How do deer do it?

robinhood

robinhood

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Ya know this has been something I never thought about asking for other's opinions on until now. I was just reading some many articles on effective bullets for killing deer etc.

I've read many stories of deer taking a heart and lung shot and still running 100 yards or more before taking a dirt nap.

How can deer take a bullet through the heart and lungs and still run? If we as humans took a shot like that we'd drop instantly.

Looking forward to your theories.
 
Probably similar to those stories of a father lifting a car by himself when he arrives to see his young son pinned underneath it .... or in another word a-d-r-e-n-a-l-i-n

....whatever you do don't let that bugger see you just before you pop him or your more likely to be in for a wild goose(er deer) chase!
 
robinhood said:
How can deer take a bullet through the heart and lungs and still run? If we as humans took a shot like that we'd drop instantly.

Looking forward to your theories.
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No we wouldn't. There are countless cases of guys taking large caliber rounds to the chest, including ones that blew up their hearts, and still having the ability to fight or run for several seconds. Adrenaline can keep you going for a little while after the plumbing's been perforated. We can and do run after being shot in the heart but we're slower so we only make it about 10 to 20 yards.
 
if neaver seen it myself ,id say bs ..
about ten years ago..i spooked a medium sized buck to a fellow hunter..i heard the shot..
that deer ran out back were i was..it fell about 50 ft in front of me..it was dead as dead can be..
i followed the blood trail back to were it was shot..
i would say a good 200 yards..
i gutted that deer ..its heart was blown wide open
 
Read any gun magazine and try to keep track of the number of times the terms "stopping power" or "power Factor" are used.

That scenario, on game or other humans, is EXACTLY why the discussions take place.

Saw a wildlife show where they discussed what happens to a prey animal when it gets whacked by a predator, and the theories abound. In general it seems to go along the lines of that the prey animals body shuts off it's own requirement to feel debilitating effects of pain, in favor of being able to escape.

Cheers
Trev
 
BAC4 said:
As long as there is blood/oxygen going to the brain the animal can function.With humans adrenalin,drugs,physical condition and the will to live will impact how long they can function after a fatal shot.
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That's what I would think also, as long as there's enough residual oxygen in the system, the brain and muscles will keep on truckin'.
 
I had a chance to listen to LtCol Grossman lecture a couple of weeks ago on this (not why deer can do it, but why some people do and most don't). He wrote the books, "On Killing" and "On Combat" and lectures psychology at Westpoint. He has collected hundreds of cases of police and military shootings and the physiological reactions the human body goes through in a firefight. A couple of examples...
1) Buddy (at 200+lbs) takes a 22 and is flung back shutting er down.
2) Female cop takes 3 to the front plate, and 4 more in the body before shooting one baddie and causing the other to flee.
3) Marine in Iraq gets both legs shredded before pulling himself into the ambul by himself so that the medics can help others "more critically wounded".

We watch so much tv and video games and are being 'conditioned' how to react to a fight situation.

Grossman talks about knowing how the body will react, get ready for it, control it, and get your mind wrapped around fighting until the fight is done. Suck up the rounds and keep going, don't stop. Kill that f*&^er before he kills you or someone else.

I should do a study, Sample A (deer that watch video games like 'big hunter' where deer go down with one hit every time) and Sample B (deer listen to Grossman lecture). Bet ya Sample A deer go down every time after the first rnd while Sample B deer pick up an M60, wrap a bandana around their antlers and protect Bambi next year.

Oh ya, Sample B deer still take a heart shot and keep on going.

Cheers,

O'Kelly's Boys
 
Every critter I've shot and hit through the "lung heart area" have effectively dropped on the spot...sure a few have staggered a few meters, some as far as 30 maybe ? But that's been rare. (this includes, deer, bear, & moose)

Animals have a pretty strong will to survive....some more then others but a Heart, lung shot equals a dead critter........everytime;)

Want dramatic drop at the shot results......wait for a broadside shot and hammer both lungs...they don't go far, if at all.
 
BCWILL said:
Want dramatic drop at the shot results......wait for a broadside shot and hammer both lungs...they don't go far, if at all.
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I just did a double lung last week with a slug, and he went 60 yards....not especially far, but still impressive. This was my first shotgun deer and also the farthest i've ever had a deer go, i thought for sure the big slug was gonna drop him in his tracks. Anyways, interesting thread for sure. It would be interesting to know more about how the body reacts (eg. adrenalline ect.)
 
A lot has to do with the circumstances of the shot. A few years ago I was hunting Manitoulin island. One morning a nice 4x4 sneaks into my stand at about 40 yards and stops broadside. One .270 150 grain winchester power point though both lungs, he lifts one front leg, shivers and falls on the spot. Two days later another deer same approximate size comes flying in full bore, slams on the binders when he gets downwind of my doe in heat scent and stops 45 yards away broadside. Same bullet, same lung shot, this deer explodes at the shot, we had some snow and there was blood, lung, bone and hair for five feet behind where he was standing. This deer ran 250 yards full bore until he ran out of gas and piled up in full stride. The only difference I could see was deer #2 was already in flight mode and fully pumped on adrenaline
 
I shot a Whitetail buck and grazed the heart destroying a few of the arteries with a 125 grain SPS from my sks. It ran for about 20 yards then did a face plant, it got up again! and then fell after another body length.
 
people have bigger brains that consume more oxygen. They burn up the supply and shut down quicker than a deer with its itty-bitty brain
 
Humans may have the bigger brain but that isn't always an advantage. To paraphrase some of the thoughts here, some people can think themselves dead with a relatively light wound, while others keep on fighting well beyond what is generally considered possible.

Deer are prey animals who rely on vigilence, stealth, and flight. Shoot them all tensed up and the adrenalin flowing they will go an amazing long time, especially if they know they are being chased or followed.

The old rule of if you shoot them and get a good shot, wait 15 or more minutes before following I've proven to myself as valid. I've followed deer (once for me, once for my hunting partner) and they just keep moving, taking you in a big circle right back where you started. Several more times we didn't push them and they weren't so ready to run, resorting to their primary tactic of hiding 25 to 50 yards from where they were shot. Once they lie down for a bit, with any sort of incapacitating wound, the adrenalin stops, the veins open up, they stiffen up and bleed out quick. Bonus is with each passing minute they are less likely to jump up and run. Usually time is your friend.
 
amazing animals - shot one 100 yads blew the heart apart and it dropped in it tracks- went to where it should be could not find it.
after a long search 150 yards later there he was .
whe nskinned him out there was no heart left -yet if got back up and traveld 150 yards with no heart
 
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