Blood trailing.

[dennishoddy]

Here lately we have seen some posts they don't have any experience at trailing a wounded deer.
This post would be for tips that you guys have came across to help a newer person to deer hunting find their game.

In my experience, a gut shot deer will head for water or downhill. Both downhill. (Humans have the same reaction)
A deer shot in the lungs will mostly head uphill.
Not all deer leave a blood trail at the point of the shot.
Some deer shot(bow or gun) high will leave no blood trail until they fall down, only to get up leaving a huge spray of blood on occasion.
Deer shot at close range from a tall tree stand will leave a blood trail that a blind hunter could follow.

This is just my experience. Y'all chip in and let the folks gain some info.

FYI, over the years, seeing the deer fall, or knowing where it fell, I have always took the attitude that I know nothing.......and start trailing the deer by the blood signs.
this way one learns how to follow the signs. Trust me, even if the deer is in sight, act like its not and blood trail it. You will learn to spot tiny specs, etc.

 

[Kingmarine]

I have an issue with this. I am partially color blind. I see colors, but not like others do. I have a very hard time following blood trails. Usually have my dad help me and he says it kinda glows to him. Are there any products that may make this easier for someone like me?

 

[Jon3830]

if you are having a hard time finding a blood trail use peroxide, and a spay bottle one thing that I have noticed with the deer I have shot is that doe will make a big circle and bucks normally just run a straight line when I have shot them. I have had a few doe that when I shot them they ran east and I lose sight of them and when I trail them I end up finding them somewhere west from where I shot them.

 

[Schuster]

Yeah I am colorblind too. I have thought about getting one of the flashlights that is suppose to help see the blood, but figured it would only help if is was darker outside.

 

[2busy]

I've seen deer run in all directions no matter where they were shot. Usually i notice that they run in a direction that provides cover for them. Or if they are crossing a field they tend to stay on course .

I always try to have a reference point on where the deer is standing when i pull the trigger. That way i can go to that area and search for evidence of a hit.Not all deer fall down once they are hit. Very few of the deer i have taken were put down where they were standing.

blood trail my be faint so i look for tracks ,ruffled leaves,fresh turned over rocks, whatever i can find to give me a clue to which direction i should go and maybe come across some blood.

If i dont find any i always go back to my reference point and look ,and look again.

 

[WNM]

Chalk me up as one that lost one on Saturday morning. It was doe and the shot was a little high, and she fell right where I shot her. She kicked around a little and then layed down broadside and begin taking long and heavy breaths.

I eased out of the stand and went back to get the mule to get her loaded up (20 mins round trip) when I got back she was gone. Found blood for about 20 yards and then nothing. Spent the next 5 hours searching and nothing. Went and got the dog at about hour 2 and he was on the trail for a little while and then either lost the trail or gave up.

Very frustrating. Had I known I wouldn't recover her, I would have not taken the shot.

 

[RidgeHunter]

I've had the opportunity to trail dozens of deer for myself and several other people (mainly others...) since I was a kid
The one thing I can say, is that there are no absolute truths to trailing a deer. They can and will break all the "rules" people will tell you they follow. There are things that the generally do, but don't bet the farm on any of it. I could talk for hours about the weird trails I've been on.

Some tips:

1. Don't push the deer. Give it time, it's better safe than sorry. I usually get down and find my arrow/shot spot and look for blood. I mark it and wait 20-30 minutes if I'm 99.9% certain I drilled the shot. If you think you have a gut/liver shot...wait several hours before taking up the trail.
That's hard where I hunt in the evening, because a deer left overnight is usually eaten by varmints.

2. Immediately landmark in your head where your deer was standing and what direction he ran at the shot. Get down and look for blood/arrow/leaf disturbance at the shot spot and mark it with something. Note the direction of travel, and then wait a bit depending on what you think of your shot/sign you found. Read your arrow, it can tell you a lot. Bright blood? Dark blood? Odor? I like white feather instead of blazers for this reason. They show more.

3. A hard hit deer will usually die within a couple hundred yards at the most, unless you push it. You jump a gut/liver shot deer from his bed....you're in trouble.

4. A double lung shot will almost always leave very good blood trail, bright pink with bubbles in it. Huge spray at the shot spot. I've never seen a double lunged deer go further than about 60 yards and drop dead in seconds.

5. A single lunged deer (shot at close range from a high angle, pretty much straight down) can go a long ways, and leave a sparse blood trail. You may not find this deer.

6. The hardest hit deer will not always leave a good blood trail, or even leave one at all. Look for clipped hair at the shot spot to confirm a hit, I've found that more than once on deer that didn't bleed externally. You can often tell where on the body the hair is from by color/texture/length. We had a heart shot (gun) buck that did this last year, left no blood until 5 yards before he dropped. He only went 45 yards, but between the thick brush and no blood...it took over 4 hours to find him. The clipped hair confirmed the shot, that was all we had.

7. Don't be afraid to put a second arrow/bullet in your deer should you need to. Quickly.

 

[r00s7a]

1. Don't push the deer. Give it time, it's better safe than sorry. I usually get down and find my arrow/shot spot and look for blood. I mark it and wait 20-30 minutes if I'm 99.9% certain I drilled the shot. If you think you have a gut/liver shot...wait several hours before taking up the trail.
That's hard where I hunt in the evening, because a deer left overnight is usually eaten by varmints.

I think this is one of the most important rules. Based on clues left at the shot spot, you can determine when to start tracking. When you do start tracking it, if you find a spot where the deer laid down, grass is smashed down, large bloody spot, but is no longer there.... back on out and give it a few hours. Chances are, the deer laid down to expire, but you didn't give it enough time and it jumped before you got there. First time I ever had to really track one, I found about 4 spots where it had laid down but I kept pushing it. Luckily she was bleeding good the whole time and left a good trail, but I pushed her for over half a mile before catching up to her and getting another shot.

 

[Jared]

A bright WHITE light is the best ive found for seeing blood. I use a Surefire G2 Nitrolon that was $30. I fell into the trap that the Blue lens filter helps "illuminate" blood. It does NOT, the unfiltered white light works the best (for me). The last deer I tracked my buddy was carrying a Stinger which has more Lumens than my Surefire, but the Stinger still produces a somewhat yellow light and the blood was dramatically easier to see in the white light of the G2.

 

[_CY_]

lots of good tips already given!!!

most important is to wait at least 30 minutes before you think about moving. unless of course deer dropped on the spot and you can plainly see.

a deer shot in the heart can still run for 100+ yds... let that deer slowly bleed out. believe me your trail will be MUCH shorter if you have patience and give it a bit before moving.

you could end up losing deer completely if it runs to the next county before dying.

when tracking always bring along some type of marking material. toilet paper work good. mark you tracks!

on particularly difficult searches ... lay the area out in grids.
normally a deer will run in the easiest to navigate path to a safe looking spot like low depression. but no telling what a deer will do.