What percent of archery shots result in recovered animal?

[bakin7005]

I would guess 75% recovered but who knows. I’m sure there are a lot we never hear about.

I have only taken 3 deer with a bow & had one clean miss on a doe last season (bottom cam hit my knee when shooting sitting down, arrow stuck in the dirt 3 ft in front of her and then she busted me knocking a second arrow) the other 3 were short tracks... 40 yards or so, but I only take shots at 20 yards or less & broadside, that is my comfort level for now.

I’m 3 for 3 on a rabbit, squirrel and coyote also.
I’m sure my day is coming and I’ll experience it for myself but it won’t be because of poor shot choices.

If people would use some discipline when shooting and practice in a hunting setup it would go a long way.


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I'm curious what you mean by this. Explain discipline when shooting and practice in a hunting setup.
I'm not bashing just curious...

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[BLACKFINTURKEY]

You can add one more unrecoverable hog for me! Crossed property lines, but he’ was pumping out lung blood so he dead!

[randal]

I've been bow hunting for 20 years and I've lost 2 deer.. i did find those 2 but it was at least a week later.. I have had a couple that should have been lost but got lucky in finding them.. I still don't shoot anything over 20 yards, seems like shooting too fa back is what a lot of people struggle with and I did too for a period of 3 or for deer.. I was always worried about hitting bone.. I still remind my self don't go too far back every time I draw and I have also got to where I wait for "the perfect shot" i don't do the quartering always or any of that.. I wait for broad side with the leg forward under 20 yards..

[JTeLarkin08]

I have wounded 1 deer ever I believe.. Im sure I have technically "wounded" a bunch of pigs.. But I probably didnt really spend much time looking either.. I have missed a couple of animals in the past 15 years but not many.. My antelope hunt in 2017 kinda messed up my avg lol

[Hix]

I'm curious what you mean by this. Explain discipline when shooting and practice in a hunting setup.
I'm not bashing just curious...

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Simply by not taking a shot you’ll later regret. Same as not waiting to go look and bumping a deer. Be patient for a good shot or don’t take it at all.

Practice from a tree stand, popup ect.
I practice sitting down all the time since that how i prefer to shoot when hunting.


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[coffmanbr1]

I’ve taken some bad shots on pigs that I would never take on a deer and didn’t recover but so far 100% on deer for the last four years. Still have not taken a buck with the bow though.

[PondPopper]

Simply by not taking a shot you’ll later regret. Same as not waiting to go look and bumping a deer. Be patient for a good shot or don’t take it at all.

Practice from a tree stand, popup ect.
I practice sitting down all the time since that how i prefer to shoot when hunting.


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Great advice.

[Scubasteveo]

And you will, it's like holy crap everything was perfect, how can that happen !!! Like missing a 2 foot putt

Just did on Friday. No idea what I did wrong. Hit her in the shoulder and got only about 6” penetration. Arrow broke off and no blood at all.


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[breederbuck33]

Says you. I haven’t wounded an animal with a bow in many, many years. If you practice at 40, then maybe. If you practice at 100, then not so much. Your opinion. Such strong words. I guess I’ll continue to pile up animals in the most ignorant way possible.

Ignorant and arrogant! I've practiced shooting out to 80-100 yards regularly for years. I do think I could kill a deer out to 70 or even 80 yards if I had to, but to say you could do that on a regular basis is dumb. I just don't believe you are "Piling up the animals" shooting out to 70 yards with a cross wind. Not saying you are not able to shoot accurately out that far either. It just takes so long for an arrow to go 70 yards. The longer the arrow is in the air the more that can go wrong. I just don't think this is a practice that should be bragged about on a public hunting forum where people are coming to learn about bow hunting. Once you get out to 40+ yards with a bow the percentage of what can go wrong goes up, and the success rate goes down. That is a fact.

[jakeb03]

Our group of 9 hunters have recovered 39/43 doe, and 3/3 bucks so far this season.

I would say that is above the average.

Practice and waiting for the best shot opportunity is what it boils down to in my opinion. I rarely shoot at the deer that isn't quartered away. In a perfect world I want my arrow to break down/go through the opposite shoulder.

I don't get to use them often, (our ranch doesn't allow dogs) but tracking dogs would increase the rate tremendously if one was readily available.

[GThang]

15 years or so not loosing one deer; then lost two in one day a few years ago. One poor shot, no blood, second good shot no blood. Haven't lost one since.

It happens.

[LA/TX Hunter]

Shootign NAP killzone 100%

[MisterB]

I read somewhere that the loss rate for supposedly good shots was 33%. This was a survey back in late 2012. I will look and see if I can find it. I received it when I was archery field editor for the Texas Outdoor Journal Magazine.

[lovemylegacy]

If your recovery rate is low, I suggest practicing. You owe it to the animals you are hunting to make the most ethical and lethal shot possible. I know it happens, but if it happens often for you, you're in the wrong game.

Bingo