The Gut Shot Blues..

[1stoutm5]

Make things short and sweet, I feel compelled to admit the guilty feeling I have after shooting a doe last night that was basically just feet from my stand. It was getting to be last light and a doe and 2 yearlings were coming up behind me. The yearlings were almost as big as her, no spots whatsoever. They all congregate just off to the left of my stand, so I range her at 6 yds... I turned my bow all the way down to the 20yd mark and draw back slow as I can. thinking to myself this should be quick and easy I was sorely let down. After letting it fly she jumped and sprang to the wood line about 60yds in front of me and my arrow was sticking in the dirt where she just was. I waited about 15 minutes as it was getting darker by the minute I finally got down and looked at my arrow. No blood, just green/yellowish slime. Gut shot it was. I wasn't sure what to do, if I should track or I should leave. It was supposed to rain later in the evening and all the next day plus I had to work on top of that. So I took off into the woods, not a speck of blood or anything to go off off. I did zig zag patterns for about 2 hours before the rain came down on me. I packed it out and headed to the car, feeling nauseous and disappointed that I mamed a deer that had yearlings still following her. If it weren't raining today I would've called into work and went out this morning but that being said I could've jumped her up last night unknowingly and shes now hundreds of yards away in any direction. This by far kills all the drive and excitement out of me for hunting at the moment, I don't know whos to blame. I feel like I had such an easy shot and totally turned a 180 against me. ( deep breath ) rant over

 

[DSGB]

Best thing would have been to back out when you saw that it was a gut shot. She will die, but it will be a long time - 8 hours or more.

I've searched for deer too early and ended up pushing them further than they would go otherwise. Learned my lesson.

I shot a doe last year that I knew was gut shot. I watched her as long as I could and then snuck out after dark. Told my boss I would be in late the next morning and went back and found the deer about 100 yards from where I last saw her.

 

[baddave]

i feel it brother - ouch.. i know the feeling .. but yep, pushing her that soon was not good .. i would have been late for work the next morning and it has been done on a few occasions but maybe you couldn't do that .. sorry , it'll take awhile to get over that

 

[gtmcwhorter]

It stinks. Not sure how good a dog would have been with no blood as I’ve never used a tracking dog or seen one first hand. Coyotes gotta eat too I reckon

 

[Dennis]

A good tracking dog requires no blood

 

[kbuck1]

Better luck next time. A gut shot deer is the easiest to find for a dog from what i hear. It happens to all of us if we do it long enough.

 

[1eyefishing]

Those feelings will make you a better hunter.
Soak'em up...

 

[Westhall55]

Know the feeling, same exact thing happened to me last week.

 

[Hillbilly stalker]

Anybody that ain't went thru that either hasn't shot at enuff deer yet or ain't telling the truth. Better check your bow and your form. Yardage doesn't move the shot backwards into the gut. You arrow may have hit something.