Buckbuster4ou

It has happened to me just one time. Spine shot. I re-think the shot over and over and all I can think of is, I misjudged the distance and he ducked at the same time.

W. Dale

With a 30-06, but not with my bow.............................

Washington Hunter

This last season I was rifle hunting for deer, it was getting late and I started to head back towards the camp... I was crossing a field and saw a coyote headed towards the farmer' s cattel... I took aim with my .270 and BOOM, shot him right in the spine. Needless to say it broke his back, it wasnt an instant kill like I would have liked to have gotten, as the animal Im sure suffered very much. I can honestly say, I would never like to get an animal in the spine again, with a rifle or bow. [:' (]

cwilks15

I hit one in the spine a few years back and dropped him there. After he burned donuts for a few seconds with his front legs he settled down behind a branch leaving me with no choice but to get down and finish him off. He was bleeding pretty well so I gave him a while to expire before doing so. While I watched him, he just laid there helpless looking around in a very calm matter. Needless to say it killed me inside so I got down and double lunged him. I did not try to hit him there and I will never try to either!!! If it was a shot that would have expired him quickly I would have felt better about my self. I am out there to harvest these animals as quickly as possible keeping their suffering to a bare minimum.

Belle Island

I' ve had two, and I felt sick about both. Although they expired fairly quickly, I didn' t enjoy watching it. Both times I felt like I didn' t deserve to kill that deer, it was just luck that I hit the spine and not one inch higher. I would never intentionally shoot for the spine. Except for the most extreme angles, there is always a better option. Congrats on the kill.

Rack-attack

I spined a couple, both were good bucks, and after the initial relief and happiness of knowing they were mine - they both turned out to be terrible experiances. Both fell in areas to thick for a second shot, both from climbers so I could not get down quickly. I had to get withen a few feet of both of them to finish them off - a couple minutes after the hit.

Both of them watched me - and I will never forget.

put the bow down for a better part of a year after the second one.

hunthardhuntoften

I had a spine shot on a 3 year old 8 point last season.I had been on a heavy dose of steroids for poison ivy and did not realize till i was in my tree that they cause muscle to shrink.well it was the first afternoon in a well placed stand and i knew it would be productive so after i tried to pull my bow i decided i could get the job done.He came in at 4 o' clock right in my shooting lane 15 yards and stopped to eat.I pulled on the string and couldn' t beleive i could' nt get it back.I refused to give up and put all i had into it and got it back, by this time my strength was spent and i was shaking like a drunk with DT' s.MY shot was high and left and i spined him. He went down like sadams bunker on the eve of the war.He started to crawl with his front feet and was blowing and huffing I took another shot when he was directly under my stand and missed by an inch.By the time i had another arrow knocked he was 5 yards out . I put the next arrow in his neck top side and although i appeared to hit an artery he was not going quickly enough for my peace or his.Now i am out of arrows. I climb down and retrieve an arrow from the ground and finish him off with a double lung at 5 yards while he was still and watching me. It was on par with a sick puppy i had to dispatch. I felt sick about the whole thing and had to put my mind on auto pilot to get the job done.Thankfully after the first shot i had no trouble pulling my bow i guess adrenaline must have taken over.That was one strong deer and i am sorry i took him at all.[:' (]I won' t hunt if i am not up to it ever again.Even in the best of circumstanes an arrow can be unpredictable so we do the best we can and learn from our mistakes and others.Thanks for the thread,lot' s of good info has been shared.

fupped duck

A good number of years ago, a friend invited me up to his families place during the late season to help thin the herd of some Does.

I' d never hunted there before, so he set me up in one of his fathers ground blinds he used for rifle hunting.

After getting seated, I drew my bow and swung a wide arc to check for clearance problems. Cool! Nothings in the way!

After about a hour I watched a lone doe meander down a shooting lane directly in front of me. She came in with-out a worry in the world, and began browsing on some old sugar beets about 15 yards out broadside. I waited for her to drop her head and when she did, I drew and released.
At the same time the bow jumped and I heard a wierd WHACK.
Next thing, much to my horror, I see my arrow flying wildly off course and impacts the Doe high, just in front of her hips. The Does rear legs immediately fold under her, and she is now dragging herself by her front legs blatting.
My stomach knots and a sick, sick feeling envelopes me. I stand quickly nocking another arrow, step out of the blind, line up on the heart and let it fly.
It hits home. It' s quiet now.
I return to the blind, sit and gather up my nerves. What the hell went wrong I' m saying to myself. I draw the bow again, and swing around, nothing. I relax the bow and follow the arc back, and sure enough, the lower limb gets brushed by a branch protruding back from the front of the blind, at the exact spot where I had released...

That was the last hunt of the season for me, and the whole incident has haunted me since.

In fact, right now, there is a tremendous heavy feeling tugging at my soul from recalling that day when I took things for granted, and didn' t pay attention to the small stuff...

PABowhntr

Yes. Actually, two of last year' s three does taken with my bow dropped in their tracks. One was a high spine shot and the other went through both lungs and clipped a piece of the heart. The third one was hit above the shoulder but closer to the neck...a bit far front for my personal tastes but what would probably be considered a linecutter " 8" on a Mckenzie deer target. It actually dropped but then ran a bit and dropped again. I had to put a second arrow into it.

You will not hear any complaints from me about not having to track one...

jerseyjoe

Twice for me. 1 doe in the spine and 1 head shot/double lung shot!! I had the doe under 10 yds, broadside. I picked my spot and released. A split second befors I released she turned her head towards her hind quarter. The broadhead went through her skull and through both lungs! The arrow stuck out about 4 inches on the opposite side.