[formerflyer]

Can I be the only one on this board that thinks this was an error on the part of the hunter? Cardinal rule: After placing your first shot, if you can still see the animal, and it is up on all fours (moving or not) SHOOT IT AGAIN! Continue to shoot until it is down, then immediately approach the animal and make sure that it is dead. This “one-shot, one kill” egotistical nonsense has accounted for more lost game than any other stupidity I know of on the part of hunters.

People will say that follow-up shots waste meat. I suggest that losing the entire animal wastes much, much more. If you are shooting a properly balanced cartridge/bullet combination (i.e., not one that acts like a hand grenade when the bullet hits) the amount of meat damage is quite limited. It just means that you’ll have a little more sausage and a little less steak and roast.

I wish to hell that hunters would remember that they owe a debt to the game animal they’re shooting to make their demise as clean and quick as possible, and that they also have a duty not to waste meat (and that duty is law in most states). After your first shot don’t sit there and admire your brilliant shooting, get back to work. You’re not done yet! You are done when you touch the animal on the eyeball with the muzzle of your firearm and confirm that there is no more life left in them. Then you can sit back and admire your prowess and revel in your skill as a marksman.