Advice From Local Hunting Show Host: What a Hunter Should Do If the Deer Doesn’t Die Right Away

| December 5, 2019

KNOX, Pa. (EYT) – With Pennsylvania rifle deer season in full swing, a common question asked is what should a hunter do if the deer that was shot is injured but not dead right away.

(Photo of Jason Say of Wired Outdoors. Photo courtesy of Jason Say.)

According to Jason Say, owner of Wired Outdoors, an on-line hunting show based in Clarion County, if hunters wait the appropriate amount of time for the deer to die, it is rare for them to need to kill the deer after shooting it.

“It is very rare if hunters give deer the appropriate time to expire,” Say told exploreClarion.com.

“For any shot that is considered a good kill shot in the vitals, it should be a least a half-hour (that hunters wait). If the shot is what is considered a bad shot like a gut shot, you would give the deer at least four to six hours (to expire).”

Say said that there are always exceptions to the rule of letting the deer die on its own.

“If you can cleanly and humanely kill that deer, you should always do it as quickly as you can,” Say said. “For instance, a spinal shot will drop a deer immediately but many times won’t kill the deer. You should follow up immediately with a kill shot on that deer so not have it suffer. Another factor might be you gut shot a deer and can see it and where it laid down. Then, follow up immediately with a kill shot.”

According to Say, the follow-up shot should be done in a humane way by shooting the deer in the vitals.

“Some (hunters) will shoot in the neck or the lungs,” Say said.

Say said it is not advisable for anyone other than a very experienced hunter to try to expire the deer with a knife.

“I would only suggest using a knife for a very seasoned older hunter who can really understand the deer’s body language,” Say said. “Going up to a deer that is still alive can be very dangerous, especially a buck. They are very, very strong.”


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