you do. Shoot from an elevated position, not just standing on the ground and be sure to bend at the waist, don't lower your arms.

I learned a valuable lesson on that doe.. it was low light and a marginal presentation for a shot at best.. I was trying to force it and get my first bow kill under my belt.. Hopefully Capt you see me holding this guy..

That would be a dang fine one.
I've taken shots that I shouldn't have before, we all have.

One thing I have learned over several years of trial and error is to maximize your rate of recovery by only taking shots that afford you more opportunity to drill the vitals and get a complete pass through, and that also includes low light shots at dark. I usually climb down with my bow and call it a day 10-15 minutes before I would with a gun. I am a lot more selective on my shots than ever before, and ironically I kill a lot more deer being patient and selective than when I slung arrows at everything within range. Patience is huge. You might end up letting some deer walk, but the rewards are well worth it when you walk up to your first bow kill. With time, you will build your confidence and your rate of recovery will become a lot more. No bow hunter can claim 100% recovery on shots taken, not even the best. As your confidence builds, so will your success. Going into the shot with confidence makes it or breaks it. Hang in there and you'll have a blast.

mayo...don't take advise on bowhunting from GUN hunters......

one outa three?? BS. You will lose one sooner or later. I've lost one out of maybe the last thirty with a longbow or recurve. I personally feel that most "lost" deer will fully recover from an arra wound. Research backs me up on that thought.

The hardest part to learn is that moment of actually shooting, timing yer draw with the deer so as not to spook it and getting a good release on a good target.

Learn to set up for close shots, NOT a good view to see a bunch of deer out of range. ONE deer at ten yards is better than ten deer at fifty yards.

troy

They are idiots. You answered your own question on #1...don't push them and give them plenty time to die, but shoot when you can clearly see. Learn from the mistake and you won't give them any further BS to make up.

BhamFred said "The hardest part to learn is that moment of actually shooting, timing yer draw with the deer so as not to spook it and getting a good release on a good target.

Exactly right. This is what took me 4 times, 3 times on does and once on a buck (actually 4 limbs in front of them deflected all my arrows ) for me to get it right this year...and I finally got it right with the 5th, a buck.

Everything came together...finding the 8-point during a stalk, calming down to quickly assess the buck's attitude, timing my draw as he moved and provided a better shot, concentrating on a small area behind the shoulder to arrow, and releasing the arrow well, just as I had practiced since mid-June. It worked and I got my first buck...very first deer actually. My arrow hit slightly high but all else was good and he only ran 100 yards.

Matt helped me get the torque issue solved which helped a lot. Out back suggested 3-blade Muzzy heads might help remedy my fly-off shots I had with 4-blade Muzzy heads, and that worked wonders.

Hit your deer square in the vitals with an arrow, mayonnaise, and it'll cause lots of internal damage. Some deer even arrowed correctly will be lost (as more experienced bowman have noted) but some are lost to good gun shots too.

Doing your best to access and make a good shot for a quick kill...is all you can do and all that is expected.

Gain confidence and be positive with your bow by practicing all you can....at all distances, terrain, light situations, and positions. Ex: my buck was killed while squatted upon the ground and it was a 34 yard downhill shot...using broom sage around me to camouflage my draw movement. I practiced that same type shot many times and it payed off.

Good luck and don't allow nay-say folks to spoil your bow hunting !

mission

Matt nailed it...Patience is a virtue and one of the most valued skills a bow hunter can develop. I always think through my shot for entry and exit and try to account for deer reaction based on how alert they are when I am settling onto a spot. Stealthy patience in the stand + confidence in the shot = deer on the dirt. Hang in there!

1/3 recovery rate? BS! Maybe their recovery rate. True Bowhunters (TB) have a much higher rate of recovery. Much higher!

TB don't shoot their bow the day before opening of bow season and they certainly don't leave anything to chance!!!

TB don't take straight-on shots and NEVER takes shots at deer that are not high percentage shots!

You keep bow hunting and be ethical and calculated about what you do while in the tree.

A well placed broadhead will do some major damage resulting in an ethical, quick kill.

Those darn GH's!!

Matt said it best, BE SELECTIVE.