Missed arrow question

[nbell]

Guys

Thought I would ask a quick question to see if anyone else has had this happen. I drew a second antlerless only tag for a late archery hunt here in Washington. I got up on a group of deer with a 4xspike and 16 does. The biggest doe finally offered me a shot at 37 yards. I let the arrow go, and watched it hit her square in the chest, maybee a little high. She took off different direction that the rest of the deer. I gave her an hour, and took up the blood trail in the snow. About a mile and a half later, I found myself back in the middle of all 17 deer, bedded down. As they got up and fed by me at 20ish yards, I could never tell which doe I had shot earlier. As they left, I again picked up the blood. After following them for almost 5 miles, darkness came and I started the long walk back to the pickup. For the next three days, I saw this group of deer which continued to have 17 in it. The only shot I can figure this was above the lungs and below the spine. What do some of you guys think. I can't figure it out as I watched the arrow hit her in the chest. Was wondering if anyone had an idea or had a similar experience.

 

[drahthaar]

There is no such thing as above the lungs and below the spine. The lungs adhere to the full volume of the ribcage. If you are ever below the spine, you cut lungs. It is possible to catch the very tops of the lungs doing this, and the deer will suffer a lot, but can recover. You catch enough of both lungs, its dead. They aren't like a couple balloons hanging out in space in there. Most likely, you went above the spine.

There is a good pic of this, I will try to dig it up. Most don't realize how far down in the chest the spine actually goes.

 

[drahthaar]

Here it is. It doesn't take much to be "a little high" and be flush over the spine into the spinous processes. Couple that with a whitetail's reaction to noises of dropping down to run. Its easy to get over the spine.

 

[Goldtip]

I would agree with Draht, your shot was higher than you think and you were above the spine. Sounds like you put in a good effort to try and recover the deer, but sounds like it did just fine.

 

[Big O]

That's a great picture, helps put it in perspective. I always thought there was a dead space also. Isn't there a space between the vitals and spine on elk?

 

[drahthaar]

Nope. The same thing only bigger.

If I was good with photoshop, I would trace in the scapula and leg bones. Really cuts down the space you have to slip and arrow in there.

I have always maintained to people I know that, this whole idea of just "being good enough to hit a paper plate", just doesn't really fly. I think if you want to be realistic about what you have/need to hit on a deer, is more like a softball, and an elk is the paper plate. Yes, you can hit them in a much larger area and kill them, but you are going to be tracking all over creation, and if conditions are bad for such, good luck. And that's not taking into account quartering, slightly or harshly, toward or away.

Elk, IMHO, pose even a bigger issue because they are so big. How many times have you heard someone say, "awww, that's good enough, an elk has vitals like this", as they are holding their arms two feet apart or more. Well sure, from the hairline at the top to the hair on the bottom of the chest, the target does look huge.

 

[Gerald Martin]

Here's my crude rendition of vitals along with other entrails. As Drath and others stated before you hit that deer above the spine. I've videoed two deer that dropped way lower than my eyes remembered when I went back and reviewed the footage. Both deer dropped over a foot from where they were at the time of the shot. On both of them my eyes did not register the drop.

The void is nonexistant. There are some animals that survive one lung hits that people think are the "void" but the lungs fill the entire chest cavity from top to bottom. Even on the inhale/exhale cycle the diaphram contracts and expands.

 

[Baerman]

Great post guys. Thanks for adding that profile picture. It's nice to get a real perspective rather than a cartoon.

 

[DreaminofMT6X6s]

You'd be surprised how many guys hit an Elk or deer and the animal walks away painfully, but alive. I had three guys hit both this season and all three got away for good. I guess that's why they always harp on hitting the vitals.