I was sitting in my stand ready for an all day sit. The weather was perfect, I had the day off from work, life was good. I saw 8 does but no bucks. There was one big doe I could have taken, that I passed on a month ago because she still had little ones with her. Well, she STILL had the two young with her so I watched them for awhile and let her walk once again. I know the yearlings would survive by now without her, but I just couldn't take her in front of them. Then, around 10:15 am I saw a gorgeous doe walking towards me all by herself. I got ready and stood there for 45 minutes waiting for her to work her way towards me. When she was 30 yards out and broadside I shot her. I heard the whack, and saw her jump up and run away. I was able to see right where she went and it looked like she fell down about 50 yards away. Seemed absolutely perfect. Long story short, I waited a half hour and then climbed down to find my arrow. It was a pass through, but there was no blood on it. The hair stuck in the Rage 2 blade was black with light tips, and there were some lighter colored hairs on the shaft. There was meaty material along the shaft, but once again...no blood. I started looking around the golden rods she was grazing in, and no blood anywhere. I was dumbfounded. I was sure I hit her in the vitals...well, now I started to second guess myself, and was afraid of a gut shot so I decided to pull out for awhile. Problem was, where I thought I saw her go down was the direction I needed to go to get to my truck. I tip toed out and sure enough, she jumped up and ran for a bit. It sounded like she went down again so I left the area and waited about 4 and a half hours before coming back. My friend and I started looking for her...no blood anywhere. We heard her moving and I knew she was still alive. At this point, I know my shot wasn't anywhere near as well placed as I thought it was. I looked around the direction she went in, and I started finding a blood trail. Not a ton, but steady drops about 3 feet apart. The blood was bright red with no brown or greenish tint to it. We pulled out at that point, around 6 pm last night, and let her sit overnight. I was very confident now that I had a blood trail I would find her. After a sleepless night, we picked it up again this morning, marking every spot where the blood was with a piece of toilet paper. We went about 100 yards on the blood trail through the woods and it stopped just as suddenly as it had started. It was like her faucet turned off. I spent hours working in circles around the last blood drop, hands and knees looking at every leaf and pine needle and never found another drop. Disheartened, I called Deer Search and a great guy named Steve came out with his wire haired Dachshund. He picked up the trail perfectly and off we went past where the blood ended. The deer seemed to make a straight shot...to a swamp. The dog lost the trail at the edge of the swamp. The swamp is cat tails chest high, and water knee deep. I walked the perimeter then wandered through the swamp aimlessly for a couple hours. No luck. The deer could have bed down anywhere in that swamp and I would never know. When in the swamp, you can only see about two feet in any direction the growth is so thick. After a few hours of wandering blindly, I had to call it. This would have been my first deer. I swore to myself before I started hunting that I would only take shots I was 100% positive of. There wasn't a doubt in my mind when I took it that it was a safe shot...evidently it wasn't. I am sick to my stomach about this. This is without a doubt, one of the worst feelings I have ever felt, to think that this deer is somewhere with a hole through her because of my mistake. I did everything I could think of doing to find her, and failed. When I decided to start hunting, this was my worst imaginable scenario....and it's exactly what has happened on my first try.
Happens to all of us in some point in time bowhunting , Dont beat yourself up about it,It sounds like you tried your hardest to recover your deer. Just be glad it wasnt a big buck that will haunt you for years to come.
I've had that happen to me before, shot a doe with my 125gr gravedigger broadhead and couldn't recover her. I understand the feeling, it's horrible. Matter fact we all know the feeling like jtmoney2002 said.
Like the others have said, it's just part of the game. I hit a doe last week in the neck, just above the spine. Got excited and pulled the shot. Totally non lethal and she is gone. That is after 190 hours of hunting time this year. It sucks. You feel worthless, undeserving, and unworthy. Others try to tell you to cheer up and it only makes it worse. Everyone has or will be there at one point. It will pass, maybe not tomorrow, but it will. The best you can do is get back out there when you feel you are ready. Next time your at full draw you will remember that shot. You will slow down, pick your spot, and absolutely crush the deer.
Use this experience as your motivation. Before drawing your bow on the next animal, remember this situation and use it as a reminder that you do not have to shoot. Make sure the shot is as close to perfect as possible before releasing. I have lost one deer while archery hunting, and it replays in my mind every shot I make now. Reminds me to slow down, breath, and take my time
Practice and make it as real as a hunting scenario as possible. I learned this the hard way this week. I had practiced with all my hunting gear on, but had never shot with my hood up. Monster 8 pointer 18 yards broadside Monday afternoon and I can't get a correct anchor to line up the shot. The hood was enough of a difference to affect my anchor point.
Mate, you clearly did everything you could and tried incredibly hard to recover her. Keep your head up, it just makes you more precise for your next hunt. Good luckand keep at it.
Thanks a lot guys...it really do appreciate all the advice. Hopefully, this will never happen again...I know for sure, that it will be fresh in my mind should I be lucky enough to have my bow drawn again this season. Ben
It happens.. I've heard stories told to me like this and it's the worst feeling ever. You did all you could to find her - honestly. It's tough but most likely, coyotes or a bear has found her and taken a great meal out of her - and thanking you for it. Nothing goes to waste in the forest... ever. Get your target out and practice, get your confidence up and go back out. Don't wait too long... I almost killed my husband in a rock climbing accident two years ago (I know it's not related per se, but the feeling of guilt is similar). You'll have to come to forgive yourself. And eventually you will. Right now, you are your worst enemy... be nice to yourself. Accidents happen to everyone, even to the most gifted, talented, and experienced.
Don't beat yourself up too hard on this. This happens to everyone, so just keep practicing and you'll start to feel better. Think of it this way, Its a good thing you feel this way, it shows that you care about hunting and the animals you hunt.
