Question on White tails

[223reload]

Ok all you dyed in the wool WT hunters I got a question. Do all the whitetails you shoot with a rifle allways run off after? Cause I been hunting Mule deer for over 30 years and the only ones I ever seen run were bad shots or lung shots ,Which by the way only went a few steps . Just wonderin ,guess I been watchin way too much OLN .

[catfishrus]

no they dont always run off. i have seen some dropped in their tracks with a .22 short all the way up to a .300 magnum. i have seen some run 200-300 yards and wonder how they made it. also i have seen a few that i thought would drop pretty fast but never did too. they still walking around....lol. they are amazing animals at times.

[Jacy2010]

Yeah my dad has been hunting for a real long while and says that yes they do run (referring to whitails) with heavy bullets (270 GR) Mule Deer however fall in thier tracks. These are shots with 375 H&H. Hope this answers your question and hoipe it is a big help.

[223reload]

Main reason for asking is I mainly hunt Mulies here in New Mexico,But this year we are having a late Nov. w/t hunt and I just wondered why everytime they shoot em on tv ,they run off like they aint hit :angry:

[jlingle]

With the ones I've shot, it depends on whether or not they were alerted... like they knew something was wrong. If the deer was relaxed when I shot, sometimes they dropped. If they were wired, then they'd run like crazy.

[brinley45cal]

sometimes they do and sometimes they dont.most of mine if they do take off they dont run but a few steps but i have seen them hit in the same spot the rest of them are hit,had them run for a good distance open them up and there heart be in a million pieces.basicly they were running and didnt know they were dead.I think alot of it has to do with how much adrinaline is pumping through them at the time,not if your rifle was made to take down an elephant.
For some reason people think you need an elephant gun to kill a deer when i can take my .270win and hunt and kill any animal they can in north america.But thats just my opinion.

[craddock1]

I shot one with a 22 once and he droped on the spot H never knew i was there. I shot one that was coming direct at me right through the heart with a 12 guage punkin ball.and he ran several hundred yards his heart was destroyed. i was walking up a trail towards home. he was coming the other way and saw me about the same time i saw him. he left a blood trail 2 inches wide to 10 feet from where he fell. he just ran out of blood. meat was not as tasty as a quick kill. If you want a really good eating deer get a fresh road kill full of milk. Don't know why but that is the best deer i ever ate.

[777]

Richard i know what you are talking about. We use to go to Colarado every year to mule deer hunt and they would hit the ground pretty quick and usually drop in their tracks. The white tail can be a different story. They have more of a will to live than any animal i've ever seen. A head or neck shot will still drop them in their tracks no matter the size of the gun. But a shoulder hit on a mature buck or if you hit one a little to far back they can run a long ways. Even heart shots they will go on a blind run and be running dead. I've hunted with a lot of different calibers and got to be a decent tracker but since i have been using the Remington 7 MM Magnum i have yet to see one make it out of sight from where i took the shot.

[Scott Daw]

it all depends on shot placement. The only deer I shot with a firearm was with a 12 gauge and it entered behind one shoulder & exited infront of the other. that deer did a front flip and expired. the deer I shot last year was with a bow. it was a double lung shot but high on the lung and it ran 100 yrds. This years bow kill doe was a jugular shot and it dropped in its tracks. Ive seen whitetails drop in thier tracks on tv from bp & centerfire rifles.

[coble9]

I'd say shot placement. I don't know about gun though. Last year I got a single lung shot, ran 100 yards and fel over. This year I got a yearling directly below me. An arrow through the spine and one lung, paralized, but took about 2 min to die. I've tracked a bad hit over 3/4 of a mile and never found it. If you get both lungs and the heart, they shouldn't run more than 50 - 100 yards. With a gun, what about a head shot on any non trophy kill. That should drop it on the spot. That is just me though. I hunt more for meat in the freezer than trophy hunting.

[postbeetle]

Richard the hardest thing I have ever had with whitetail is the wait. I have killed many, only I don't kill 'em where I've killed them if you get what I mean. A few over the years have dropped in their tracks from shots that were not the best placement. Most, even with hearts blown out will manage to go a distance, some a long distance. If I am comfortable that I have placed well. and they take off, I don't expose myself. If they don't see ya or feel like they are being pursued they won't go far. They'll go whatever distance, stand and bleed out, or lie down and bleed out. If they know you're coming that is all the extra kick they need to keep going. Read the newspaper awhile then go get them.

[splitshot]

Richard the only time ive seen Whitetails drop in there tracks is with a neck shot. The deer i shot two yrs ago ran 75 yds before going down and his heart was totally destroyed. Ive killed 5 deer with neck shots and they dont go anywhere, but the shot is a little hard to to get most times.

[Cathooker]

I have dropped dozens of deer in their tracks by shooting them in the shoulder and have had dozens more run 20 to 40 yards when shot thru the shoulder. Ive had several drop from a spine hit....I wasn't aiming at the spine, it just ended up hitting there....lol. I don't like neck or head shots as the risk of wounding the animal without a lethal result. I have seen em run from a few feet up to a hundred yards when shot thru both lungs.

[CountryHart]

It's all about where ya put it. I shoot a 270 and have some run when shoulder shot, but not far. Also the last time i checked the 22 rimfire wasn't a legal cartridge either. Perhaps it's legal in some areas.

[BLKCLOUD]

Main reason for asking is I mainly hunt Mulies here in New Mexico,But this year we are having a late Nov. w/t hunt and I just wondered why everytime they shoot em on tv ,they run off like they aint hit :angry:

I have thought the VERY EXACT THING!!!! out of the 100 plus I have shot I can count on one hand how many went over 20 yards..I thought it was just me..I always tell my wife (I control the remote..hehe) they need me to do the shooting for them:wink:

[Angler2007]

it is all in shot placement. You shoot one through the lungs and chances are he is going to run a short distance before expiring. You shoot one in the spine or the neck and they are going to drop in there tracks. If you shoot one through both shoulders they may or may not run a short distance. With my experience, I either try to shoot them in the lungs or the neck. I don't like to waste any meet. Good luck to all this season!

[flathead willie]

Most of them run when hit depending on where they are hit. Most lung shot will run but neck or spine shots puts them right down. I shot one in the heart and it still ran 100 yards and jumped a fence along the way. the heart was blown up. i don't know how it ran that far.

[dust777man]

I hunt with a 270 with a 130 grain nosler ballistic tip bullet. If I shoot them through the shoulders, they drop right there. Most of the time i shoot them behind the shoulders-they run about 50% of the time, although not far.

[Kutter]

I shot a buck one time that just stood there and had this look about him that he just didn't feel too good. I knew I hadn't missed, so I waited a couple of minutes and finally he laid down. By the time I got to him, he was dead. Heart was a mess of jelly and both lungs full of blood. I don't think he knew what had happened.

[Cathooker]

I hunt with a 270 with a 130 grain nosler ballistic tip bullet. If I shoot them through the shoulders, they drop right there. Most of the time i shoot them behind the shoulders-they run about 50% of the time, although not far.

I also use a 270 with the 130 grain ballistic tip bullets. There is so much energy expended inside the animal with this round that it creates a tremendous amount of tissue shock inside the animal. They don't go far when hit in the sweet spot.
When a bullet is too small and / or traveling too fast you will get a large entrance hole on a thin skinned animal the size of an average whitetail.......it is expending most of it's kinetic energy on the outside as it is goin in.
When a bullet is too big you will get a large exit hole......it is expending most of it's kinetic energy on the way out.
When a bullet and it's speed match up to the size of the deer you will get a small entrance wound and a small exit wound (if any) .....most of it's kinetic energy is expended inside the animal creating maximum effective tissue shock...this is what we strive for. All bullets, no matter what the size, will cause a lethal hit if placed in the right spot but the amount of tissue shock damage will vary.

[jeffw51]

i have had some deer run after being shot with smaller calibers,but when i switched to a 300 mag every deer with the exception of one was killed in his tracks.

[Big B]

I saw a bowhunting video where a guy shot a pronghorn. The pronghorn didn't move when he shot just fell to its knees dead. A good heart shot and the deer wont be doing any running.

[Zing]

Richard it all comes down to shot placement, I prefer 3/4 of the ways up on the shoulder, This shot will take out the lungs and take out the back. The deer will drop in its tracks. With a vital organ shot, the deer will run. They are hardy animals, shoot them in the lungs and they will die, most of the time within sight of the shooter. Most of our shots are short within 100 yards, with most of those with in 50 yards. But like I said they are hardy animals. I have had them run over 200 yards, once I field dress them I can not believe how it ran with the damage done inside. Good luck.

[coble9]

I just got a small buck last night, both lungs with a broadhead, ran about 75 yards. They in my opinion will always run unless hit in the spine or head. Get a good vital shot and you shouldn't have to track far.

[Luke Clayton]

Luke Clayton here. I've shot a fair almount of mule deer and a semi truck load of whitetail. Mule deer seem to go down faster when shot with a rifle. Whitetail will drop in their tracks with a spinal shot or through the front shoulders (I avoid this shot, too much meat lost).. But, when shot through the lungs, I'd say 75 percent of the whitetail I've taken ran 30-10 yards. No problem, a lung shot leaves plenty of pink, frothy blood to follow.
I think if the bullet hits a rib or the point of the shoulder, the deer tend to go down faster. I've used a fast bullet, such as a 7mm Mag and "pin holed" deer, shooting through both lungs but not hitting rib, an had them run 120 yards. But the blood trail is almost always easy to follow. I intentionally aim behind the shouder for a lung shot so as not to mess up too much meat. Any mammal simply cannot live long when shot through the lungs. Hope this helps. I might be wrong but I've found mule deer are just easier to drop!

[xringer3]

I've shot lots of deer over the years and have seem the biggest part of them run when shot. They would run from between 10 yards to 200 yards. It seemed like the ones that were not alerted didn't run as far. Those that were on alert, went the farthest. There's also been alot I've shot that dropped in their tracks. All of those had the shot placed in the exact same spot (and it's the spot I always try for). The bullet ripped through the aorta coming out of the top of the heart, clipping the bottom of the lungs, instant massive blood pressure loss. It's kinda like severing the water main for a neighborhood, no water pressure instantly for anyone on the block!

The main reason I like to hit this spot is that as fast as it drops them, they don't have time to take off and get that adrenaline pumping through the meat, and it seems to taste better.

[river scum]

Ok all you dyed in the wool WT hunters I got a question. Do all the whitetails you shoot with a rifle allways run off after? Cause I been hunting Mule deer for over 30 years and the only ones I ever seen run were bad shots or lung shots ,Which by the way only went a few steps . Just wonderin ,guess I been watchin way too much OLN .



i would say about 70% of mine have run at least 20yrds. the few that did not run at all were either -head -both front legs -hart -or spine shot. they are for sure tuff when you can poke a 12 guage slug threw them and they still run a bit! dont think i would be goin anywerer with a 3/4'' hole blown threw me. lol


good luck on your hunt bro: tim