Re: Preferred shot on deer family game
i guess i woud say if it is broadside or slight quartering for sure heart/lungs...if not, neck is the next target...head is last choice if that is all that is availlable.....we thoroughly wash out all gut cavity area and will not hesitate to remove quarters to wash out blood shot..very little meat ever wasted so no hesitation to put one through the middle (boiler room) or the shoulder if necessary....
Re: Preferred shot on deer family game
Always depends on circumstances but tend to aim high shoulder. Your always going to hit the lungs that way plus break bone. If you miss high you will spine them, miss back hit the liver, miss low hit the heart and miss forward hit the neck. We all try to kill cleanly, I just find aiming high shoulder mitigates a bad outcome being slightly off with shot placement.
Re: Preferred shot on deer family game
Nog you are right. I left this question a little vague. I should have specified rifle and maybe terrain.
Re: Preferred shot on deer family game
I voted neck as I primarily hunt blacktails and over 90% of my kills have been neck shots and all but 2 were bang flop. For moose or elk it would be heart lung.
Re: Preferred shot on deer family game
I used to aim for the head or base of skull when it was a close shot, because my grandpa said it was the best. But as I got older I realized that he was a great marksman, and I am not. So the best ethical shot for me is lungs, and patiently waiting for a broadside or quartering away shot is the challenge.
Re: Preferred shot on deer family game
Center mass, keep shooting until they fall or I can't see them.
If I had the chance of shooting something not running and standing broadside (the perfect world), I'd go for the front shoulder.
Re: Preferred shot on deer family game
If you take out both lungs they don't go far, but if the angle is a little wrong you can take out a shoulder as well, and do some meat damage but you don't have to go looking for quarry. Now black bears, if the bush is thick and you don't want to go into that bush looking for a wounded bear, if you can take out the neck, they don't go far.
Re: Preferred shot on deer family game
Quote:
Originally Posted by
IronNoggin
Completely depends on the range, aspect of animal, whether it's moving or not, and utensil of choice in my hands...
Far to wide to generalize without knowing at least some of that.
Cheers,
Nog
I agree with Nog on this......
Every situation will dictate the shot placement, I have shot a deer in the neck facing me at 15 yards as no other option was available,
ultimately heart-lung but if close enough we do neck or head shots to save on meat damage.
Re: Preferred shot on deer family game
All depends on the situation, but I never shoot head shots. In the perfect world head shots would be great but the main reason I don't like them is that if you are off target even a little you could end up inadvertently damaging the mouth/face/jaw causing a slow painful death for said animal the can't eat. I would rather see a animal run off to hunt it another day than risk it. Thats just my opinion.
Re: Preferred shot on deer family game
I shoot for the biggest target over 100yards. Closer than that, I like hump or spine shots. Drops ungulates in their tracks. Not normally much meat damage! Shot many deer and moose with this shot! Dropped a couple elk with head shots, a few moose with neck shots, quite a few moose with heart and lung shots. Dropped a couple with liver shots, just a bit to far back. most of the kills with 300 win mag. Moosin