kgkoon

Unless your game commission has its own rule, the general common law rule in the United States is a wild animal belongs to the first person to mortally wound it. It is a question of state property law. The leading case was Pierson v. Post (I think) back in the 1800s; it concerned a fox. As I said, that would be the general rule; it could be different where you live.

kc_bowhunter

I'd say it's yours, but one of the things humans can do is 'rationalize', thus it's better off giving an animal to some moron that think is his... It's not worth getting on a gun fight or have some redneck out looking for you next season.

TxCowboy

Sounds like it was your deer. However, that isn't why I'm posting. Where in the heck were you hunting that there was another hunter so close bY? Sheesh, if I had someone that close to me and I didn't know it, I'd be scared to death once I found out. Heck, if I even thought there was a chance of someone else being anywhere around me I'd be nervous.

I'm sorry this happened to you but I'm more sorry that you have to hunt in conditions like that. If I was put in your position and that was my only option for hunting, I'd just have to quit hunting. Be careful out there!

--------------------------------------------
Hunting the Piney Woods of Deep East Texas.

Nomercy

I'm going to say you should get her. Always go by the rules of first blood and mortal wound. If two men take equally good shots, both being lethal that is, then the man that shot first gets it, first blood. If the first man makes a bad shot, which would not have been a lethal wound, then the man that made the actual kill shot gets the animal, mortal wound. Only problem is some guys argue about which hole is theirs, but most guys will be honest.

Screw the 10 ring, keep them in the zero!!!

jpm8920

Something like that happened to me and my brother once. We just went absolutely ape **** on them and made it very clear that we weren't leaving the woods without that deer. The situation defused quickly.

uncle matt

Great subject! I like reading the variety of opinions. But that's really just what they are - OPINIONS, not ANSWERS.

James, you posted so you must be looking for replys and/or opinions.

Here's my OPINION..............

1. You shot at a "nice doe" at 45 yards and MISSED? Time for a REALITY CHECK. You might want to seriously consider some major range time.

2. When hunting, isn't it prudent and wise to always know your surroundings? (i.e. not hunting too closely to others) Count you and the other guy as very fortunate! Three shots were fired, any one of which could have "harvested" either of the two of you. The shouting of "I GOT ONE!", could have been, "I'VE BEEN SHOT!" Can you say Hunter Safety Education courses? Maybe you two could carpool to the classes and make up? Turn a negative into a positive? (Oh yeah-you don't see much of that, if any, on this site. Once the "crying & whining" starts it seems like it's only to gather as much sympathy as possible)

3. What if after your second shot (no matter how finishing it was) the deer walked 200....300....400....500 yards before the other guy shot it? Would it still be "yours"? What's the "limit"? If you want to believe there is no "limit", then what if you shot it and it went 2 miles.3 miles...4 miles before dropping? Remember-you have to go that far and get the animal because it's the ethical thing to do, right? What if it walks or runs a mile or two and another guy shoots and drops the animal? Is it still "yours" because "it was all but bled out"? We can go on forever with this............

4. I feel that he harvested a live (i.e. still breathing), legal animal. And he hit it with his first shot. In the head with a 20 or 12 gauge slug would have killed it immediately! A double lung that drops the animal doesn't assure that it isn't breathing when it drops, does it?

5. Me personally, if I heard a couple of shots ring out, then saw a deer from that direction, and I didn't even know another hunter was in that direction or his/her exact location.....I would hold my fire.

P.S. ABSOLUTELY no offense is intended in this posting! Just some "food for thought" by those who read the follow ups. I've got "big shoulders" so if I'm outta line.........please let me know.


Now....."Go Get Ya One!"

smokepoledoug

It should have been your deer. Nomercy is exactly right in atating that the first mortal wound is declared to that shooter. Anyone with any decency at all would have turned the deer over to you with a blessing.

txbowjunkie

The only time this type of thing has happened to me we split it. We both felt like we won!

Sorry your outcome wasn't so positive.

jamesp59

I got in the woods about 630am sun rise is at 712am. I noticed the other guy walking in the woods about ten min. after i got settled in my tree stand, so i blinked my light at him so he could see there was another hunter in the area, but this guy kept on setting his tree stand up. This guy should of realized that i was there first and walked to another spot like i do when i see someone in the woods. Im always worring about my safty during shot gun season thats why i try to get up in the tree stand as high as possible to prevent someone else from shooting me. Before i get into the woods i always have a back up spot to go to just in case there is some one in my hunting area. I heard the guy set up in the morning and tryed to warn him that i was there, but he didnt care. Both of my shoots where to the east and he was set up to the north, so i was looking out for his safty, but he wasnt looking out for mine. The guy even said he heard me using my bleat call to call her in and still took the shoot. I should of never gave up the right to a coin toose and argued that indeed it was my KILL SHOT that took it down. If there was a law saying the last person to shoot it can tag it then i would of walked up and shoot it again, but i new that i made the KILL SHOOT, so i didnt. It should be a law that the first person to make a KILLING SHOOT they should tag it not the person who shoots at another persons deer that was indeed getting ready to expire. These type of people only come out for gun hunting they dont work there a$$ of all season bowhunting to get a deer. I been bowhunting all year every weekend to get the meat in the freezer and he comes out a few times in one week and shoots at another mens deer. He can have the deer i know i made the killing shot so i know in my heart its my deer.
James

Mulf

Tazman, I can happen on private ground... here's my story.
I was like you, I had heard if this happening but thought I was safe because I hunt private ground.
During Ohio 'lead slinging' season 2 years ago, I had just got done talking with a friend on a ridgetop, telling him where I was heading. I had walked about 20 yards when I here a deer coming through a thicket. It was a decent buck just high loping across the ledge below. My friend was closest and shot once and missed, it came by me and I put it down instantly. We just got to the deer, a nice 9pt just as wide as his ears, and here comes a guy through the thicket onto our private ground. Says he's been tracking that deer all morning. We look to see how many holes are in him and find a spot on the top of his neck that you could put you finger through, no blood. I had shot him through the heart and lungs. This guy starts in with a sob story about how he'd never killed a buck in 30 years and he's a preacher at a church that uses the meat, bla bla bla. I finally told him to just take the deer, hoping to avoid a confrontaion with the local crowd. Private ground but none of us live there, only a cabin (they have been know to mysteriously catch fire after gunseason). Oh well, always more and bigger deer out there, and he has to live with the fact that HE still hasn't killed a buck. I had to do it for him.

TxCowboy, I would hate to guess the number of hunters within 50 yards of each other during Ohio gun season, like nodooze says , a complete "cluster f**k", people out wandering around shooting at everything moving, not caring what's behind or even in front for that matter. Check out http://forum.hunting.net/bbs/topic.a...18&FORUM_ID=29 for a typical day in the Ohio woods during the "annual slug slinging contest".