What Went Wrong With Trail? UPDATE DEER FOUND pg 2!!

[bornagainbowhunter]

My family used to own a meat packing house.  You could not imagine what a buck can survive.  Deer have been brought in with entire arrows inside, lots of gunshot scars from previous years, an unnumberable amount of broadheads inside deer over the years and more .22 bullets that you would believe.  You name it, it has come through.  

God Bless,
Nathan

[Eugene Slagle]

Originally posted by Friend:
Could not tell with any degree of confidence to what had happened. One thing that has worked   consistantly for me is to make a commitment not to move beyond that last drop of blood. It drives my partners nuts that I may commit up to an hour on my hands and knees screening every twig, leaf. rock within a 20 yard radius of the last drop of blood. During this exercise I may find his tracks and go from there. The key has been to remain patient and take some pleasure in figuring out the puzzle. My buds are excited when after all there waiting we are on the trail again. They must not disapprove too much since they come get me when when they have lost a trail.

Tracking and game recovery is one of the most important aspects of the hunt. Learn to relax and take pleasure in it. The reward is great.

I'm the same way in that I'll get on my hands & knees to look for any kind of sign & will concentrate my efforts like that but my buddies are mor of the type that if they don't see any blood in short time they beging a grid search & pray.

[hickry]

Man, I'm like Onions... would sure like another chance... or at least to know that it didn't kill him.    

[The Great Jashu]

I dont think you killed him. That is the typical high spine, shoulder hit scenario. Start to bleed about 20 yards out, pick up to unbelievable levels, then quit at 300-400 yards. Thats a skeletal hit deer with lots of muscle blood. You did not one lung him. That is a tough scenario to have happen on a broadside. If the arrow went into the chest cavity, the lungs collapse once the pleural barrier was broken, both of them. If either is punctured the blood flow will not stop. It would be a near impossible chance for the deer to have  a punctured lung and live. Hemo/Pneumothorax will kill everything, unless acted upon. Air will flow into the chest via the arrow hole and not the deers trachea. Causing tension on the lungs. Hence a tension pneumothorax. Collapsed lungs do not reinflate without help, and pneumothorax do not just go away. There is more than a probable chance this deers shoulder stopped the broadhead and the arrow did not cause a fatal hit.
Now I will give you this, my medical training is in humans with penetrating trauma. My Paramedical degree is only in humans and not cervid medicine. But we are both mammals with extremely similar cardio/pulmonary systems.
Again, I dont think you killed the deer.

[hickry]

WOW!!!  My brother killed the deer this morning... HALLELUJAH!!!  This deer, in the span of four weeks, almost completely healed over!  Had a knot in his shoulder right around the broadhead and a slight limp... but was otherwise FINE!!!  My brother said there didn't appear to be any infection or anything around the meat.  Said the arrow was just a little far forward... and the broadhead was sticking in the bone in a quartering fashion.  I have to say... after seeing that blood trail... that I was very skeptical that the deer could have lived!!!  But some of you guys were correct... the deer appeared like he was going to be just fine!  AMAZING to me!!!  Gotta tell you... that really lifts my spirits!!!

[xtrema312]

That is great news.  Wild animals are amazingly fast healers.  They are typically extremely health and have few infections when injured.  I have seen it many times.  I have talked to butchers who have removed multiple broadheads and bullets for a single older deer.  I had a friend get a shoulder hit a few years ago in bow season and then shot the same deer 8 weeks later in muzzleloader season.  It was healed over and the deer was walking fine by that time.  This year a friends son shot a buck that was running around with one back lower leg amputated all but the tendon that was holding it on.  The leg below the injury was rotting away, but the upper leg was healed.  It was shot after it ran off four other bucks.  So he was managing just fine.  My friend said it was kind of a mercy killing at the time.  I said if he could run off four other bucks he didn't need any mercy and would have probably said no thanks and that he was just fine if asked.

[glass76]

Glad your spirits are lifted. Its amazing how much blood they can lose and not die.

[mike hall]

 nice to have peace of mind. time for you and your brother to have a beer.

[Bonebuster]

Closure!

No more worrying about this.