Another shot placement question.

[Chunky]

I believe most of the deer species have very similar anatomy, from what I can tell. Antelopes on the other hand seem to carry their vitals a bit higher and more forward. And it seems sometimes pigs don't even have vitals..J/K...but you better not hit them high or back at all.

[bphillips]

I believe most of the deer species have very similar anatomy, from what I can tell. Antelopes on the other hand seem to carry their vitals a bit higher and more forward. And it seems sometimes pigs don't even have vitals..J/K...but you better not hit them high or back at all.

This is why I prefer straight up the leg. Doing this you don't have to change your aiming habits no matter the species.

[JW]

Another shot placement question.

Lot's of good info here, and a topic that needs to be discussed often.

When I hunt at ground level, which I do a lot....I don't believe you can be too low, as long as you get in the chest cavity. I aim for the little pocket right behind the leg bone. I know what they are saying about going up the leg, but I also know that if I hit the big bones of the top of the leg or shoulder...I get no penetration. The good news is most of those animals are not seriously hurt and survive the wound.

When hunting off the ground I try to hit (a bit higher) so that the exit will be about just behind or bury into the off side shoulder low. I think if the exit is just in front of the off side shoulder, you get that animal almost every time. We are talking about broadside to slightly quartering away angles.

Now, that being said. Sometimes strange things happen. I once hit an axis doe, right where I wanted to. What I would consider a perfect shot and no chance of the animal surviving. It was on the edge of the back leg and about a quarter of the way up the body. I looked for that deer for about five hours that night, knowing that it was dead somewhere. I finally found it about ten the next morning. It was walking and grazing. I could see the spot where the arrow hit, and it still looked perfect. I can't explain it.

On anther occasion, I shot a huge cull buck, The shot looked perfect, but I believe the arrow hit a rib and turned about sixty degrees to the right and passed between the shoulder and rib cage. That deer came back the next day, and the entrance looked perfect but I never got a look at the back side of the deer.

The point being we do our best, but strange things sometimes happen and there are no absolutes.

I believe most of the deer species have very similar anatomy, from what I can tell. Antelopes on the other hand seem to carry their vitals a bit higher and more forward. And it seems sometimes pigs don't even have vitals..J/K...but you better not hit them high or back at all.

Good info Chunk. Always enjoy yours and Buff's knowledge. [emoji1417]

[Chunky]

This is why I prefer straight up the leg. Doing this you don't have to change your aiming habits no matter the species.

I understand, and I am sure you are very effective.

I shoot slow traditional bows and heavy arrows, and I make my set ups very close...and almost every deer I shoot at jumps the string and goes down and back a significant distance. Yes I am shooting at relaxed animals, can't even hit wired animals. So, if I aim at the bottom edge of the animal just behind the shoulder...I often hit where the green dot is on the diagram. If I aim above the leg joint I will hit too high if the animal moves down on me. It has always been my motto...that I would rather miss low, than to hit high. Once again we are talking ground level.

This is what works for me. The OP also shoots trad bows so I thought I would add this. Matching technique to method, not judging others.

One more thing I would like to add. Those pics of animal anatomy are great tools and very useful. However, remember that those shoulder and legs bones are not stationary in the animal. They move as the animal walks and shifts weight. I can't tell you the countless times I have been holding my breath just waiting for the target to take that next step with the close side front leg to open up the vitals.

[Chunky]

Good info Chunk. Always enjoy yours and Buff's knowledge. [emoji1417]

Thank you. I really enjoy trying to help. There was no internet or TBH when I started, and it was a long slow learning curve with many embarrassing and stupid mistakes.

Oh and if you do miss a pig, as a last resort just yell "Buff" at it. Every once in awhile a pig will just fall dead at the sound of his name.

[gonehuntin68]

Lot's of good info here, and a topic that needs to be discussed often.

When I hunt at ground level, which I do a lot....I don't believe you can be too low, as long as you get in the chest cavity. I aim for the little pocket right behind the leg bone. I know what they are saying about going up the leg, but I also know that if I hit the big bones of the top of the leg or shoulder...I get no penetration. The good news is most of those animals are not seriously hurt and survive the wound.

When hunting off the ground I try to hit (a bit higher) so that the exit will be about just behind or bury into the off side shoulder low. I think if the exit is just in front of the off side shoulder, you get that animal almost every time. We are talking about broadside to slightly quartering away angles.

Now, that being said. Sometimes strange things happen. I once hit an axis doe, right where I wanted to. What I would consider a perfect shot and no chance of the animal surviving. It was on the edge of the back leg and about a quarter of the way up the body. I looked for that deer for about five hours that night, knowing that it was dead somewhere. I finally found it about ten the next morning. It was walking and grazing. I could see the spot where the arrow hit, and it still looked perfect. I can't explain it.

On anther occasion, I shot a huge cull buck, The shot looked perfect, but I believe the arrow hit a rib and turned about sixty degrees to the right and passed between the shoulder and rib cage. That deer came back the next day, and the entrance looked perfect but I never got a look at the back side of the deer.

The point being we do our best, but strange things sometimes happen and there are no absolutes.

I believe most of the deer species have very similar anatomy, from what I can tell. Antelopes on the other hand seem to carry their vitals a bit higher and more forward. And it seems sometimes pigs don't even have vitals..J/K...but you better not hit them high or back at all.

This about sums it up. I could go on and on about strange things that have happened to arrows once they hit the animal but I will only share one for now. About 10 years ago I had a buck at 20 yards broadside I made what I though was a perfect heart shot. The buck only ran 20 yards and fell over dead. When I walked up to the buck I noticed he not only had a entrance hole in his neck but also a exit hole. When I flipped the deer over I saw my entrance hole right were it should be for a heart shot and I did graze the heart but some how when my arrow started penetrating it turned hard left and came out on the same side at the neck and went back in at the same spot and then came out the other side. My arrow was in perfect shape. Both my buddies and I to this day have no idea how it happened but it happened.

One other thing is I've had many a person tell me that they made a perfect shot to only find the animal and find out the shot was not even close to what they said. Your eye's can play tricks on you when trying see exactly where the arrow hits. I'm not saying this happened in your case but it does happen. I know for a fact I have been guilty of it before.

[bphillips]

I understand, and I am sure you are very effective.

I shoot slow traditional bows and heavy arrows, and I make my set ups very close...and almost every deer I shoot at jumps the string and goes down and back a significant distance. Yes I am shooting at relaxed animals, can't even hit wired animals. So, if I aim at the bottom edge of the animal just behind the shoulder...I often hit where the green dot is on the diagram. If I aim above the leg joint I will hit too high if the animal moves down on me. It has always been my motto...that I would rather miss low, than to hit high. Once again we are talking ground level.

This is what works for me. The OP also shoots trad bows so I thought I would add this. Matching technique to method, not judging others.

One more thing I would like to add. Those pics of animal anatomy are great tools and very useful. However, remember that those shoulder and legs bones are not stationary in the animal. They move as the animal walks and shifts weight. I can't tell you the countless times I have been holding my breath just waiting for the target to take that next step with the close side front leg to open up the vitals.

I got you I didnt catch that you were anticipating movement. You want to hit in the area just can't aim there totally understandable with your setup

[Chunky]

This about sums it up. I could go on and on about strange things that have happened to arrows once they hit the animal but I will only share one for now. About 10 years ago I had a buck at 20 yards broadside I made what I though was a perfect heart shot. The buck only ran 20 yards and fell over dead. When I walked up to the buck I noticed he not only had a entrance hole in his neck but also a exit hole. When I flipped the deer over I saw my entrance hole right were it should be for a heart shot and I did graze the heart but some how when my arrow started penetrating it turned hard left and came out on the same side at the neck and went back in at the same spot and then came out the other side. My arrow was in perfect shape. Both my buddies and I to this day have no idea how it happened but it happened.

One other thing is I've had many a person tell me that they made a perfect shot to only find the animal and find out the shot was not even close to what they said. Your eye's can play tricks on you when trying see exactly where the arrow hits. I'm not saying this happened in your case but it does happen. I know for a fact I have been guilty of it before.

You are right about your eyes being tricked. I could tell stories for days about that. I would have sworn I shot a doe one time, and watched her eat for the next hour with no holes in her...yet in my mind the arrow passed right through her. I also missed one, saw the arrow flying harmlessly away down the hill. Then a buzzard landed fifty yards from me. I had shot her through the neck, but she had spun and my eyes told me I shot in front of her.

On my cull buck from my earlier post, he never moved when the arrow hit him. He was rutted up and just stood there so I know the arrow turned...but sometimes I wonder if the arrow flies straight and the animal contorts to make those weird events and wound tracks. Perhaps the deer through her neck in front of the arrow as it exited???

[Dry Bones]

I completely agree with the eyes playing tricks, but in this one case I did see her standing at 50ish yards from me and painted red at the impact point.
My first bow kill deer I hit low in the bottom of the cavity close to the shoulder and the doe hit the ground immediately. I sat there for a few minutes in disbelief. When I walked to her the enter hole was low but the arrow had somehow turned straight up going in, went through the heart, and continued to the spine where it lodged between vertebrae.
Chunky I really appreciate all the information, and your right I do enjoy the traditional hunting as well. I hope to someday have good stories from that as well. I have to get a little more confident in that shot, but I am learning. I read a post from Buff once that said he had actually picked a point below a buck and fired at it knowing the deer was going to drop into his arrow. It worked, but man that is tuff. Focusing on a point below the animal entirely seems all wrong, but it worked.

[mills650]

Pretend the front leg is a lower case 'i'. Dot the i.