I heard multiple storys about losing wounded/shot/downed deer to coyotes this year, and honestly I'm calling B.S.... I have kept my mouth shut every time I hear it even one of my own family members used this excuse... The story is always the same deer is shot they track it for an hour or two lose the trail and say... "Damn coyotes got my deer.. there are to many" yada yada yada... Honestly Coyotes I imagine will definitely go after a wounded or downed animal.... However they are not going to find and pick up you 180 pound buck and take it off into there den without a trace... Its its inevitable especially a bow hunter may lose a deer.. However giving up after a few hours and blaming coyotes is lazy B.S. and unethical... My reason for posting this is mainly with a lot of talk about coyotes recently on the forum and a lot of new hunters I don't want new guys to get the wrong idea thinking if you don't find a deer you shot in two hours give up the coyotes got it.. Its simply not the case.. Now if you come across your deer or a spot where it was obviously torn up a day later.. OK well coyotes may have got your deer... However I have never had this issue.. And at least 3 times I heard this year something to the extent of " make your shot count because if you don't find your deer in a few hours you never will, the coyotes Will get it". If you shoot a deer look for it until you find it or every effort has been made... If your going to blame coyotes you better have some kind of evidence not" I could here them howling"..
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A note on downed deer and coyotes..
- Thread starter Cerfur
- Start date
Hunter235
NES Member
Less than ideal hits can happen with both gun and bow, especially on moving deer. Wounded deer need time to bleed out. You want them to lay down and stay there. There are so many coyotes now that when you leave a deer alone to bleed... there is a good chance that coyotes will chase the deer out of your hunting area and they will expire elsewhere. It's bigger a problem for deer shot just before dark, and coyotes stalking and pushing a wounded deer will do so quietly, not howling (although they may do that also). Mass should allow the use of tracking dogs to locate downed deer... I believe they allow deer tracking dog services in New Hampshire or Maine. I don't know if the services are by volunteers, or they are a paid service... but there would be more deer found to be consumed by hunters... not coyotes.
A lot of new hunters get excited, make a less then perfect shot, the deer runs out of sight and they climb down and start looking for it right away. Never a good idea. Even with a good hit, you gotta give it some time.
If you make a poor shot on a deer, there's a good chance if you don't push it, it will bed down and bleed out within 100 yards. Give it a few hours and you'll find it.
If you push it, they get up and run and that's when you run into recovery problems.
If you make a poor shot on a deer, there's a good chance if you don't push it, it will bed down and bleed out within 100 yards. Give it a few hours and you'll find it.
If you push it, they get up and run and that's when you run into recovery problems.
Two years ago i made what i thought was a good shot. I was close. Gave the deer a hour or so before i got down to have a look. Bowhunting here. followed a good blood trail for 50 to 60 yards then nothing. Being toward dusk i thought ok come back in the am. Around 8ish im on hands and knees following a very thin blood trail when i catch movement another 50 yards away. A coyote picks itself up, entire back leg of my deer hanging out of its mouth. i dont think he could really see me but he knew enough to bound away prize in his jaws. So yeah it happens and fast. Ive got them howling out back almost every night here(reading area). Ive hunting around here with bow and gun for near 20 years and only in the last few have i seen coyotes and heard coyotes in such numbers. They seem to be everywhere and in high numbers.
Did you hunt over the carcass for the coyote? That would have been prime real estate to bag one.
There was no carcass, nothing. The leg hanging out of the mouth was the last i saw of it. The area i was in is small too and i walked every inch of it. They left nothing i could find. They run deep here. You can hear one pack howl and another group answer a 1/4 mile or so away. The woods behind the house is sort of a bottle neck. I think one or two get a group of deer running toward another group lying in wait. It can be pretty crazy sitting out on the deck at night listening to them. Ive had friends over and had them go off right behind the house, one guy dropped the glass in his hand it was so intense when they let it rip.
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I'm trying to understand your complaint here. Are you saying people shoot at a deer and when they can't find it they are saying "A Yote beat me to it?"
I hear hear them a lot where I was hunting this year. One morning they sounded like they were right outside my truck when I parked.
But never saw one.
Im sure some guys do this. And your right ,if they only put a half hearted attempt to find their deer then just blame the yotes on losing it they are lame. Ive only lost this deer and it sucked. My group of hunting buddys will usually get together to search the woods if one of us cant find his deer. We almost never lose one if a few of us are looking, but it does happen. Good luck with this years up coming deer season and get out there now and kill some of these coyotes, its a great time to be out in the woods.
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KBCraig
NES Member
If you find coyotes with your deer, shoot the coyotes and take the deer back. Easy.
Oh, wait... that's not the same as an excuse for either not hitting, or not finding, your deer.
Oh, wait... that's not the same as an excuse for either not hitting, or not finding, your deer.
Gotcha.
