Another first trad deer kill!! (with a rookie question)

[buckhuck]

Here is a pic of  my first trad deer kill ever!!
 

And for the story….  Got into my stand this morning really early.  Had this doe come in to about 10 yards but it was way too dark to shoot.  She fed for a while and moved into about 5 steps and kept moving to the west of me into a ticket out of range.  I waited till it was plenty light enough and I hit my bleat can.  She came right back in to range.

I waited patiently until her head was down, she was broad side 10 yards away and I am relaxed… or so I thought. I pick a spot, shoot and immediately see the arrow sticking out of her WAY too far back     .  I am not hopeful at this point because of where I have hit her.

I waited 30 min and head back home for a quick break and to get some surveyors tape to mark the trail.

I take up the trail about 1hr from when I first shot and immediately see pieces of stomach on small trees she rubbed up against 30 yards from my stand… my confidence takes a plunge at this point.

Since I don’t foresee her leaving a stellar blood trail and with the lack of sign already I phone a friend who has a hound that might be useful.  I waited about 1 more hour and return with the dog.  The hound didn’t take up the trail very good so I took her back to my friend and return to the last spot I saw stomach matter about 4 hours after the initial shot.  I started doing small semi circles and eventually found good blood.  And lots of it!  I was surprised to say the least.  The blood was a darker color as I expected but there was a good trail.  An hour and a half later I was standing over the doe with a big smile on my face.  

As you can see from the pic below I hit her way too far back.  The WW caught an artery in her left ham and that’s what eventually did her in.

I am pretty disappointed in myself for screwing up such an easy shot and I felt lucky to have recovered her given my shot placement.

 

So here is my QUESTION:

What do you do to calm yourself (if you have to) right before taking a shot at an animal?  2 weeks ago I shot a fork horn from the same stand at 10 yards broadside and never recovered him after 8 hrs of hard looking.  I hit him way too high above the shoulder.  I can’t figure out what I am doing wrong when shooting at deer.  I can hit squirrels and targets just fine at the same distance (I am only talking 10 yards here!) but it seems when my heart gets to pumping I have a hard time settling down and concentrating on a spot to shoot at.      

[WidowEater]

its probably a combination of target panic and not picking a small enough spot on the animal.  Focus on a hair behind the shoulder draw anchor and release just like prctice.  I know I am being overly simple but there you have it.

[Wannabe1]

Way to stay with her and good recovery. I know you aren't the first one to make a shot like that and won't be the last. I have yet to take a deer but, when target shooting, I close my mind to all outside sources and create a focal point in wich I envision my arrow arriving at. 'Course I know it's different when faced with a shot on an animal but, this technique works well for me.

Congratulations.  

[Bill Skinner]

Good job!  As far as calming down for the shot, I try to inhale deeply as I draw, that helps to settle me down and let me concentrate on the spot I want to hit.  I have a friend that says "elbow,anchor, spot, release," to calm himself down.  Bill

[vermonster13]

Experience and time around the game all helps. When the excitement totally fades is when it's time to call it quits. A good method of practice is counting coup. Get in a stand with lots of traffic and just draw down on deer without shooting. Get used to doing the motions while in the presence of game and you'll build up the muscle memory that will help at the moment of truth. When I'm scouting/stumping I draw on any deer I run into and practice stalking them too. Just don't put an arrow on the nock.


Good work on recovering the doe!

[Wannabe1]

Vermonster's advise is very sound. I have drawn down on just about anything from chipmunks to cattle while running around in the woods. I'm pretty confident that when the time comes for the shot, I'll be able to deliver the goods.

[BRITTMAN]

What I do to calm myself is to stay focused on the spot I want to hit and not the deer itself . If I can , I will wait a few minutes before I take the shot to let myself calm down and to see if a better shot presents itself . BUT I love the heart pounding adrenilin rush I get when Im fixing to take the shot , I hope I always have that . One thing to think about is how you pratice . You said you shoot small game and targets good but have trouble with deer . Make sure you are praticing from a elevated position with broadheads at the distance you plan on shooting a deer from . I use a 8 foot step ladder so I can move it closer or farther away from the target , I shoot only one arrow at the time with a broadhead because thats all we will get most of the time , and I shoot a a blank target where I have to pick a spot ( no bullseye ) . These simple pratice habits work for me and I think they will work for you . Check out my buck I killed this past Tues . on the thread " Kanati = Big Buck " . If it was not for the way I pratice I would not have made the shot on my buck .

Mike

[Chris Surtees]

Congrats on the deer and way to stick with the trail.

[JoeM]

My first year was not fun, I screwed up more than I care to admit.  Calming down comes with time and experience, you start to get used to the situation,your emotions, etc. I don't know if you ever are in total control (what fun would that be) because now I usually can hold it together for the shot but totally fall apart after it happens.  Keep with it your just paying your dues.  Great job on the recovery learn everything you can from it.  It WILL happen again if not to you then someone you know and you can take the knowledge from this track job and put it to use.       Joe

[Randy Morin]

First of all...great job on the trail.  Those 3 bladed heads really can be a help with bad hits.
Lots of good advice already so I will try not to repeat.  You and I seem similar when it comes to animals vs. targets.  I bet a lot of people are.  I have overcome it with experience (not hard to do in MT sometimes) and managed to make good shots on the last 9 deer and 2 bears.  I will make a few suggestions that have helped me.  One...when you are falling apart in a stand waiting for a deer to present a shot you want to control your breathing.  Do this by consiously holding your breath for a count of 4 or so in between slow inhalation and exhalation.  It's a form of meditation and relaxation.  While you are doing this you can be visualizing your shot placement, judging distance, ie. preparing for the shot.  Dont look into there eyes whatever you do...seems to rock me anyway LOL.        

Lastly, when it comes time to shoot most people can only concentrate on one thing well, the rest is muscle memory.  My   "one thing" is the bow arm pointing stong at the place I am aiming at which should be as small as possible.  I have found if I do this one thing (strong bow arm)left/right misses decrease substantially in magnitude. Up and down is on auto pilot at ranges under 25 yards for me.  This will get you started anyway in the right direction.  

Later you can mess with your mind more by trying to hold at full draw that extra split second and really bare down the focus on the spot your are wanting to impact. Very hard for me!! But I have done it on some close doe shots and it felt Goood!!

Or maybe every deer from now on will come running in and stop looking away...not leaving any time to let the mind get frazzled. Not Likely!!  

[Friends call me Pac]

Way to go.  Got my first this year too.  Got a secound one last week and it was about the same hit as yours.  I had a broadside shot but when I released she turned on me and the arrow hit the back right hip and came out just under the liver.  I know how you felt.  When my doe ran off I could follow her by watching the yellow and white fletchings going through the woods.  I saw the arrow stop about 100 yards from my stand and I assumed she was bedding down.  After watching the arrow for an hour and a half I did two things.  First I took a compass bearing on my arrow and then I slipped out of the tree and went back to my camp site to get my buddy.  We let 4 hours go by before looking for here.  When we went back I stood at the base of my tree and took off on my compass bearing.  I walked straight to my 2nd doe.  

Other than that I really can't give much advice as a rookie myself.  I do believe time and experience will help in the long run though.

[blueslfb]

My 2cents.

When I am training officers at the range and new officers I stress the importance of breathing during high stress situations.  The technique is called tactical breathing.  Inhale thru the nose for 3 seconds and exhale out the mouth for 3 to 4 seconds.  Due this for three or four cycles and you will feel your heart rate start to slow down with in manageable levels. When your heart rate gets above 145BPM you start to loose the ability to focus and make rational decisions.  I know shooting at deer is not a life threatening situation but your body will react in a similiar manner when your heart rate soars.   Give it a try and I gurantee you will feel a difference.  It has helped me and I immediately begin this type of breathing when I see deer.  It works best if you do it for 3 or 4 cycles and then breath normally for a minute or two and then do it again for 3 or 4 cycles.  

Congrats on the deer and way to stick with it.

[buckhuck]

Thank you all for the tips.    

Thanks again guys for all the tips, I plan on putting several of them to use.  As a rookie, I can't thank you all enough for the info and tips like that.


What a great group!  

[J-dog]

YEah I screwed up some greatly on my first go round. You handled thsat shot perfectly - Not many would have found her. Bad shots happen though we do our best through practice - practie and more praactice. But the best shot in the world still pulls one every know and then.

I think yo weren't panicing, you prolly didn't pick as good a spot(hair) as you should have. Still an issue that will get me!

Way to go on the first and trust me you shooting is fine just a mistake that we have all made.

J

[Benny Nganabbarru]

Well done for persisting, and you took her with a classy bow too, by the way.  

[buckhuck]

Thanks Ben!  The bow is a 45# Bear K-Mag.  Early 70's model given to me by a good friend.  First (and only) trad bow I have ever owned and shot.

[SoNevada Archer]

Congrats on your deer.
I used to get real nervous too. Then one day I was talking to my younger brother about my jitters and he laughed at me and said "try becoming the preditor". I thought that sounded funny but I must tell you, when I seriously start thinking...I am the preditor and I'm going to kill you! I calm down and can focus much better. Give it a try.