The art of whitetail ethics...

*Sometimes on this site I'm going to tackle just hunting issues or tactics that are not specifically geared or pointed towards small acre hunting or public land hunting....this is one of those times.

You've put in your time on the practice range. You've got your bow producing Robin Hoods occasionally and your gun is producing Davy Crocketts (two bullets in one hole). All the proper steps to be able to cleanly harvest a deer you have completed with flying colors. Then from your stand you see this deer walk up:

(click on the photo to see image even larger)

Now the origins of this doe's wound isn't 100% verified, but any experienced hunter can recognize the likelihood of that not being due to a bullet is next to zero. We can set here and beat around the bush about maybe it was a deflected shot or inexperienced hunter taking a tremendously long shot or perhaps this or that...but we all know this deer was probably a result of one of the two toughest shots to perfect; the head shot and the running shot.

These two shots occur every single year, in every single state and in every single county across the US.

HEAD SHOT:

Made popular because of its DRT (dead right there) capability, something appealing to any hunter. However, think of what can happen if you don't hit the "meat" of the head? You may just skin the skull deep enough to make living impossible but dying quickly just as impossible. You may hit the meat of the neck or where the esophagus meets the neck and make digesting food impossible=a slow and painful death for the deer. Another way to kill a deer slowly would be to produce something like in the pictures. Hitting the jaw structure will most definitely kill the deer...but there is no way of knowing how long that will take. Believe it or not the hunter who let me share these pictures actually said this doe can eat, albeit awkwardly. One can't help but wonder if she can eat at the rate her body will need throughout the winter months...also if I were to guess she may struggle with eating hard mass like corn, acorns or pecans.

Head shot, simply a shot I will never take. If you believe you can and will, practice. Practice. Practice. Practice. Practice. I would need to be able to produce Davy Crockett's from 100 yards away before I'd ever be able to let myself even consider such a shot.

RUNNING SHOTS:

These are not really shots you can practice, as most of the targets we all use are stationary. However, the ever popular 'deer drives' cause a lot of these. DISCLAIMER: Although I am personally not a supporter of deer drives, I understand they play a major part for lots of hunters and do not feel they are legally wrong. The reason I'm not a fan of drives are that the majority of the times the deer will be running when the shooters get a shot opportunity.

Shooting a running deer isn't at all impossible, why just this year a hunting friend of mine dropped a very nice buck with a running shot. The key for him he said was his waterfowl background and taking moving shots is almost second nature for him. I on the other hand again would not have taken the shot, gone back to camp with the old story of the one that got away.

RESPECT IS THE KEY

No matter what your stance is on what shots should or shouldn't be taken, you should above all else respect the animal you are trying to harvest. That respect should raise your expectations for a clean harvest to a level that to some would seem unobtainable. You should know exactly where your bullet is going to hit the second you squeeze that trigger, or where your arrow is going to impact upon release. There is no excuse for taking shots that have a greater chance of producing an injured (or dead but not found) deer. Meaning if you know you are going to do deer drives, figure out a way to practice taking moving shots...if you plan on taking a head shot know you can hit a quarter every single time!

May these pictures serve as a reminder running and head shots can and have produced more injured deer than a stationary shot when one aims at the lungs/heart.