Close up Deer and Shot Placement

[MikePal]

some people frown on hitting the shoulder blade. truth is that not that much meat is wasted in the end and most likely it won't run at all.

That's a good point, another viable option Rick, a lot of guys use the shoulder shot to prevent a deer from running off into the bush at dusk never to be found or worse lost to coyotes. There are some local guys here take out the front shoulder when it's an option, drop the deer then use a second shot to finish. It's dispatches the animal quickly, no waiting for the bleed out..effective.

[Fox]

The larger the vital zone the better when starting out, Mike has shot a lot of deer, his experience lets him focus on a smaller kill zone but he understands the body language of the deer and knows when that is not a good shot.

With a shotgun slug or rifle a high shoulder shot will break the shoulder blade and anchor the deer while also taking out the lungs.

I focus on the boiler room, it does not move nearly as fast as the head.

[Waftrudnir]

... There are some local guys here take out the front shoulder when it's an option, drop the deer then use a second shot to finish. ...

intentionally setting you up for a second shot is certainly not what I meant!
if the deer is not perfectly perpendicular, you may hit the shoulder. although not perfect, I don't see a problem with that. hitting a little bit too far behind however might spoil you a lot of meat. again, I assume a full hit of the vitals in any circumstance.
those stories where someone tells you the first shot is to slow it down and the second to dispatch it, makes me wanna puke
one shot, one kill

[Marker]

remember to apply it in 3D; i.e. if you shoot from a treestand at short range, aim a bit higher so that you hit as much of the vitals as possible

^^ do this, here is a good vid series describing the subject of shot placement (sorry if it has been seen before):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43dKaWfOguQ

[Gun Nut]

Agree with you 100% Johnny - but we have this discussion every year complete with the same anecdotal evidence complete with pictures and it always turns out the same....

Too bad we don't have some pictures of the times it doesn't work out, deer left to die with broken jaws, etc.

Silly thing is the *only* hunting board I've been on where a neck/head shot is *ever* discussed as a first choice shot.

w.r., i'm with you on this one, I recall one of the first deer I shot, I had my chuck rifle .243 with 6x-scope. He was moving across a ridge about 75 yards out. The first thing I locked onto was his head, then I started to weigh the possible of missing that size of target, against the size of the boiler room. I made the adjustment to where the elbow on the front leg lies against the lower part of the girth and touched if off. the deer lurched forward and disappeared behind a cluster of young pines. When I eventually went up the ridge to check, he was laying behind the cluster of young pines. He had gone more than 35 yards from the point of impact, the bullet had passed straight through him scoring a direct hit on the heart.

My prep thing is to get a large piece of cardboard draw and cut out a rough image of a deer giving it a 15" girth. I set it up 50 yards away down a low slope, I shoot from a tree platform, so I'm able to negate the rise of the bullet traveling downward from a point of elevation. I usually set up on the point of the shoulder, because I've yet to see any deer with a target painted on him. The point of the shoulder becomes my bull's eye , it gives me about a 6" circumference of error, just in case the bullet goes a bit erratic, if it trails low in back of the shoulder it still scores the boiler room, if it trails up it should find the backbone or the neck, if it stays the course it breaks the shoulder. On one deer I missed the shoulder joint by a mere 2 1/2 inches, the bullet went through scapula, rib cage and out through the floor of the chest cavity. You just can't go wrong if you nail the boiler room.

You don't stop hunting because you grow old. You grow old because you stop hunting.
-Gun Nut

[jim]

The biggest issue that most guys have to deal with, is their experience , with killing deer. Guys like Mike,...and me...have killed alot of deer.we don't get exited about the shot and are able to 'aim small', which allows us to 'miss small'. All of that being said, if I'm not hunting near swamp etc., I still take the "boiler room" shot on most occasions. A side note. Even a boiler room shot , pick a small target [sholder 2" spot] and aim for that, too many guys end up shooting at the whole deer.....and miss. Just my 2 cents.

[ysyg]

The biggest issue that most guys have to deal with, is their experience , with killing deer. Guys like Mike,...and me...have killed alot of deer.we don't get exited about the shot and are able to 'aim small', which allows us to 'miss small'. All of that being said, if I'm not hunting near swamp etc., I still take the "boiler room" shot on most occasions. A side note. Even a boiler room shot , pick a small target [sholder 2" spot] and aim for that, too many guys end up shooting at the whole deer.....and miss. Just my 2 cents.

You make a good point here, Jim. The 2" spot behind shoulder is a good habit to get into. I see this target on any deer or moose, regardless of yardage or movement. Leave the neck shot to the "experts" and the rest of us should focus on that 2" spot behind the shoulder.

[MikePal]

You make a good point here, Jim. The 2" spot behind shoulder is a good habit to get into. I see this target on any deer or moose, regardless of yardage or movement. Leave the neck shot to the "experts" and the rest of us should focus on that 2" spot behind the shoulder.

If you have the skills to hit a spot 2" behind the shoulder you have the skills to hit a spot 2" below the base of the head...it's nothing to do with 'experts'...it's just another option for guys who have confidence in their shooting abilities/skills.

[Rick_ca]

It wasn't my intent to open a can of worms on this subject I don't consider myself an expert I have about 12 deer under my belt from past hunts with shotgun and 50cal ML, I should have put in my original post that I'm hunting a small acherage (sp) of land 15 max and the farm land behind it is hunted by a group so I'm looking to drop deer if I can in it tracks. I practice with the slug gun after sighting in (4boxes not cheap but want to be dead on) and I'm confident on my shot placement. What I am reading its boiler room as a norm but on the day and on the stance of the deer and its distance from me I guess it comes down to me on how I'm feeling (don't get buck feveranymore) and how pumped I am. Again sorry to have opened this can but just wanted oppinions thanks to all who responded.

[MikePal]

Again sorry to have opened this can but just wanted oppinions thanks to all who responded.

No apologies needed, the concept of using shots outside some peoples comfort zone has always caused heated discussions. It's a topic that comes up every year. It just so happened to surface on your thread this year.

I have never understood why some hunters feel the need to criticize others hunters for their choices of shots.

Good post by the way....glad to hear you're open to considering methods of shooting deer that kills them quickly and has a better chance of recovery.