How often do you find unrecovered animals?

[MNGrouser]

I would say it is rare anymore. I typically only white-tail hunt my home property and a private ranch out west for mule deer. When I hunted public land (primarily Wisconsin) I would find 1 at least every other year. The first year the DNR had an early rifle antlerless season I believe I found 6 bucks. Two had their heads cut off, bodies left. The four smaller ones were just left in the woods. I suspect the little ones were shot thinking they were does and the shooter panicked. I fear the shooters knew what they were doing with the bigger bucks.

 

[mi650]

Only one. Someone shot it illegally across the line, on my property. My son and I were in the woods when it happened, and found the blood trail a couple hours later coming back to the house, followed it about 20 yards to a dead deer. Waited another couple hours, nobody came looking for it. Called the DNRs poaching hotline, they didn't really care what we did with it. So a nephew of mine tagged it and took it home.


A neighbor found one of mine that I never would have. Despite a broadside double lung shot with a 3-blade 2" broadhead, I had next to no blood to follow. The next morning, a neighbor found him while tracking a doe he'd shot. He made it about 30 yards across the property line, and I never would have found him.

Exit hole:

 

[AZmark]

I ran across two elk carcasses today, both were in the wide open and visible from several hundred yards off.

How often do you find unrecovered animals?

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When I voted I hit the wrong button, not an uncommon occurance with me. I meant to click yearly

 

[mtnbiker208]

every year, but it hard to tell how they died. not always hunting related.

 

[WCB]

I've found a few here and there. One that bothered me was a WT buck shot in Wyoming. Walked up to it in the head of a small draw...really open. bullet hole in the shoulder and just the antlers cut off. Not skull cap just each individual antler. Guessing it at 1 or 2 days old at the oldest.

Thought I stumbled upon some poaching on 80acres we own when I found 3 deer carcasses in our pine grove right off the road like someone just drove by and shot them. But further searching found 8 total (all fawns) that must have been winter kill. Most still curled up like they were sleeping. No adult or even yearlings.

 

[rayporter]

just about every year
already found one this year

 

[wytx]

That`s obscene! Glad you were able to get it out. After 10 days, wouldn`t it be spoiled?

Rack only. This is what it looked like the day we hauled it out. Note how it was turned over.
1st pic was about 4 days after it was killed we think, laid there 10 more days before we brought it out to the GW to tag.

 

[Pharmseller]

I found a young bull moose during elk season in the Gospel Hump wilderness area many years ago. The crows were going nuts so I had to see. I figured some a-hole mistook him for an elk.

Only animal I ever found.




P

 

[Turkeytider]

Time to leave this thread. All it does is make me angry. No offense to the OP.

 

[5MilesBack]

Rack only. This is what it looked like the day we hauled it out.

Man, after 10+ days I would think that the carcass would be mostly gone from a bear or even yotes. Must not be any bears in that area.

I've found a couple 6x6's and some raghorns over the years, and a few deadheads that had been there a few years.

 

[Sierra Hunter]

Here in PA, I estimate it averages out to 1 deer per year I find.

Think I've only ever found 1 elk. 2022 NM I was quartering my bull and took the hind to a nice shade tree about 25 yards from the carcass. I hung it and turned around, and had a brief WTH moment. "That's not my elk". Laying 40 yards from my bull was a 6x6 that was shot in 1st archery and not recovered.

Surprised you didn’t smell it ahead of time.

 

[S.Clancy]

I rarely find them fresh, but thats also cuz I rarely hunt around other people. I do find quite a few deadheads in the springtime shed hunting tho.

My brother found a 300" 6x6 killed by an arrow. I've also seen a live raghorn with an arrow sticking out a a hindquarter bugling and rutting.

 

[Jethro]

Surprised you didn’t smell it ahead of time.

That first day I don’t know if the wind was just right or I was distracted by excitement, blood trailing, and butchering. I didn’t smell it.

Day 2 went in for rest of meat and day 3 to get the horns. Came in from downwind, the smell guided me the last 100 yards.

 

[Still Hunter]

I have found four bulls in 9 years of hunting over a 13 year span, However one was recovered the second day but a sow and three cubs was on it. She was not interested in letting it go either. LOL!

 

[justin davis]

Bowhunting gets a bad rap for wounding animals. But I think it happens a lot more than you think with rifle hunters. I think a lot of people shoot animals and “they don’t drop” and the hunter thinks they missed and don’t go check.

 

[LongWayAround]

I found a raghorn that was probably shot early during archery my rookie season. That's the only legal animal I can think of finding unrecovered.

 

[TheHammer]

Bowhunting gets a bad rap for wounding animals. But I think it happens a lot more than you think with rifle hunters. I think a lot of people shoot animals and “they don’t drop” and the hunter thinks they missed and don’t go check.

I was going to make this point. I hunt primarily the horicon marsh here in Wi. As a kid it was shotgun only, muzzleloaders allowed in season or single shot pistol. There was a year we found 11bucks within 100yds of one another. The guy we suspected of being the culprit was confronted and the words “they didn’t fall over when I shot so I figured I missed them” will never be forgotten. Since then I typically find 1-5 a year. I’ve only found 2 bull elk in the Rockies, but smell was more than I cared to deal with so I didn’t investigate. Hopefully the one I hit this year is live and well, that weight isn’t something I wish on anyone.

 

[Gutshotem]

Small parcels of public and private land in the east makes it a pretty common occurrence.

 

[Yoder]

Rarely. I found a small whitetail buck last year. Arrow was laying next to it and someone had already cut off the antlers. It was maybe 30 ft off a logging road. Most of the deer I find are coyote kills.