Two more weeks of buck season & I haven't seen anything furry except in my game camera. My wife and I are sitting in my blind waiting for time to go back to camp when 4 doe wander to the feeder. Then 4 more, then 3 more. It's getting crowded under there. I tell my wife I don't want to shoot anything that late because I'm hungry & we'd have to clean it.

Then, 25 minutes past sunset, we have 5 more minutes to hunt and a buck enters the feeder area that the does vacated. I say "damn, a buck" and shoot.

By the time we wait 10-15 minutes & then go to the feeder, it is dark and there is no buck on the ground. A search shows a blood spot or two & 3 other hunting buddies join me with flashlights combing the cover and dry river bed. After 2 hours, we decide we'll have to wait for light. It's going to be in the 20's that night, so the meat shouldn't spoil.

The next morning, my wife and I get ready to continue our search. I decide to take our dog. She loves to play "find it" where we hide an item on our property while she waits for the command. She usually succeeds, so I figured I had nothing to lose. I had decided to mount my buck tag and hang it on the fireplace since I've never lost a deer.

We get to the feeder and I take my dog to the blood spot and let her smell it, then I say "find it" and release her. She sticks her nose to the ground and starts off into the woods with my wife following.

I start my search along the deer trail thinking the buck would have gone to the riverbed or for cover. My wife and dog are headed to the edge of the woods so I figured that was a lost cause. After all, she is a pet & never has had any hunting training.

They continue to the road on the edge of the woods and into the open field. My dog is sniffing back & forth on the road but not proceeding. All this time, I'm stumbling in brush and struggling up deer trails in the dry river bed.

I am starting to work up a sweat and return to the truck before my sweat turns into ice when I hear my name.

There's my wife and dog in the middle of the field next to the dead buck.

Damn, I hate it when they're right. But I'm glad they were.

Congrats on finding him.

Nice job. Where are the pics of your buck and the search party?

Good story

Congrats but...

PICTURES!!!!!

Congrats on the buck!!! Sounds like you have a tracking dog now!!!

great story but we do need pics.

Congrats, dogs noses are much better than our eyes or thoughts on where deer have gone.

But you know:

Another lesson learned is not to shoot a buck with a dead phone & no camera.

The buck had a nice body but not a rack worth bragging about. Just a 6 pointer that barely met the AR (whew).

It's at the processor now. My wife is in her recliner & refuses a picture in her robe and the dog is asleep at my feet (she's the one in my signature line).



I was surprised that my 25-06 didn't pass through at less than 100 yards. Very small entry & no exit wound = no blood trail other than the immediate area he was hit.

what bullet were using?

Those ballistic tips or old ammo will do that sometimes.

I was using reloads with 100 gr Barnes Tipped TSX.

The load specs show it should have been traveling at 3000fps at that range.

I used to hunt with a .243 until I got the 25.06. Previously, I used a 30.06 but it seemed to tear up little white tail.

Poorly planned shot placement was probably why he ran so far. I hit him a bit further back than I should have. I wasn't expecting to see a buck in my scope & rushed the shot.

So what did you learn from this experience?

1. Bring a back-up camera when hunting.

2. Include a wider-beamed light in my truck bag.

3. Wounded deer don't always do what you think they will. Explore all possibilities & trust your wife & dog.

4. Clear my head of family drama before going out with a loaded gun. (Thursday, my brother and sister introduced a half-brother they both knew about for a year but had kept from me. Friday, was our mother's funeral. Saturday, I shot the deer).

At 69, I'm pretty much immune to surprises, but things like that tend to mess with your mind).

Normally, my shooting skills are spot-on out to 300 yards, but this shot was well within that & I have no real excuse except for lack of concentration.

Thank you for sharing. Few of us are expert marksman 100% of the time (especially away from the range). We all pull the occasional shot...not all admit it.

i have thought about trying my dogs out like that. I worry as tame as they are about them getting a whipping or worse out in "the bush".

My wife is 100% in the buck hunting success. Two years ago almost exactly I took her hunting. She had never shot a thing other than paper at the range, Dropped a small eight at 125 yards with a 270. The situation hasn't been right for her to go since, maybe I ought to take her!

Richard

Strike it up buddy. Sounds like it's all good and everything worked out. Give that good puppy dog a pat on the head for me. Oh and better give the wife a hug from you. Lol

No joke on the family drama surprises...can't make that stuff up and we all have it.

Dogs can amaze you. Ours has had obedience and snake avoidance training but absolutely no field work.

The "find it" game started with plastic Easter eggs. We put some dog food in them & our grandsons hide them all over. She finds every one & they use some creative hiding places.

One time, I couldn't find one of my hunting gloves. I showed her the other & said "find it". I went about my business but later came back to my chair and she had put the "missing" glove by it. I suspect she had first hand knowledge of why it was lost.

We keep a close eye on her at the lease. She loves the off-leash freedom but there is no way she'd be able to take on a pack of coyotes or wild hogs. She's just a loveable wimp - contrary to my siblings :-)

Great story... great memories.

I guess an after-the-fact picture is better than none at all.

Here is the famous trio (wife, dog & antlers) in front of my Ranger. My driveway doesn't give the same ambiance as a hunting field, but you get the idea.

Crow does not taste like chicken and the feathers tickle your nose!