Animal Tracking - After the Shot

A shot deer knows that something has happened but not much else.

1. He has nothing to fear or flee from unless you provide the noise or the motion to send him on his way.
2. An arrow kills by bleeding the animal. You must give it time to die.
• Wait at least 1/2 hour on a good hit or longer on poor hits.
• As much as 5 hours or over night on a bad hit like a gut shot.
3. While you wait, try to recall everything that has happened.
• Where exactly was your hit?
• How much penetration was there?
• Where did you last see it?
• Did you hear it fall?

When you begin trailing, if you can't find blood, look for your arrow.

1. Finding your arrow is the only sure way to tell if you got a hit or miss.
2. Many excited hunters find blood while looking for their arrow that was missed.
• The arrow itself can tell you a lot about the hit.
• A bright red blood may indicate a heart or artery shot.
• A pinkish bubbly blood means a lung shot.
• Green and brown matter or food particles means a gut shot.
• A greasy tallow on the arrow could mean a brisket shot.
3. Getting Help
• Two or three trackers is an ideal set up. One can stay on the last blood while other search ahead.
• You might want to carry toilet paper or kleenex to mark your last blood.
• Don't get so engrossed in the blood trail that you forget to look ahead for a dead deer or one that needs a finishing shot.
• NEVER walk right on the blood trail, but along side of it. You might need to back track.
• If your deer has laid down and you jump it, STOP TRACKING. You haven't given the animal enough to bleed out.
• Try to get your animal when it first lays down. If you don't it will be 10 times harder to track it.

On the trial, you have to know what you are looking for.

1. Picking up the first blood sign is often the hardest part of the tracking job.
• A deer can cover a lot of distance before it starts leaving blood on the ground, especially if the deer is running or if you hit it high or left no exit hole.
• Deer hair can also soak up a lot of blood before it drops to the ground. The hair on a bear is thicker and can absorb a lot more.
• A deer hit high in the lungs will bleed internally until the blood reaches the arrow hole.
2. Don't look for blood only on the ground, also check the low brush and trees etc.
• Blood dries faster on brush and weeds than it does on the ground and will be darker and harder to detect.
• Also blood turns black in hot weather.
• Note how high the blood in on the bush.
• Is there blood on both sides of the trail or just on one side.
• Is the deer bleeding down his leg.
3. When the blood trail suddenly ends you are apt to find, within a short distance, your animal lying dead.
• He may abandon any trail he has been following and head for heavy brush.
• Check out dense thickets and blow downs.
• If still no luck, sweep the surrounding terrain.
• Sometimes other animals may tell you where your game is. Squirrels, crows, blue jays and other animals may become excited when something moves in their area.
• Don't give up the search until there is no hope left.
• Deer sometimes bleed internally leaving very little sign but it can be picked up by a careful and determined hunter.

Tracking under adverse conditions can cause some special problems.

1. Tracking at night is tedious and slow.
• Bright gas lanterns are better than flashlights.
• A compass is a must for night tracking. It is impossible to keep your bearings once the woods have turned black.
• Leave your bow or gun at camp. It is illegal to carry a weapon after dark.
• If at all possible, don't track at night. It is a lot better if you can wait until morning.
2. Sometime you might have to get right after your deer if it is raining or snowing.

What causes good blood trails?

1. Well placed shots.
• Know your limitations and take only shots you know that YOU can make.
• The sharper the broadhead the heavier the blood trail.
• There is no other piece of equipment that is more important than the broad head. It MUST be as sharp as possible.
• Multi-blade broadheads cut bigger holes than single blade models.

The best practice a bowhunter can get is by helping someone else track a deer. You will gain valuable experience and some day, when you need a hand, they just might return the favor.

Something to think about... The place where you loose the trail is not necessarily the place where it ends. A lost trail always extends beyond the evidence.

Extreme Knives Rifle Scope Master