I settled into my stand with favorable weather conditions and plenty of optimism for an early season September bowhunt in the rolling hills of Eastern Ohio. As the sun dipped below the horizon, I heard a branch crack to the right and behind me. It was a buck sporting a symmetrical 8-point frame, most likely a 2½- or 3½-year-old. I was in college at the time and still a bowhunting novice, and this would be the largest buck I’d ever taken with a bow. He walked past my setup at 5 yards. I drew and made the rookie mistake of aiming with my arms and not my body. When a deer is that close to your stand and you are at full draw, bend at the waist to keep your anchor point consistent.
Lesson learned.
I shot high, and the deer bounded 15 yards away, uncertain what had just whizzed right over his spine. His confusion bought me enough time to nock another arrow, draw and shoot. The second shot hit the deer in what looked like the middle of his frame. On impact, his rear legs kicked backward and up like a bronco. He bolted as I sat shaking.
The real work was just about to start.
Every bowhunter strives for perfect shot placement, but every shot can’t hit the mark every time. Sometimes we make a lethal hit but compound less-than-desirable shot placement with mistakes in recovering the animal. A liver hit often leads to such a situation. The liver is tucked between the lungs and the rumen or stomach, so a shot that hits just slightly farther back than you would like will often hit the liver. If you think you may have hit the liver, remember these five steps to make sure you give yourself the best chance at recovery. Read the top five here – https://www.qdma.com/five-rules-for-recovering-liver-shot-deer/