Very 1st deer hunt bags large doe.

scaryFORDman · November 24, 2007, 08:20 AM

I am 40 years old and went with a friend on my first deer hunt yesterday.
Went on old mine property in Sullivan County Indiana, we sat on top of one of the spill piles right next to a 4 wheeler trail against a pine tree with some branches stacked up around us for cover. It was pretty cold just sitting there not moving much. We waited for about 2 hours after sunrise and saw noting but a few turkeys out about 75 yards. Then we saw 3 doe coming in on us. One was large and the other 2 were smaller(younger) they served themselves up to us. My friend let me take my choice and the first shot. The larger one (the one I had a bead on) walked right up on the trail, but wouldn't show me her broad side. I waited for a few more seconds and she started walking right toward us. I didn't think I should wait any longer, I was afraid she would detect us if she got too close. So I aimed at her lower throat , since she was walking right straight toward me. I got her jugular at about 30-35 yards. She dropped like a rock, wiggled around for a bit and it was over. One of the smaller ones bolted when I shot, the other stood right next to the downed one and looked at her. My friend brought up his smoke pole and cracked her.
My doe field dressed at 144lbs. Got a nice clean kill with NO meat damge.
I was affraid my shotgun wasn't adequate since it is just an old Mosberg 12 with a smooth bore and NO sights or scope, just a bead. It must have worked good, bescause I got her pretty much where I aimed.
I had a good experience, now I have to fill my Buck tag.
Sorry this is so long, but I am pretty stoked.

Fremmer · November 24, 2007, 09:04 AM

Nice job, and good shot. Sometimes you gotta shoot 'em when you gotta shoot 'em. Don't overcook the meat.

Andrew93 · November 24, 2007, 09:08 AM

congrats on first deer. I got skunked this year.

missed a nice 8 point and could have shot a nice doe on openiing day but was holding out for a buck. that was a mistake. good luck on filling your buck tag.

JKump · November 24, 2007, 03:36 PM

CONGRATS!!! Was you useing slugs or buckshot?

Mainah · November 24, 2007, 04:13 PM

Nice work, I'm 42 and my second deer season just ended with no luck. Nice to know there's someone else out there who started late and hunts with a shotgun. Enjoy that venison.

scaryFORDman · November 24, 2007, 04:52 PM

JKUMP I use Remington sluggers.......rifiled.

MeekAndMild · November 24, 2007, 10:39 PM

Congratulations! Nothing like a nice doe for flavor!

Quote:

Don't overcook the meat.

Try cooking a 3 rump pound roast with four cloves of garlic and two strips of bacon (optional) in the crockpot all day, adding potatoes, carrots and onions for the last few hours. When it's supper time pour off some juice and use it to make a brown gravy for your potatoes. Afterwards you can ask yourself, "Is this meat overcooked?"

Fremmer · November 25, 2007, 12:22 AM

There's a big difference between slow-cooked venison and over-cooked venison....
I've used the crock with success with venison, too.

I like it because you can just leave it alone and let it cook without having to mess with it. My kind of cookin'.

Beretta16 · November 25, 2007, 12:54 AM

Although I won't agree with the shot you took (especially with a slug gun with no sights) I congratulate you on your first deer. I shot a 150 lb doe last Sunday and we cooked up her tenderloins tonight and they were gooood.. Stuffed them with cream cheese, green peppers and wrapped it all up in bacon.

scaryFORDman · November 25, 2007, 06:53 AM

Not trying to start a war here, just wanting to know what you mean when you said you didn't agree with the shot I took? What should I have done?

MeekAndMild · November 25, 2007, 10:24 AM

Obviously you know your shotgun well enough to hit a deer at 35 yards. TFL is a place where people will disagree at times but I think that the fact you hit the deer within a couple of inches of your aim point demonstrates weapon proficiency and proper careful mindset.

Beretta, you might recall that the 12 gauge shotgun is pretty much the same weapon as 75+/- caliber muskets that our ancestors used to fight 300 years of wars in Europe and take game all over the world. Its limitations and strengths are well known. Now we know that much of the military weakness of these weapons below 75 yards was psychological, with good evidence of soldiers in the Napoleonic era deliberately firing high to avoid hitting the enemy.

I could see a 150 yard shotgun shot being problematic but a 35 yard shot? For a rifled slug (modern equivalent of the Minnie Ball) the frontal lethal zone for a deer's chest would be an oval roughly 8-10 inches high and 6-8 inches wide. I've seen people cleanly miss broadside deer at under 100 yards with a scoped rifle and it was more a human error factor than a problem with their weapon. My 2 cents.

Fremmer, I do know what you mean about overcooked. Have you ever fried up thin "steak fingers" with salt, pepper and a flour coating and then have to answer the phone or something so a few of them are just 10-20 seconds overdone? Talk about disappointment.

Beretta16 · November 25, 2007, 11:21 AM

MeekandMild, I was under the impression he wasn't aiming for the chest, he was going for a neck shot, which is a low percentage shot. Didn't mean to start anything. I've seen on 2 seperate occasions people in my party trying to take neck or head shots and ending up crippling the deer badly, both of which didn't kill the deer. I'm glad he got it done, and it sounds like she couldn't have gone any faster.

Fremmer · November 25, 2007, 12:18 PM

Yep. Even worse when you're grilling loins and get distracted by football or something like that.

FirstFreedom · November 25, 2007, 12:32 PM

Flippin' sweet - mmm, mmm, good eatin. Congrats!

slow944 · November 25, 2007, 01:06 PM

Your first deer hunt is always special. I can still remember mine and always will. Cube that roast and pressure cook it with some cream of mushroom soup, Ohhhh Baby, my stomach is growling now.

Congrats on a quick clean kill and many more now that your hooked like the rest of us.

BIGR · November 25, 2007, 06:24 PM

Congrats. on your first deer. It seems like after the first deer the next one comes easier. Now you can concentrate on you a good buck to put on the wall.

scaryFORDman · November 25, 2007, 08:36 PM

Beretta, I am not trying to argue with you or defend my shot....I am a novice that wants to learn. I don't understand what you are saying. Are you trying to say that I shouldn't have went for the neck shot? Because if I had missed, I would have crippled a perfectly good, healthy Deer?
I just want to learn and get input from all angles. If I did wrong, I want to know .....and I want to know what I COULD have done differently.

BIGR · November 25, 2007, 09:02 PM

Neck shots can be a great success or failure and it depends all on where the shot hits. Last year I shot a 6 point in the neck but it was not a good neck shot. It was standing straight on facing me. Oh yea at times there was lots of blood to track it by, but after 2 hours of tracking that sucker, I finally put it down with another shot. From now on I will try for broadside shoulder shots.

Fremmer · November 25, 2007, 09:12 PM

You took the only shot that you had. You hit where you aimed, and the deer died quickly. So you didn't do anything wrong.

hunter33 · November 25, 2007, 10:48 PM

Nice job!

TCman · November 26, 2007, 03:23 PM

something you could have done is just simply put the bead on her shoulder and drive the slug througy the shorlder, vitals, and the off side ribs. A 1 ounce 12 ga slug has more than enough energy to break a shoulder and keep on going. I wouldnt complain. The shot you made did the job. Its that simple.

Beretta16 · November 26, 2007, 07:35 PM

Quote:

Beretta, I am not trying to argue with you or defend my shot....I am a novice that wants to learn. I don't understand what you are saying. Are you trying to say that I shouldn't have went for the neck shot? Because if I had missed, I would have crippled a perfectly good, healthy Deer?
I just want to learn and get input from all angles. If I did wrong, I want to know .....and I want to know what I COULD have done differently.

I'm not saying you shouldn't have, you got the job done and that's what matters. What I am saying is that there are higher percentage shots out there that will be much more likely to drop the deer quickly. What caused that deer to drop in its tracks was because you hit the spinal cord on the other side of its neck. If I have a straight forward shot I normally aim for the chest where the bullet/slug is likely to hit the heart/lungs. Ideally wait for a broadside shot. I'm a bowhunter, so what I do with my bow normally carries over to how I rifle hunt. I almost always wait for a quartering away or broadside shot.

As a matter of fact I shot my first deer when it was facing me myself, I just put it in the chest. I am glad you got your first deer, it is an awesome feeling and there is nothing better than getting out in the woods. Never regret a shot you have taken, especially if it dropped em in the tracks like yours did. Only shot you should ever question is the one you're about to take. Enjoy the sport, there's nothing like it. I live for September to December every year. Good luck and shoot straight

Beretta

scaryFORDman · November 26, 2007, 09:21 PM

Beretta....I understand want you are saying and I thank you for your point of view. I actually DID aim for a high chest or low throat shot, but it went higher then aim......maybe recoil was a factor, I don't know, but this is all good for me to learn by.
I am going out before light in the morning to try and fill my buck tag

crowbeaner · November 27, 2007, 06:07 PM

I am one that uses the neck shot if possible to drop the deer right there and not have to track them further than necessary. I am using the utility of my lower extremities, and if I don't have to drag one any further than necessary, great. You have to hit the blood vessels or the neck bone and break it. The last time I shot deer I hit one right under the chin as she looked at me, and I hit her twin as she stood up to look. 2 down, and the work began. I'd like to wait for the broadside shot but it sometimes doesn't present itself so the neck shot is taken. You definitely have to know your gun and load, and you have to practice a steady hold. Doe venison is preferred to bucks as the does don't get all rutted up and stanky like a big old 10 point. Enjoy the venison Mr. Hunter, and try some Pepperidge Farms herb stuffing with the backstrap. CB.

MeekAndMild · November 27, 2007, 10:06 PM

Quote:

it went higher then aim......maybe recoil was a factor

This brings to mind the question of whether on not slug shotguns should have rear sights, a red dot sight or even a scope? Deer rifles being legal in my state I don't know too many shotgun slug hunters, but it would seem that there would be a big advantage in using a sight to keep the aim point centered and level.

I looked at ghost ring sights in the Midway catalog and they are pretty pricey but I wonder if a person could get get by using one of the cheaper sights like the HiViz® TriViz™ sights that Bass Pro Shops are selling? I also looked up the concept of shotgun bore sighting and its pretty interesting.

November 24, 2007, 08:20 AM	#1
scaryFORDman Member Join Date: October 12, 2005 Location: Indiana Posts: 53	Very 1st deer hunt bags large doe. I am 40 years old and went with a friend on my first deer hunt yesterday. Went on old mine property in Sullivan County Indiana, we sat on top of one of the spill piles right next to a 4 wheeler trail against a pine tree with some branches stacked up around us for cover. It was pretty cold just sitting there not moving much. We waited for about 2 hours after sunrise and saw noting but a few turkeys out about 75 yards. Then we saw 3 doe coming in on us. One was large and the other 2 were smaller(younger) they served themselves up to us. My friend let me take my choice and the first shot. The larger one (the one I had a bead on) walked right up on the trail, but wouldn't show me her broad side. I waited for a few more seconds and she started walking right toward us. I didn't think I should wait any longer, I was afraid she would detect us if she got too close. So I aimed at her lower throat , since she was walking right straight toward me. I got her jugular at about 30-35 yards. She dropped like a rock, wiggled around for a bit and it was over. One of the smaller ones bolted when I shot, the other stood right next to the downed one and looked at her. My friend brought up his smoke pole and cracked her. My doe field dressed at 144lbs. Got a nice clean kill with NO meat damge. I was affraid my shotgun wasn't adequate since it is just an old Mosberg 12 with a smooth bore and NO sights or scope, just a bead. It must have worked good, bescause I got her pretty much where I aimed. I had a good experience, now I have to fill my Buck tag. Sorry this is so long, but I am pretty stoked. __________________ Taurus PT 100 .40 cal. Bersa Thunder .380 Marlin 925 .22 Rifle (Love this gun) NEF Hunstman .50 cal Muzzleloader, Mossberg 12 ga

November 24, 2007, 09:04 AM	#2
Fremmer Senior Member Join Date: June 19, 2005 Location: Nebraska Posts: 3,482	Nice job, and good shot. Sometimes you gotta shoot 'em when you gotta shoot 'em. Don't overcook the meat. Last edited by Fremmer; November 24, 2007 at 04:34 PM. Reason: spellllling

November 24, 2007, 03:36 PM	#4
JKump Senior Member Join Date: November 30, 1998 Location: Middle Georgia Posts: 428	CONGRATS!!! Was you useing slugs or buckshot? __________________ Live everyday as if it is your last! Because someday you will be right. "Everyone has a game plan until they get punched in the mouth".

November 24, 2007, 04:52 PM	#6
scaryFORDman Member Join Date: October 12, 2005 Location: Indiana Posts: 53	JKUMP I use Remington sluggers.......rifiled. __________________ Taurus PT 100 .40 cal. Bersa Thunder .380 Marlin 925 .22 Rifle (Love this gun) NEF Hunstman .50 cal Muzzleloader, Mossberg 12 ga Last edited by scaryFORDman; November 24, 2007 at 04:53 PM. Reason: Can't spell "rifiled"

November 25, 2007, 06:53 AM	#10
scaryFORDman Member Join Date: October 12, 2005 Location: Indiana Posts: 53	Not trying to start a war here, just wanting to know what you mean when you said you didn't agree with the shot I took? What should I have done? __________________ Taurus PT 100 .40 cal. Bersa Thunder .380 Marlin 925 .22 Rifle (Love this gun) NEF Hunstman .50 cal Muzzleloader, Mossberg 12 ga

November 24, 2007, 09:08 AM	#3
Andrew93 Senior Member Join Date: August 23, 2007 Location: sneaking up on you Posts: 106	congrats on first deer. I got skunked this year. missed a nice 8 point and could have shot a nice doe on openiing day but was holding out for a buck. that was a mistake. good luck on filling your buck tag.

November 24, 2007, 04:13 PM	#5
Mainah Senior Member Join Date: July 9, 2007 Posts: 1,119	Nice work, I'm 42 and my second deer season just ended with no luck. Nice to know there's someone else out there who started late and hunts with a shotgun. Enjoy that venison.

November 25, 2007, 12:22 AM	#8
Fremmer Senior Member Join Date: June 19, 2005 Location: Nebraska Posts: 3,482	There's a big difference between slow-cooked venison and over-cooked venison.... I've used the crock with success with venison, too. I like it because you can just leave it alone and let it cook without having to mess with it. My kind of cookin'.

November 25, 2007, 12:54 AM	#9
Beretta16 Junior member Join Date: November 22, 2007 Location: MN Posts: 230	Although I won't agree with the shot you took (especially with a slug gun with no sights) I congratulate you on your first deer. I shot a 150 lb doe last Sunday and we cooked up her tenderloins tonight and they were gooood.. Stuffed them with cream cheese, green peppers and wrapped it all up in bacon.

November 25, 2007, 10:24 AM	#11
MeekAndMild Senior Member Join Date: August 2, 2001 Posts: 4,988	Obviously you know your shotgun well enough to hit a deer at 35 yards. TFL is a place where people will disagree at times but I think that the fact you hit the deer within a couple of inches of your aim point demonstrates weapon proficiency and proper careful mindset. Beretta, you might recall that the 12 gauge shotgun is pretty much the same weapon as 75+/- caliber muskets that our ancestors used to fight 300 years of wars in Europe and take game all over the world. Its limitations and strengths are well known. Now we know that much of the military weakness of these weapons below 75 yards was psychological, with good evidence of soldiers in the Napoleonic era deliberately firing high to avoid hitting the enemy. I could see a 150 yard shotgun shot being problematic but a 35 yard shot? For a rifled slug (modern equivalent of the Minnie Ball) the frontal lethal zone for a deer's chest would be an oval roughly 8-10 inches high and 6-8 inches wide. I've seen people cleanly miss broadside deer at under 100 yards with a scoped rifle and it was more a human error factor than a problem with their weapon. My 2 cents. Fremmer, I do know what you mean about overcooked. Have you ever fried up thin "steak fingers" with salt, pepper and a flour coating and then have to answer the phone or something so a few of them are just 10-20 seconds overdone? Talk about disappointment. __________________ In a few years when the dust finally clears and people start counting their change there is a pretty good chance that President Obama may become known as The Great Absquatulator. You heard it first here on TFL.

November 25, 2007, 11:21 AM	#12
Beretta16 Junior member Join Date: November 22, 2007 Location: MN Posts: 230	MeekandMild, I was under the impression he wasn't aiming for the chest, he was going for a neck shot, which is a low percentage shot. Didn't mean to start anything. I've seen on 2 seperate occasions people in my party trying to take neck or head shots and ending up crippling the deer badly, both of which didn't kill the deer. I'm glad he got it done, and it sounds like she couldn't have gone any faster.

November 25, 2007, 12:18 PM	#13
Fremmer Senior Member Join Date: June 19, 2005 Location: Nebraska Posts: 3,482	Yep. Even worse when you're grilling loins and get distracted by football or something like that.

November 25, 2007, 12:32 PM	#14
FirstFreedom Junior member Join Date: May 31, 2004 Location: The Toll Road State, U.S.A. Posts: 12,451	Flippin' sweet - mmm, mmm, good eatin. Congrats!

November 25, 2007, 01:06 PM	#15
slow944 Senior Member Join Date: March 1, 2006 Location: DFW,TX Posts: 406	Your first deer hunt is always special. I can still remember mine and always will. Cube that roast and pressure cook it with some cream of mushroom soup, Ohhhh Baby, my stomach is growling now. Congrats on a quick clean kill and many more now that your hooked like the rest of us. __________________ I Have A 45 And A Shovel. Don't Mess With Texas! DFW,TX.

November 25, 2007, 06:24 PM	#16
BIGR Senior Member Join Date: June 13, 2000 Location: Mountains Posts: 1,385	Congrats. on your first deer. It seems like after the first deer the next one comes easier. Now you can concentrate on you a good buck to put on the wall.

November 25, 2007, 08:36 PM	#17
scaryFORDman Member Join Date: October 12, 2005 Location: Indiana Posts: 53	Beretta, I am not trying to argue with you or defend my shot....I am a novice that wants to learn. I don't understand what you are saying. Are you trying to say that I shouldn't have went for the neck shot? Because if I had missed, I would have crippled a perfectly good, healthy Deer? I just want to learn and get input from all angles. If I did wrong, I want to know .....and I want to know what I COULD have done differently. __________________ Taurus PT 100 .40 cal. Bersa Thunder .380 Marlin 925 .22 Rifle (Love this gun) NEF Hunstman .50 cal Muzzleloader, Mossberg 12 ga

November 25, 2007, 09:02 PM	#18
BIGR Senior Member Join Date: June 13, 2000 Location: Mountains Posts: 1,385	Neck shots can be a great success or failure and it depends all on where the shot hits. Last year I shot a 6 point in the neck but it was not a good neck shot. It was standing straight on facing me. Oh yea at times there was lots of blood to track it by, but after 2 hours of tracking that sucker, I finally put it down with another shot. From now on I will try for broadside shoulder shots.

November 25, 2007, 09:12 PM	#19
Fremmer Senior Member Join Date: June 19, 2005 Location: Nebraska Posts: 3,482	You took the only shot that you had. You hit where you aimed, and the deer died quickly. So you didn't do anything wrong.

November 25, 2007, 10:48 PM	#20
hunter33 Senior Member Join Date: September 19, 2007 Location: oregon Posts: 289	Nice job! __________________ My information might not be helpful but just think of it as a bump

November 26, 2007, 03:23 PM	#21
TCman Senior Member Join Date: January 23, 2006 Location: Indiana Posts: 514	something you could have done is just simply put the bead on her shoulder and drive the slug througy the shorlder, vitals, and the off side ribs. A 1 ounce 12 ga slug has more than enough energy to break a shoulder and keep on going. I wouldnt complain. The shot you made did the job. Its that simple. __________________ Il keep my freedom, my guns, and my money. You can keep the change.

November 26, 2007, 09:21 PM	#23
scaryFORDman Member Join Date: October 12, 2005 Location: Indiana Posts: 53	Beretta....I understand want you are saying and I thank you for your point of view. I actually DID aim for a high chest or low throat shot, but it went higher then aim......maybe recoil was a factor, I don't know, but this is all good for me to learn by. I am going out before light in the morning to try and fill my buck tag __________________ Taurus PT 100 .40 cal. Bersa Thunder .380 Marlin 925 .22 Rifle (Love this gun) NEF Hunstman .50 cal Muzzleloader, Mossberg 12 ga

November 27, 2007, 06:07 PM	#24
crowbeaner Senior Member Join Date: June 4, 2007 Location: Upstate SC Posts: 1,943	I am one that uses the neck shot if possible to drop the deer right there and not have to track them further than necessary. I am using the utility of my lower extremities, and if I don't have to drag one any further than necessary, great. You have to hit the blood vessels or the neck bone and break it. The last time I shot deer I hit one right under the chin as she looked at me, and I hit her twin as she stood up to look. 2 down, and the work began. I'd like to wait for the broadside shot but it sometimes doesn't present itself so the neck shot is taken. You definitely have to know your gun and load, and you have to practice a steady hold. Doe venison is preferred to bucks as the does don't get all rutted up and stanky like a big old 10 point. Enjoy the venison Mr. Hunter, and try some Pepperidge Farms herb stuffing with the backstrap. CB. __________________ If you want your children to follow in your footsteps, be careful where you walk. Beware the man that only owns one gun; he probably knows how to use it. I just hope my ship comes in before my dock rots.