Would you shoot?

dgibson

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Since Moosie is apparently on a quiz kick ;) I thought I'd pose one of my own. My second year of hunting deer I was down to a doe tag and was trying desparately to fill it. At some point I was still hunting up a logging road. I heard a crashing sound coming toward me from off the road, so I stopped to wait. A doe came charging up the hill, then when she reached the road she turned and started bounding straight at me, at a distance of about 25 yards. I had my rifle up and could see her in the scope; as she hit the ground with each bound the crosshairs were centered on the junction of her neck and chest. It all happened very fast (but slowly, if you know what I mean), but I decided not to chance the shot for fear of shooting too soon or late and hitting low. I often wonder what would have happened if I had shot.

Would you shoot? :confused:
 
Nope. I've yet to shooting at a running deer. I just don't feel confident in doing that. Now if the gun were a 12ga with 00 buck I may have.
 
If the gun really was on her at each bound, you could have shot. You were concerned you would be early or late, so you made the right decision. Would you shoot, if it happened again? I hunt deer in a situation like that in west Texas sometimes. I go up and down draws and creep over the top. I wait for a doe who stands up and looks at me before she runs. There were quite a few there though so I haven't had to shoot at running deer.
 
I would not have shot. To me it would have been too risky. I like Tom's question, would you shoot if you had it to do over again?
 
I would say, I may have taken it. But only if I was certain it would have been a clean shot. It's all in the timing. I wouldn't though if in my head there was even a remote possibility I may have to track the sucker very far. I don't like to spend huge amounts of time tracking wounded game. It is way to frustrating. So all I could say is it depends upon the last second before the trigger was pulled.... :D :D
 
Well, to answer the question, no, I probably wouldn't. In my now vast experience ;) I could make that particular shot if I had to, but I don't have to. I'm not starving or trying to feed my family with the venison. Why take the risk, however small? Now, I also will admit that while that doe was bounding toward me at full steam, 20 yards away, I wondered if she was going to run me down. Luckily she bore left and then across the road. *whew*
 
dgibson, you did the right thing! hell, in kentucky just wait 5 min there will be another one come along!!!! ;) iron sights and i would have shot but, with a scope timing would be more difficult and i would have probably passed !
 
It depends on what you were shooting, what the laws were in your state regarding shooting from a road or while on a road?
Also, how good a shot you are and what was behind the doe that made her come charging out of the brush.
I would have stepped off the road to get a clearer and better angle shot, but only if it were a buck since in AZ we only have doe tags in one area and too hard to get drawn for them. Archery is another story though.
Better safe than sorry I always say.
 
Actually, DKO, it took about 30 minutes. :D Mntman, I should have given a little more info. The logging road was long since closed and on private property; no through traffic so no legal worries. The shot was otherwise safe; good backstop and so forth. What I think scared her, and I may be wrong, is a transport helicopter from Fort Campbell. I heard her start hauling butt and just a second or two later I started hearing the "whump whump whump" of the heli. It was flying low to the deck and coming our direction. Could have just been coincidence. Either way, she started her run about 50 yards or so to my right (she turned down the road when she started toward me), so whatever scared her wasn't in the line of shooting. :D
 
Ahhh the quizes are out :D .. HAHA !!

MY 2nd year of hunting.. BOOM !!!

NOW, years later, I wouldn't shoot a doe, Unless I was back east having more then one tag to fill
. HAve more meat then I could ever eat every year and not enought "BONE" on the wall...

Honestly, I couldn't say what I'd do at 25 yards or even 100 yards... Ethically and proper, I should answer HELL no, But in the field there is always Circumstances and situtations that we shouldn't do but sometimes we do. I made a mistake 2 years ago with an elk........
Here is the "CLIP"....

~~~~~Dumping our pack towards the top, I had Warren lead. That sucker sees Elk better than me and could line me out on one! We didn't go 40-50 yards when he stopped and started sniffing the air. Heck, I think he is 1/2 blood hound and 1/2 Eagle eye sometimes. We heard the ground RUMBLE. Sounded like a BUFFALO heard!!! Warren took off toward the sound and I was right behind him on a full run. There were 2 BIG ELK Warren said. KABANG, KABANG!!!! Well after 2 quick shots, (I made them a little too quick thinking back now), I hit one w/ the 3rd shot as they dumped over into the next ridge 75 yards up the Ridge. A Running we did GO after them!!! I had 1 Bullet left. I didn't bring any extra w/ me from my pack... NEVER EVER DO THAT!!!!! I couldn't borrow from Warren for he went higher to stop the Elk heading that way. Five minutes went by and I saw 15-20 Elk come out, but not the big ones. I was perched in the "SNIPER" position w/ the 9x power on laying face down in the snow. Finally Warren was heading back my way and the 5x6 walked out with some cows. Elk were covering the Hill!!! With my final Bullet... KABANG!!!!!! Across the Canyon, the Elk was going no further. Seconds after pulling the Trigger I saw the "OTHER" BIG ELK.. a much BIGGER ONE. I was Bummed but realized the Elk I got was the one I hit before. So it all worked out. Dark was settling in fast and we barely got it taken care of before we had to put the flashlights on. It took us 2 1/2 hours to hike DOWN HILL out of the area that we killed those Elk. Fortunately Warren's Elk was on our back so we only had to make one more trip back it there.

~~~~~

This thing learned me 2 things...

1.NEVER shot into an ELK heard. Although easier said then done, COOL and calm has to maintain. I got a bit anxious when I saw the 2 racks that I opened up. that was my first mistake...

2.NEVER fire at a Elk unless you know EXACTLY that it was the one you hit. It seemed like I knew what I was doing but CRAP happens. I was sure the elk was the only one bull left around. After I pulled the trigger, I saw another one. I could have easily dropped the hammer on the wrong one.. ANOTHER very good lesson learned...

SO, NOW I would liek to say I would never do that..... Hopefuly I'll never be made into a lier !!!!!
 
Great story Moosie but it has nothing to do with shooting a doe at 25 yards;). LOL

<FONT COLOR="#800080" SIZE="1">[ 06-04-2002 19:31: Message edited by: trophy_killer ]</font>
 
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