Different styles of hunting for sure. Using dogs to push bush is illegal here. I have never shot at a running deer walking ok but in our camp, one shot one kill period!! Sure mistakes are made, but we do strive for the one shot one kill rule.
Different styles of hunting for sure. Using dogs to push bush is illegal here. I have never shot at a running deer walking ok but in our camp, one shot one kill period!! Sure mistakes are made, but we do strive for the one shot one kill rule.
So we're all agreeing that your first shot should count - why do I never hear a single shot on opening day. Always 3-4-5-6-7? Somethings not making sense here. My deer hunting mentor's mantra was 'your second shot should be on it's way before you know if your first one hit'. Pretty hard 'making your first shot count' on a deer running through trees 50 yards away - it's not that you can't hit the deer - it's can you not hit a tree.
In my experience most often deer being run by dogs do stop, if you have the patience to wait and not shoot at them on the run.
Hahaha yeah. They stop when they run out of blood or are three concessions away. I dont know about you. But first shot is tough to make count when a deer is out over a mile, moving or not.Originally Posted by Larson
Its just the monday morning jitters I tell ya.
How is it one careless cigarette can cause a forest fire, but it takes a whole box of matches to light a campfire?
With a slower dog behind them, yeah sometimes. With the dog on their heels, not so often. I always found that an overly loud grunt, or just "hey" would sometimes stop them for a shot.
"where a man feels at home, outside of where he's born, is where he's meant to go"
- Ernest Hemingway
I guess my point is that if you assume every deer is not going to stop, so you start blasting as soon as you see it running in to view, then you'll never know if it would have stopped, had you quietly maintained your composure. What keeps them running is often not the dogs, but the sound of unloading clips behind them. Deer can cover ground much more quickly than almost any hound. From what I've seen, when hotly pursued, deer generally take a number of long leaps, then stop for a second or three ...smell, look, listen and repeat. Very rare that they continually go full tilt for very long. If you can hit a deer on the move effectively, then go for it. If not, don't assume you have to try because you think its your only chance.... wait and see what happens. Even if 50% run on through instead of stopping, .... ask yourself what would your miss/wound rate be on running shots?
Last edited by Larson; April 8th, 2014 at 08:32 AM.
You bring up some good points here Larson, especially in the first sentence. Patience and experience goes a long way when it comes to shooting deer in front of hounds. I remember going through my first few seasons without even seeing a deer. When the dog finally ran one to me I was so worked up and so eager to shoot it that the idea of waiting for the right moment never even occurred to me. It took a few embarrassingly missed deer before I was able to stay (somewhat) calm and wait for the right moment to bring the gun up and shoot. I managed to make a few good shots (ahem... lucky) on running deer but got a little older and wiser and learned to make it a last resort, if at all.
The point that I made earlier was referring to one particular dog that we had that was so bloody fast, he was almost nipping the heels of the deer as they went by. He was a good deer dog, just way too fast. You would almost prefer that he ran the deer to someone else so you didn't have to explain why you missed or didn't get a shot. It's a lot nicer when the deer is well ahead of a slower dog and picking his way along carefully, as you described in your post.
You probably already do something similar to this Larson, but for anyone else reading, here are a few tips that helped me start being one of the guys in camp that got to sit on the preferred watches rather than "where old Bill Senior shot that buck in '67":
- Be ready from the minute you get set up until you are notified that the run is over. Many times the deer will be pushed to you before the dog even starts to make noise
- Take a few minutes to quietly trim a shooting lane or two (if allowed on the property) to provide you with a clearer shot at the deer trail
- When a deer comes into sight, quickly gauge where he is headed and how long he will be in sight, what happens below is within a few short seconds
- Pick an opening (shooting lane) that he is headed for but don't move or start to bring up the gun until he gets close to it
- If he stops before reaching that opening, take the shot if possible because he may not stop again
- When he reaches the opening that you have picked out, or slightly before, make a loud grunt, whistle or yell "hey deer", hopefully he stops in the shooting lane and you can take the shot
- If he isn't going to stop, as a last resort, pick another opening in the direction he is headed and shoot as soon as he steps into it, with a rifle inside 30 or 40 yards, don't worry too much about calculating lead, just shoot when the leading edge of the deer enters your sight picture, or.... let him go and hope he is heading to your buddy down the line, just be prepared for the ribbing you will take back at camp for having watched the deer go by
- Even if you made a good shot, the deer will be running on adrenaline and will likely keep going, don't assume that because he didn't go down that you have missed, keep shooting as long as the deer is in sight and it's safe to do so
- Have previously formulated excuses prepared for why you missed or couldn't get a shot, but most dog-men will run a complete CSI on the area and will know exactly what happened, where the deer came from and where the deer went, so your excuses will only serve to amuse them
- Don't count out using a scoped rifle, a low-power scope on a quick-handling rifle will help you pick out shooting lanes through the brush, the real old-timers will raise their eyebrows at you, but they'll eventually accept it, especially if you start dropping deer
Hunting deer in front of hounds is not for everyone. In recent years my group has been doing far more stand-hunting of relaxed deer, but the big-woods hunt with hounds is a tradition that I'm glad to have taken part in over the years. Every deer hunter should try it if they have the opportunity.
Wow, long post but I've been up all night at work and it's been slow....
Well written Greg and anyone who is seasoned running hounds for deer would agree .
TD
The clothes you wear also when practicing should be the same as what you wear in the bush. This past winter being my first time coyote hunting due to the extra layers on I had to hold my gun a little differently to see the scope.
Ive been fortunate enough to have grown up in a country that allowed me to have the opportunity to shoot at countless numbers of live game. The first shot is the only one that counts, period. Ive shot plenty and also missed more than my fair share, one thing that i always come to reflect on after a missed shot is that 99% of the time it was a rushed shot, and realistically it didnt have to be, if the animal was unaware of my presence there would almost always have been another opportunity. The big negative of taking a rushed shot, aside from the miss or potential wound, is disturbing the other game in the area, chances are if you miss on your first shot youre not going to see much else for the rest of the day. One thing an old fella told me that has stuck to this day, and almost always worked: dont just aim at the animal, aim for a specific point. Sounds simple, but its actually a lot harder than it sounds. If you can master this your first shot will always count.
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