Lost animal…situation analysis

[cyalatte]

You put a good shot on an animal and you end up not finding him. The situation happens and it tears you up inside…the hundreds of questions you ask yourself…

The other year I built a custom 6.5x55 Swede, a Turkish M98 large ring Mauser action with a M38 Swede barrel. This beauty shoots moa without breaking a sweat. I recently picked up a 100 box of Hornady 129 grain Interbonds. I did custom loads with some Hybrid 100V power and had it dialed in with a velocity averaging around 2780 fps.

We were hunting for a big mulie buck right at the height of the rut. I found myself in the lucky position of coming up on a group of does with a big ol’ buck right in the middle of them…and this guy was big! I mean his rack was nice, probably roughly a 160 class rack, but it was huge body that really stuck out to me. Anyways, I manage to get in to a location where I could get a clear shot away at the buck but the does started getting restless and started moving. They actually ended moving, with the buck in tow, right up on a small ridge where I had a nice level, broadside shot at 100 meters. I’m sighted in just under 2 “ high at 100 meters so I put the cross hairs about 2/3rds the way down from the top of the spine, right behind the shoulder. Boom…he does a big mule kick and takes off behind a thick aspen stand where I couldn’t see him anymore. Yes!!! I’m thinking to myself, he’s going down and I’m not going to push him. This was right at dusk so it was going to be dark in about 45 minutes. As I couldn’t see him, I went back to truck only a short 15 walk away. I got my hunting partner and flash lights and returned. We searched for close to 2 hours and couldn’t find him. There was no blood trail. I returned the next morning after not being able to sleep much at all. Checked the point where the shot was taken, verified the yardage and the point of impact. No blood anywhere. So I did a radius based search increasing my range every sweep done…much of it up a steep hillside but in a partially open grassland/timbered draws so visibility was pretty good. I must have gone 500 yards in each radius direction, 5 hours later…no buck could be found.

How could he have gone so far? 100 meter shot with a bonded bullet (Interbond) traveling 2780 at muzzle would have been going around 2500fps at around 100 meters. That should be a good balance of velocity to bullet performance. They were 129 grain bullets…maybe a bit on the light side but really, how many thousands of animals have been taken with a 270 caliber using 130 grain bullets? I can’t figure it out.

The mule kick is typical of a heart shot, although they can do this when hitting the lungs as well. I wasn’t too worried about the fact there was no blood trail as it can pool in the body cavity. The shot was good, I was beyond confident that it was a solid shot.

Tough situation that is eating me up. I go through the typical line of thinking “I should have been using my 8mm” and thrown some heavier lead at him but…really? I don’t know…I’m going in circles. I was hoping this to be like therapy and that somebody might shed a different light on my unfortunate situation. It’s not even so much that I didn’t recover a wicked, big nasty buck…well, no it is but it’s also about being confident in your approach and your tools. Would love to hear the thoughts of other experienced hunters who could share some wisdom.

[adriaticum]

Go back with a dog maybe

[hoochie]

If you saw it jump, then it was hit. I have taken a shot and missed, the deer never move. They stand there and wonder what the "whiz" was.
2 years ago I watched a deer run after being hit. The deer was hit with a 270, 130gr bullet. I looked until dark, and only the next day I found it laying near feet from where I had looked previously.
I went over it again and again.
why I think the deer ran so far was the bullet I was using wasnt able to mushroom, and I think I essentially "penciled" the deer. Its the only thing I would allow myself to believe.
After trying a few different bullet types, I have now chosen one that has reliably dropped deer almost instantly. the farthest one got was he staggered like a drunk sailor for just a few feet.

Go back, maybe take a dog with you. Dogs can smell them.
look again. It has to be there. If you go, and dont find it.. telling yourself you missed might take some pressure off, but stress you out in another way.
there isnt really an easy answer. It sucks. I spent a sleepless night a few years ago, and I know how you are feeling.
Go back, take your time, look one more time.
Look closer to where you hit him. I would say that if he was hit as you described, he cant be more than 100 yards.

[hoochie]

Where were you hunting? maybe a few of us go searching? I'll bring my dog.. she loves deer smell!

[Buckmeister]

Do you think it's possible you pulled the shot a little and hit the shoulder? I know of shoulder shot deer that have taken off, only to be seen a week later limping around. Only difference is there was a ton of blood at first, then half that amount 20 yards later, then no blood at all after that. Your deer had no blood at all, but maybe a pencil shot will do that?

[boxhitch]

Reads like a kill shot, maybe close up your grid search. its surprising what can hide a body.
Try hanging toilet paper on grass and branches where ever you look, and then wherever there is a gap of 2 meters between markers go look there.

[Bonz]

been raining hasnt it?. tough tracking small blood in rain.
the dogs will find the blood, or the body

[Ddog]

sounds like a good shot, and also,,,the "mule kick" is not just typical of a heart shot,,i have taken my fair share of deer and more than 90% have done the mule kick, i have had some great heart shots that they have done that kick,,but lots were single lung or double lung,,even a couple that were a little far back in the liver did that,,had a bad shot on one deer that turned out to be lucky and took it through the neck and it did the big mule kick. My friend said he grazed one under the chest and it did the mule kick too,,,,Maybe thats what happened to yours?
of all the deer that did that kick, i lost one.
albeit,,all mine were with a bow.

[6 K]

Dog is a very good idea.
You may have hit the nozone, between top of lungs and bottom of spine.
Best of luck

[longwalk]

This youth season my daughter took a under 100 yard shot at a buck. Looked like it was hit. It bunched then jumped off the bank and hit the tree line. I couldn't find any blood. Looked unto dark. Went back the next day with another fellow and his dog. No trace whatsoever. I could have sworn the deer was hit.

[Wild one]

You can only assume how good the shot was till you can confirm it by finding the animal.

blood is great but a good blood trail is never a given. If you don't have an exit wound the entrance hole is small so not much leaks out. If you hit high a lot of blood can soak up in the hair before hitting the ground

I have found that when a hunter has a hard time finding a downed animal that left a poor blood trail it is from rushing ahead. Always mark the last blood spot and don't go running too far ahead of it. If you go stomping around too much or too far ahead you can destroy other sign. Biggest thing is slow down and don't push too far ahead without confirmed sign.

Watch for scuff marks, trampled veg or broken twigs that are fresh. An animal that has been hit does not leave nice clean tracks. At the min they are a running track but at time if you look you can see a hoof drag or stubble. I use this to find the next speck of blood. At times it is only a pin drop on a poor blood trail. I will only follow sign lacking blood slowly for a shot distance 10yards max. If no blood is found I return to last mark blood spot and repeat. If no blood is found after a few attempts it is grid search time. I pay attention to the none blood related sign when starting this to help eliminate possible directions the animal has gone.

On a poor blood trail in the dark if I can't keep on blood I back out till morning. This way I don't stomp on sign I could use in daylight

The main thing don't get too far ahead of the last confirmed sign.

If all else fails grid search basicly comb everything slowly from last sign and work your way out. Often if you don't rush you will find more sign to follow.

I have never used a dog but have heard good results even from untrained mutts

[IronNoggin]

From the sounds of things this happened a little while ago?

"hunting for a big mulie buck right at the height of the rut"

Perhaps you might have requested help here just a little earlier?

I may be misreading the situation, and if so, would strongly suggest you take this fine fellow up on his most generous offer:


Where were you hunting? maybe a few of us go searching? I'll bring my dog.. she loves deer smell!

A good dog will almost always find them. Mine has recovered double digits now, and has yet to fail in this pursuit.
I would offer, but I am on the Island which is a tad too far from Mulie territory to be any help.

Lot's of good advice here. The employ of the Dog perhaps the best...

Cheers,
Nog

[Ajsawden]

A few years back I was hunting in a burn and spotted a big mule deer buck standing on a rock nose across across a couple draws from me. I didn't have a range finder then and I was guessing it was about 350 yards. I aimed just at the top of its back. When I shot, the deer reared up on it's hind legs and pawed the air like a stallion. I thought to myself that's quite the reaction, must've been a good hit. After I climbed over to where I thought it was, I couldn't find the spot the buck had been. I looked all around on the rock nose but there were no tracks anywhere in the snow. I look up to where I shot from and see that it wasn't clear which means it couldn't be the same spot. I climb through another draw and up the other side and finally find the spot the deer was standing. Directly below the foot prints in the snow is a tiny hole and directly under where the deer would have been is a small crater where the bullet hit the rocks underneath it. From the deers' perspective it must have seemed like it stood on a landmine. I looked around and saw no blood, or hair. Followed the tracks for a while but at this point I was confident I missed. We went back the next day with a rangefinder and found it was 542 yards. Whoops! I now own a range finder. I also know that even though a deer has an animated reaction, it does not always mean a hit. Hopefully, though at a 100 yards seems unlikely, you've missed him clean and something else made him kick. Good Luck. Don't beat yourself up too much. I'm sure we've all done similar things. Learn from this situation and try not to let it happen again.

[sawmill]

A few years back I was hunting in a burn and spotted a big mule deer buck standing on a rock nose across across a couple draws from me. I didn't have a range finder then and I was guessing it was about 350 yards. I aimed just at the top of its back. When I shot, the deer reared up on it's hind legs and pawed the air like a stallion. I thought to myself that's quite the reaction, must've been a good hit. After I climbed over to where I thought it was, I couldn't find the spot the buck had been. I looked all around on the rock nose but there were no tracks anywhere in the snow. I look up to where I shot from and see that it wasn't clear which means it couldn't be the same spot. I climb through another draw and up the other side and finally find the spot the deer was standing. Directly below the foot prints in the snow is a tiny hole and directly under where the deer would have been is a small crater where the bullet hit the rocks underneath it. From the deers' perspective it must have seemed like it stood on a landmine. I looked around and saw no blood, or hair. Followed the tracks for a while but at this point I was confident I missed. We went back the next day with a rangefinder and found it was 542 yards. Whoops! I now own a range finder. I also know that even though a deer has an animated reaction, it does not always mean a hit. Hopefully, though at a 100 yards seems unlikely, you've missed him clean and something else made him kick. Good Luck. Don't beat yourself up too much. I'm sure we've all done similar things. Learn from this situation and try not to let it happen again.

Speak for yourself. I`v never taken a 500 yard shot. Could have but did not.Every season I get my game, all within 200 yards and all one shot kills.Well loved and well tuned 30.06 and steady rests. 20 years with that rifle, never fails. Make sure it`s clean and sighted in and don`t get jumpy when you shoot. You will be fine.

[Wild one]

Speak for yourself. I`v never taken a 500 yard shot. Could have but did not.Every season I get my game, all within 200 yards and all one shot kills.Well loved and well tuned 30.06 and steady rests. 20 years with that rifle, never fails. Make sure it`s clean and sighted in and don`t get jumpy when you shoot. You will be fine.

I will not judge a shooters skill level without seeing them shoot

That said one really needs to set honest ethical limits according to their skill level. I will not place the distance one should shoot as that comes down to personal skill level

My self I am a close range guy but yes I can shoot. I have only taken one animal at just over 200yards most are well under 100yards. This is for 2 reasons when it comes to hunting I thrive on testing how close I can get and was taught if you stick to shots you are 100% on you will rarely miss and odds of wounding are really low.

As long as the hunter is 100% on his personal limits I won't judge them but if missing or wounding is an on going occrance than one needs to rethink there limits

[steel_ram]

Bet the deer if dead is closer than you think. Even a large animal like a moose can go down and flatten out into a little dip. Tall grass can be enough to hide them so much, you'd have to almost trip on them to find them. Don't see why slight variables in bullet selection, cartridge, rifle would make any significant difference at 100 yards.

[BigfishCanada]

I betcha 100 yards from where you shot it

[walks with deer]

I lost a blacktail at dusk in a rainstorm..

Looked with lights for 4hrs..

Next morning found him buy his hoof hanging out of the hole he fell in 3 feet from where I shot him..

[okas]

I find a lot of hunters go to fast at the start after the shot:idea: sit there look all around as you sit look behind you and passed the shot remember what you seen the slowly lay your grid out looking up as much as down

[paulo]

Maybe I am stating the obvious here, however, maybe take another shot with your rifle at the same distance and ensure poi. It is possible it may have moved.
Having said that I lost a bear two years ago, followed on my hands and knees for about 400 meters. I looked all day and had a friend come out for another 5 hrs as well. The sign just petered out and that was that. Turns out the sight line was different than the bullets flight path.
You may indeed want to take up Hootchies offer. my 2c

[Chopper]

I shot a BT twice at 75 yards in the timber with a 300wsm and a 165 partition, back in 2012 ... book class island buck. Second shot he stumbled and and nearly fell on his face. There was a foot of fresh snow on the ground. Fker started up the most miserable coutry there is on the island, more dark blood ive ever seen pissing out of deer in my life. I gave him 30 min and started after him, i dont know how long it took , but my gps said i climbed 800ft when i looked up on a bluff 30 yards up, and he was standing pissing blood puffed right up starring at me ... I though i was tracking a dead buck. My rifle was on my back and so full of snow it was usless ... he then ran horazontally across the bluffs about 100 yards before heading back down. My heart sank, i couldnt believe it ! I followed him all the way back down to the road, where the bastrd turned and went straight back up the hill .... i was completely demoralized and exausted.

I decided to go home for the night, and come back with my dads retriver. Its not good when bucks run uphill wounded, but there was still so much blood i figured there was no way this buck was gonna make it through the night.

The next morning i brought the retriver and put her on the tracks " it had not snowed anymore" i was pretty confident i was going to find him, The country was so wreched and slippery the dog couldnt make it 100 yards. So waring caulk boots and grabbing branches to pull myself up the hill, i climbed for a couple hours on the bloody tracks right back to the top of the hill ..... i found where he slept, and there were his tracks leaving his bed, and two sets of what i would suspect were doe tracks that left the bed. There was a bit of Blood in the bed ... none in the tracks. I near shit myself. That buck beded for the night, clotted , and went straight back to chasing tail ... I never did get the prick

point of my story .... take another look, deer can hide in the tightest of spaces but .... its not unlikely he survived. Deer are tough as nails

if he did die , and you dont find him ... as long as you did your best to find him ... crows gotta eat too

[rocksteady]

if it hasn't rained take a bottle of hydrogen peroxide, mix it 50/50 with water and load it with a whole bottle of yellow food coloring. Put this in a spray bottle that has a fine misting nozzle... Spray it on every set of deer tracks you find leading away from where the deer was standing. Miniscule droplets of blood, not visible to the naked eye will GLOW... Once you know which set of tracks are his, you can follow and mist to confirm you are on the right tracks..

[Bonz]

^^^^, never thought of that one. i use it to clean blood after doing skull work off my deck to..foams right up. anything organic it touches will react, like blood

[835]

don't know if its been said, I just scrolled down,,, you said your search was mostly up hill? a shot deer will 9 times out of 10 run down, did you do a sufficient search down hill?

[wideopenthrottle]

was with a group up near gang ranch several years ago when one of the group got a huge 6x5 mule....when gutting him the shooter notice a huge pus channel inside...the buck had been shot head on in the chest but the bullet went below the lungs along the ribcage and out just after the last ribs....it too was shot by buddy while actively pursuing does...they are definitely tougher than most people think

[Chopper]

was with a group up near gang ranch several years ago when one of the group got a huge 6x5 mule....when gutting him the shooter notice a huge pus channel inside...the buck had been shot head on in the chest but the bullet went below the lungs along the ribcage and out just after the last ribs....it too was shot by buddy while actively pursuing does...they are definitely tougher than most people think

you can shoot bucks rigth through the brisket with big caliburs , you dont hit organs or bust the shoulder ... they're gone

i shot a hammer this year that ive decided to post in the next couple days. I shot him bedded at 100 yards with my 7-08. He was quartering towards me. I shot him off hand ... soon as i squeezed he got up nd ran. I sht my pants, i could tell he was hit, he was leaning forward and vibrating when he ran, but he disapeard down a gully. He didnt go far, i was lucky. But when i opened him up, his front shoulder was shattered. When the bullet hit, a fragment actually turned about 45degrees back and went down the inside of the ribs... it turned the liver into shrapnell. That was the only internal damage.

if that fragment had not turned and gone down and hit the liver ... i feel i fked the shot up a bit , he could have gone a long ways on that shoulder. I got lucky

[Fisher-Dude]

I've been tricked by open country in a similar situation before.

I shot a nice 4x4 mulie that was looking head on at about 125 yards, aimed for the heart and let rip.

It bounded to the right and into an open, bowl-like cut. He had disappeared behind a landing when he first ran. We never saw him crest the hill, and started our search looking all over the bowl after walking in on a skidder trail beside the landing.

No deer. No blood. Nothing.

Looked for close to an hour with no results. I was sure I had nailed it, though.

Finally, I went back to where it had been standing when I shot, and started trying to trace its tracks in the dirt. Came to a log that we had stepped over to access the skidder trail and noticed a smudge on it. 10 feet away, in a deep rut on the skidder trail that we had walked twice, was the dead buck. Heart was disintegrated. It only travelled 30 feet from where I shot it.

Lesson: in the open country, we were scanning ahead, looking for him at 50 yards, 100 yards, etc. We should have been looking down, closer to where we were walking, as we almost stepped on him twice but weren't looking down to see him.

[Chopper]

Its is crazy where you dont see them ... scares me every time when a buck runs, they turn into hudini in a real hurry

[sawmill]

3 years ago I thought I had lost a big buck,100 yard shot from a good rest right through the boiler room at last light. He bucked, jumped a fence and I waited 10 minutes(all I could afford with failing light) and went to look. No joy. Spent a crappy night and went out first light and yippee...5 inches of over night snow.Thought I was screwed. I spent 2 hours doing a grid search and just when I was giving up I spotted one antler sticking up from the snow under a spruce tree. That sucker hopped the fence, hit the bush and ran 80 yards straight towards me after I shot him ,he went down 20 yards from my truck in thick bush..Never thought he would do that. You just never know but one thing I DO know is don`t give up too easy. They don`t.

[cyalatte]

Thanks for your posts and experiences. It was too late to use dogs as the post was almost a week after the incident. Shot so many moose without incident, these mulies are tough customers...but that is something I already knew.

[todbartell]

Have you checked point of impact with your rifle/ammo since?

[MAMMOET]

Bet the deer if dead is closer than you think. Even a large animal like a moose can go down and flatten out into a little dip. Tall grass can be enough to hide them so much, you'd have to almost trip on them to find them. Don't see why slight variables in bullet selection, cartridge, rifle would make any significant difference at 100 yards.

x2!!! I'ts happened to me where I shot a buck and walked right passed him.
Go Back and double check. They can hide or fall in pockets, lay right beside a log or crawl into the smallest piece of brush.
Really hope you find him!!!
GOOD LUCK!!!!

[LuckyIfYouGetOne]

If the deer did the mule kick you definitely hit him, don't second guess the hit, I've had a double lung shot with 7mm REM Mag and no blood just saw the kick in my scope confirming the hit, deer ran over 100 yards, did the circle grid search no luck, after 8 hours of searching I said to myself what is the least path of resistance, I found a ledge that ran along the hillside I on was on and ended up running right into the deer in a small clump of bushes. Take a good look at the terrain the deer ran and look for the least path of resistance.

[Duidery]

I don't mean to be negative but I bet your shot wasn't as good as you think. I saw it personally this year with an elk. Buddy had an open shot, resting on his knee at about 50 yards. Bull was slightly quartering towards us when he shot and the bull reared up like a bronco. It ran downhill for about 75 yards, stopped and looked at us before walking into the trees. We heard some crashing and figured he was dead. My buddy was confident with his rifle and his shot.

Over two days we searched for about 5 hours using a GPS to complete a grid of about 30 yards. There wasn't a single drop of blood anywhere, including the 4 or 5 game trails heading down hill. We had almost given up the search when we found some fresh tracks heading down toward the river. We followed the tracks down into the timber and split up to start our grid search again. I jumped a big bull in the timber and was able to get a lunge shot off.

When we walked up to the bull we realized that it was the same bull from the previous day. My buddy's shot was a non-lethal front leg shot. I was certain that he drilled it, especially considering the range and set up. He obviously missed quite badly at 50 yards. If it can happpen with a big bull elk at 50 yards, it can happen with a deer at a 100 hundred yards.