Hunting Dilemma

[dmcca212]

Hey guys. I'm all done with my adult independent study except for this one question that I don't really know how to answer. Now, just to be clear, I'm not asking for an answer I'd just like to know what your thoughts are on the subject.

You are in your comfortable deer stand. It is the second day of your deer hunt. Walking into the stand with your flashlight, you saw a number of sets of deer tracks in the fresh snow. You are almost daydreaming, enjoying the outdoor experience, when a nice buck approaches the area you have determined to be in your safe zone of fire. You raise your rifle and are ready. He steps into the open, you determine that it is safe to fire, slip the safety off and you shoot. The buck takes a couple of jumps and goes down. Your heart is really racing. You take a few deep breaths and calm down some. You unload your rifle, case it and carefully lower it to the ground. You get down and carefully approach the buck from behind. You notice the eye is glazed. You carefully poke the deer with a stick and determine that it is dead. You get out your license tag and are about to punch out or validate your tag when up comes another hunter who says, "That's my deer. I shot at it first." You think back. You had heard a shot early in the morning. Whose deer is it? What would you do?

If it were me I'd just tell the guy take it. Sure I'd be peeved but it's not worth getting into a fight with an armed stranger. But that's just me...

[Big R]

Kill shot wins.

[jeffreyd]

While i think i would do the same there is a question that needs to be raised. one is there a blood trial that indicates it was wounded someplace other than where you shot at? second would you ask the other hunter where he was located in order to identify the blood trail. great question, one of morals and ethics but one of good stewardship too.

[MN Angler]

I actually took this course a year or two ago and remember this question. The way I look at it is your main goal in this situation is to avoid confrontation. First scenario is the guy is heated and adamant about his feelings that the deer is his. In this case you let him have the deer and go your separate ways. When you get back to the place you are staying notify the local CO of the situation. Believe it or not this has happened before according to my field instructor. By letting the CO know of the situation they may be able to get to the bottom of it especially if it's not the first time they have been notified of a situation similar to yours.

Second scenario is the guy is friendly and is willing to figure out the situation in a calm manner. In this case be as friendly and as openminded as possible. Try to be civil and work it out to the best of your ability.

But again above all avoid confrontation at all cost even if you have to give up the deer. These courses stress safety so any answer which puts safety first is a good one.

These are a few things I came up with. Hope it helped.

MN Angler

[Chef]

Uh, how many bullet holes are in this Deer? One? It's yours.

Two?

Walk away and let them have it.

[mrklean]

i always say kill shot wins, then you look at him and say hes tresspassing on your land

[96trigger]

Really depends on the shots. If the deer would have been able to be recovered by him eventually due to his shot, its his. If not, it SHOULD be yours. However, if the guy is confrontational from the get go, let him have it, but certainly not without looking at the deer for more than one hole.

Even if he is not in control, you need to be. Do not let it escalate by any means. If someone came up to you with a gun and tries to take your wallet, you shouldn't say no, it shouldn't be any different with a deer. If he takes it, and you think it is unlawful, try and get his information and contact the CO. Be as helpful as possible and maybe you'll even get his first and last name.

Maybe he didn't even realize he missed or made a poor shot.

[SmilinBob]

Tell him he owes you a grilled backstrap and cold beer, then let him have the rest.

[B. Amish]

if you end up letting him have it, make sure you at least get a picture of yourself with it.

maybe work out joint custody of the mount...

[Cheetah]

If it were me I'd just tell the guy take it. Sure I'd be peeved but it's not worth getting into a fight with an armed stranger. But that's just me...

If I were in that situation, I would take a look at the animal and see if there were any other wounds that could be from that guy. If none were in the vitals or likely to kill the deer, I'd take the animal as my own. If he had gut shot it or something, I'd consider giving to him.

The other issue is that I grew up being told that when gun hunting it's the guy that drops the animal that gets it. I don't gun hunt deer regularly though, never in MN in fact, so I've never had to put that to the test.

[RumRiverRat]

I deer hunt private land to avoid these situations.

[TNFL]

See post on this page "law of the land"

I too am working on buttoning up my firearms cert, and thought it would be a good read for people like yourself in my similar situation.

[jakemcarroll]

I actually spoke with my firearms safety instructor after the class was over about this question because I was curious to see what the "right" answer was...and there really isn't one. There is no official law or regulation about it, so it boils down to being safe and smart. Going along with what other folks have said if the other person is heated or confrontational, there is no sense in making a scene, let them have the deer and you can continue your hunt. But as long as it's a civil conversation some middle ground can always be met!

[dmcca212]

Thanks for all the answers guys. The instructor talked about it a little in class last night and basically he said in that situation you should just walk away. Never get into an argument with an armed stranger because you never know their state of mind.

[Coach1310]

Thanks for all the answers guys. The instructor talked about it a little in class last night and basically he said in that situation you should just walk away. Never get into an argument with an armed stranger because you never know their state of mind.

Our group hunts public ground and I always say if someone is in my stand, the area I normally hunt or comes trudging through at primetime... No big deal.... no sense in risking your life over it.

[onthefly]

I had this situation play out a couple years ago. Was hunting with my mom and we sat in different trees about 15 yards apart. About 4:15pm, a young doe came flying in and stopped, looking straight at my mom at 10 yards. She couldn't shoot (something about it looking too cute!), but it's a good thing. I heard something else running, so looked up and saw a big buck tearing through after the doe. Mom had no problem putting a bullet in the buck as it stood broadside at 20 yards. I didn't shoot, even though I had a perfect broadside shot at 30 yards, because I saw him hunch over at her shot and blood coming out his side. Well, the rutting adrenaline carried him another 200 yards across a road and onto private land where the owner dropped him with a .50 cal muzzleloader on the spot.

A CO drove by, just as mom and I had followed a good blood trail to the road. I told him the story and he said, "If he ran onto private land and got shot, you have no right to the deer."

Well, that's exactly what had happened. The landowner had no second thoughts about keeping the deer. He invited us onto his land to take a picture with the deer and see where mom hit it.

I'm still a little sour on this, but I don't think there's a win-win outcome. Someone loses a deer they thought they got either way. (This was a 140" 9 pointer that easily dressed out over 200 lbs.) Ultimately, it comes down to what you think hunting's about. If it's only shooting deer, you'll fight hard for rights to the deer. If it's the experience and spending time with family in the outdoors, it's a lot easier to let the other hunter have the deer.

I should also add that this was the second time my mom came hunting since she was a kid. The first time, we sat close to each other and I shot my first deer - a 145" 10-pointer that weighed 207 dressed after 3 days of drying out! Also, the event above happened from my dad's stand, 6 months after he lost his battle with non-hodgkins lymphoma. On top of that, this was probably the since most exciting experience I've had while hunting for deer.

[luckey]

I think anytime you have a chance to shoot a wounded amimal, you should take it. I know you thought it would go down but being you were hunting near other hunters, it may have been best to drop the deer. (I'm sure you wouldn't have had an issue with your mother claiming it)

[paul pachowicz]

In our camp it's first blood but that's a moot point. This has never happened to me but, if it would, here's what I'd do. I ask where is the blood trail from where you shot? If he wants that deer that bad, I'd concede, and ask him to hurry up and get it outta my spot. He's gotta live with the lie for the rest of his life and YOU know the truth. Character doesn't matter? It does in my life.

[harvey lee]

I agree with you paul 100%. Its only a deer and not worth the hassle. There are other deer to shoot.

Years ago we were hunting a hunt at a park reserve. My friend shot a doe and we track it for about 150 yards by the blood trail. When we got to the deer, another was gutting it and it only had one arrow hole in it. They wanted to all but fight for it and we told him if he needed anothers deer that bad, he could have it. My buddy shot a nice buck that evening. The deer Gods took care of that deal.

[Wensel]

First Arrow, last bullet...

However I've walked away from a buck in my day too