Ooooh that smell!

[Limbhanger]

First of all... long time no speak. Some of you will remember me when I wasn't a "junior member".;) It's my fault, and I have no excuse!

Now, last Saturday I had a 10 yard shot at the first buck I've seen this bow season. You would think a chip shot for me.... however, it didn't turn out that way. Wierd thing was the arrow was sticking right up out of the ground, as if a clean pass through. Found a small amount of hair at the site, and get this... the arrow smelled as if it had been right through the boiler room - however, not a drop of blood... on the arrow or anywhere (after 2 hours of looking)!

I've read a bunch about deer being shot through the stomach and yeilding only clear liquid on the arrow. I will confess that the shot was blocked by a few leaves, but nothing that I haven't shot through a hundred times succesfully. I'm very confident that I just gave Mr. Big a haircut, but I thought I'd ask the experts!:D

Comments, suggestions, kicks in the crotch?

[dave-t.]

If there is no sign, all you can do is put in you due dilligence in trying to recover the deer.

I've lost two deer, one of which was a chip shot that I couldn't tell you want happened. Saturday morning at first light, 14yrds, quatering away, shot felt horrible, didn't see the hit, sign looked good. I ended up pushing the deer all over creation and never caught up with him. Called the search off Sunday at dark.:( Would have been my biggest archery kill at that point.

I did zip a heart shot on a smaller 8pt that had me in doubt. Very little sign on the arrow, weird reaction from the deer, I backed out for 3 hrs. Found him 45yrds from the shot with pools of blood leading the way.

What I'm saying is, weird stuff happens. Best of luck.

[Twanger]

I agree Dave. Sometimes the feathers on my arrows are soaked with blood and I have to replace them (most of the time), and sometimes they are nearly clean as a whistle and the arrow gets wiped off and goes back in the quiver.

There's just about no telling how messy an arrow will get when it zips through the rib cage.

If I had to come up with an observation it would be that higher shots in the rib-cage seem to come out cleaner.

[DaveHawk]

you said that you shot through some leaves, well that is enough to send your arrow off track for sure. If it were a pass through gut shot and no blood was found then most likely the the arrowed pulled and released intestate at the exit wound clogging the hole.
What was on the fetching, blood or yellowish juices ? If it were a gut shot, blood would be very watered down from slightly red to yellow juice.

Welcome back.

[GF.]

Welcome back!

#1 - don't shoot through leaves. Even if the shot flies true, you can't see it hit, so you won't know.

When you say the shaft smelled like it had gone through the boiler room....:confused:

What does a good, clean hit in the lungs smell like? Deer breath??

And you said you found hair, but was the shaft wet? Sticky? Slimy? Bone dry?

I'm wondering if a white hanky or some TP would be useful to pack along... You could wipe down a 'clean'-looking shaft and maybe concentrate enough color to learn something.....

[ncboman]

Comments, suggestions,

dunno.

shooting thru the leaves isn't an issue to me, just part of the detail. I figure you had to be pretty sure to take the shot so you probably hit good. I just don't know. :confused:

maybe look some more.

I killed a deer opening day and the arrow was so clean it looked like a miss. The deer was hit perfectly and blood was good and steady the entire 125yds she covered. :eek:

Multiple abnomalys; unbelievably clean arrow and a double lung running over 100yds.

welcome back, btw. :)

[Limbhanger]

Thanks for the welcome backs!

GF - I appreciate the advice about the leaves, but they were only a foot or two above the deer, so I felt 100% confident in the shot (in hindsight, perhaps that was dumb). Also, it had been raining off and on, so I can't say the shaft was bone dry; however, I did use my emergency toilet paper to wipe the shaft, and found no discernable color. I don't know what a lung shot smells like... in fact, I can't recall ever having smelled an arrow before - on this occasion though, the smell at the impact site was definitely noticeable, so I couldn't resist.

It's just wierd... like I tell my son - "you can go hunting everyday, and it will always be different"!

[DaveHawk]

A gut shot that is far back will leave a discernible smell. It will also take a deer about 2.5-3 hrs to die. If you come in down wind of a dead gut shot deer you will be able to smell it. A Lot of these kind of shots will not leave blood on the arrow. Just gut juice.

[Bushman]

The toughest tracking job that I ever had was a liver /gut shot with a bullet that did not open up. Almost no blood after the first bed where he licked himself clean and then the wound closed over. All that I had was that gut smell to track him by to know that I was on the right trail. I got him over two hours later a quater mile away, but he needed another shot. In your case, the smell would tell me behind the diaphram, but you can get that deer if you don't push him out of his first bed. Give him LOTS of time, like over night, and he will either be dead in that first bed or so sick that he won't move off much. Push him and odds are that you will lose him.

[Twanger]

The more gut shots I see and hear about, the more I have learned that 6 hours before follow-up is generally not enough. Twelve hours is best.