couldnt find her keep hunting?

[addicted2hunting]

Well this is what happened...Steeliedrew and I were hunting yesterday down south I went into my morning sitting spot and he went to his. I jumped a deer in the dark and it was snorting at me so I blew my grunt a bit and it circled around to down wind of me then snorted again about 30mins later. anyways that was all the action I saw till about 8:30am so I started getting antsy when I caught a large doe and a smaller doe creeping in. So I sat patiently and watched them draw closer to my buck jam I had put out in the morning. As they popped out behind the stump I thought to myself game time so I go to draw my bow and the large doe looked at me so I stopped at full draw and waited for her head to go down, as her head went down I went to aim but found it was an akward position so I let my string down and repositioned myself and she didnt see me so I draw again this time they turned and slowly started walking back the way they came. so I figured 30 yards (no rangefinder yet) I rest my 30 pin where I want it and I let out a small blaaa and she turns broadside and looks And I put my pin in the kill zone and release and whack I hit low just behind the leg on the lower chest, she jumps kicking and runs off. I lose sight of her so I give it 30 mins to go find drew to help me track her. I get drew and we get to the shot sight and my arrow is covered with blood some hair and what looked to be a bone fragment. We start to track her and it leads to a basketball size blood pool whee she stopped and we keep following the blood till it crosses the street and into private property. So we go knock on their door and the guy is an elk hunter. So he helps us follow the blood across a creek and into so timber long story short... we follow the blood and it gets smaller and smaller till we couldnt find blood anymore... we looked till 130 in the afternoon with no avail. So I feel horible about not finding her so I figure I dont feel right hunting the rest of the season as I am sure she will die and I feel unethical trying again this year.

Should I keep trying to finish the year or consider myself tagged out?

Lesson learned: Buying a range finder (couldnt afford it)

[Button Nubbs]

Only you can make that decision

[ICEMAN]

Truly it is your call.

If it was me...I would tag out. I feel the deer has a mortal wound...  I always feel that the threshold decision point is if you think the animal will survive or not...


Good luck and hopefully responses on this thread do not go south.

[_TONY_]

It happens...Get back it there and give it one more good look at last blood...

[Todd_ID]

Tough to hear.  That decision is one every hunter will have to face at some point in their hunting career.  I know what I would do, but this is not the situation for me, or anyone, to impose my beliefs on you.  Do what you feel right, and you'll learn more than doing what the herd here says.

[addicted2hunting]

I feel the same, considering myself tagged out. My dad says go shoot another but he has questionable ethics with other things so I dont take his advice very often.

[Crunchy]

I dont consider it poor ethics if you contiued to hunt.  You did everything you could to recover that deer and it just didnt work out. I would continue to hunt, and hopefully you will be able to shoot and recover the next one. 

[NW-GSP]

Get a dog on the blood track

[billythekidrock]

It happens...Get back it there and give it one more good look at last blood...

I agree. Check and circle the last spot. Take your time and follow all trails or anything that looks like a trail.

[addicted2hunting]

Get a dog on the blood track

the guy that helped us had his dog that helped alot but once the rain started in the dog lost interest. Plus I live in whatcom county and we were down past olympia. Not sure if going back down there is in the books for me. Long ways.

[smdave]

Get a dog on the blood track

9. Using dogs:
• Hunting wild animals with dogs during
any deer or elk modern firearm season is
prohibited.

[ICEMAN]

I think the consensus is that if all guns are left in the rig, you can track with dogs...

[addicted2hunting]

Get a dog on the blood track

9. Using dogs:
• Hunting wild animals with dogs during
any deer or elk modern firearm season is
prohibited.

we didnt have any weapons on us and it was just his family dog out walking with us.

[Hunterman]

Up to you if you want to quit,, but the 'yotes have to eat too. Get back out and tag one..This ain't the first time someone lost there animal,, and unfortunate it will not be the last..


Hunterman(Tony)

[Curly]

I'd say that if you do go back out, only go for a buck. 

[NW-GSP]

Get a dog on the blood track

9. Using dogs:
• Hunting wild animals with dogs during
any deer or elk modern firearm season is
prohibited.

we didnt have any weapons on us and it was just his family dog out walking with us.

No it is not, you have to keep the dog on a lead and have no weapons

[erk444]

If you shot low just behind the leg you may have just went through the thick meaty part below all the vitals. Maybe didnt go int the chest cavity? It gets pretty thick down there. If thats the case, I'll bet she'll probly recover?

[MountainWalk]

Look some more. But I wouldn't call you a lousy unethical sob for going and trying to kill another. Everyonce in awhile you may lose one, thats just the way the stick floats.

[fisheral87]

Only you can make that decision

 

[addicted2hunting]

cool guys thanks for the input.

[BOWHUNTER45]

It is a tough call but if you look at it from all angles .. I have been seeing alot of shows on TV where they have shot deer with expandable broadheads and could not find their deer and then come back on the show and say , well I lost that deer but I have trailcam pictures to prove he is still alive ... So that being said I would still keep hunting ...Like someone else said earlier ..the coyotes - crows -eagles and whatever else is out there needs to eat too !!!

[addicted2hunting]

Thanks for the encouragement.

[steeliedrew]

Brandon and I talked a lot about that deer on the way home. I feel like he should still finish out the season and go after that buck he's been seeing up north. the fact that we followed the trail through the clear cut, over a paved county road, got permission of the landowner to continue the search, crossed a 15' wide creek to find more blood (which we did find more), says a lot for how badly we both wanted to find the deer. We searched hard for a solid 4.5 hours and spent the last hour branching off from last blood in every direction trying to find that tell tale drop of blood. the problem was just that...aside from a couple small pools of blood we found early on the blood trail was reduced to finding maybe one drop of blood per 20 feet. last blood was a small smudge of blood on the back side of a fern that caught my eye because it had been broken. I think all in all with all the turns the deer took we traveled about 3/4's of a mile before we lost the trail. 

the way I see it, had we given up when we saw the trail leading us across the road, that would have been a different story as far as ethics go.  Thanks for everyone's input.  I wanted to find the deer just as bad as Brandon did.

Now Brandon........bust out that credit card and buy a rangefinder!!!

[addicted2hunting]

Wish I could man. wife says no more credit cards! haha

[smdave]

9. Using dogs:
• Hunting wild animals with dogs during
any deer or elk modern firearm season is
prohibited.


Good luck on finding your deer, and unless you want to be the one to try the dog thing in court I would stay away from using them.

[Bob33]

I'm sorry you lost the deer. Legally you could tag another deer. Ethically, you should make every reasonable effort to find any animal that has been shot. Rather than beating yourself up over this deer I might suggest putting effort into learning from this experience and taking steps to ensure it will rarely if ever happen again.

[addicted2hunting]

I'm sorry you lost the deer. Legally you could tag another deer. Ethically, you should make every reasonable effort to find any animal that has been shot. Rather than beating yourself up over this deer I might suggest putting effort into learning from this experience and taking steps to ensure it will rarely if ever happen again.

for sure. lesson learned.

[colockumelk]

Everyone will wound and lose an animal in their hunting career. It happens.  Get back out there and hunt some more so you can hang your tag on an animal and put it in the freezer. Don't worry about tje wholier than thow crowd that would not their tag.  If this deer is mortally wounded its a drop in the bucket to the amount of deer killed by cars, poachers, dogs, etc.  It's just one doe, since its WA state the buck to doe ratio is probably way to low anyways. And you paid alot of money for that tag to put meat in the freezer.

In the end its your call.  But whatever call you make don't let the nay sayers judge you.

[Broken Arrow]

It has happened to many on here. Felt the shot was good only to have the blood trail go cold. You sound like a stand up guy and REALLY wanted some input as to how to proceed. Pretty gutsy move with all the "internet Police" lurking! Personally, it sounds like you have searched and done all in your power as a responsible hunter. Crap happens....it sucks...and you will never forget it.....with that said....I vote to go fill your freezer and fill your tag. Truly appreciate your question and honesty.

[BOWHUNTER45]

sounds like you guys gave it your best shot ..sheet happens ...hunt on 

[Curly]

It's just one doe, since its WA state the buck to doe ratio is probably way to low anyways.

He said he was south of Olympia where he shot the doe.  I believe there aren't enough does in the area, and there are plenty of bucks...........they are just nocturnal most of time.  That's why I suggested that he get back out and hunt, but go for a buck.  (I don't even think there should be a general season for does.......maybe a few permits if needed.)