Blood Trails

[fly]

After killing over 30 deer with a broadhead I have come to the conclusion that there is NO broadhead made or ever to be made that will reliably produce a track-able blood trail even with the ideal shot (which in my opinion is a double lung pass through with a low exit).  I've tried them all - fixed blade, expandable, and now hybrids. Last year I double lunged a doe with my smokepole (in the snow) and had no blood trail. I hit a doe back and low this year with a hybrid and the arrow was clean - not a drop of blood. If I hadn't seen the arrow go through I would have thought i missed because the blood trail didn't start until she ran 20 yards from where hit. A six point I shot (see picture) was a pass through with a hybrid. Not a drop of blood until he started to fall about 50 yards from where hit. My conclusion - shoot a head you are MOST accurate with and do not give up looking if you can't pick up a blood trail but know or even think you hit it.

[wtnhunt]

Hmmm, so question then Frank.  I was blessed to have the opportunity to go and hunt with someone away from home.  While there I shot one or shot at one just before dark on the last afternoon, thought I hit it good.  It was a pretty close shot, inside 20 yards.  Deer kicked like he was heart shot, back feet went up and he took off hard.  Arrow and vanes had no blood, but there were small drops on the ground where I shot him.  It was a fairly hard angle down and I was pretty sure I hit upper mid body with a slight quarter away.  There also was some white hair on the ground, my thought was my arrow exited low behind the armpit.  Found more spots, not much more than a pin drop in some spots of blood here and there, but never picked up a blood trail.  The person I was hunting with who is far more knowledgeable about archery and hunting than I am said no blood on the arrow that it was just a "haircut".  I didn't think so, especially not with the deer's reaction, but was talked into believing that it was not a good shot on my part.  

[fly]

William, the doe I shot and harvested had absolutely ZERO visible blood on the arrow. First time in my life this has happened. I looked in the field and couldn't see any and then took the arrow home and looked in the bright light - not a drop. No hair on the arrow and no hair at the shot spot, no blood either. The mature doe jumped and kicked just like you said yours did. I heard the THWACK and knew I hit it which is why I slowly walked the path into the woods it traveled to. After 20-30 yards I picked up a spot of blood. Then more, then a lot, then some intestine on the ground (maybe 2 feet in length). Then more blood, and a section of intestine maybe 5 feet in length about 200 yards from the shot spot. No kidding, an eagle was eating the intestine section as I walked up about 4 hours after the shot. Then more blood and finally the deer. The shot was low and back as I mentioned going through the guts. As I walked up to it I thought I wouldn't need to field dress as it as half the guts were already outside. Sorry for the graphic details, but it's hunting sometimes. It was only a 20 yard shot, but I had to crouch to avoid limbs which put me in bad form. The ML doe I took last year had no blood at the shot spot and none except where it fell in the thickets maybe 60 yards from the shot spot. There was snow on the ground so I should have seen some easily. When I rolled it over all the blood came out. I think a piece of fat had been severed and blocked the exit hole which was low. The entry hole was high as with most tree stand shot deer which often leads to internal bleeding.  So I will always grid search if I think I hit one - regardless of what I find from now on.  

[Rhino]

Obviously the best blood trail comes from a heart shot since it is quickly pumping blood out.  Those are typically big leaks but it is also a smaller target than a double lung shot.  If I know the range (I'm almost always within a yard or so) I aim for the heart and if I hit high, it's a lung shot.  Outside of a heart shot, the start of a blood trail can easily be away from the spot you hit the deer. How far can depend on many factors...the speed the deer is moving, complete pass through, how high the entry & exit wounds are, etc.  I've watched some deer before that I shot that didn't realize what happened.  They typically ran/moved off into cover, stopped and I watched blood flowing into their hide, then start dropping to the ground.  For those reasons, I try to mark landmarks a hit deer is moving by, especially the last spot I see the deer.  I try to listen beyond that point I see a deer, especially for a crash for more clues.  I try to burn all of that into my brain before even thinking of getting out of the stand.  Those landmarks will appear to look different at ground level.  I've also recovered deer that didn't leak as much as I thought they should and upon cleaning them found their body cavity was full of blood.  In a nutshell Frank, I agree there is no perfect broadhead that produces a blood trail from the spot you hit the deer every time.  It's not uncommon to see a hit deer go 25 yards or more before you pick up the 1st spot of blood.  Happens sometimes with rifles too.  I once hit a doe with a .50 cal. ML that didn't even start to leak until the last 20 yards before she fell.  She went ~150 yards...a grid search found her.  I discovered the exit wound was odd allowing a flap of the shoulder to plug the exit hole.

[dbHunterNY]

I've had deer hit in the heart and lungs with everything from a ML to broadheads of all types.  sometimes there's no blood at all and sometimes it's like someone emptied a 5 gal bucket along the way.  more to tracking than blood.  got to watch the deer until it's out of sight.  remember where it went.  with a bow you've got to spot your own shot on the deer.  you've got to look for disturbance in the forest floor duff.  sometimes you have to grid search the area in the AM to make sure there's a dead deer based on your feeling it was a good shot.  I've seen some major holes in deer that didn't have blood trails.  one died within 40 yards from a Rage head, no blood, but it had a several inch long gash a few inches wide in its rib cage from the angle and maybe deflection a little.  guy said the head failed and I told him he was full of ****.   the deer was there and the head killed it.  my biggest buck was center punched through the heart with a 250gr hornady sst ml sabot.  it was nice dry and barren soil conditions to show even a drop of blood, yet nothing was found.  buck layed dead maybe 30 yards away behind a patch of cedars out of sight.  I can hold sub-moa groups with it though so I still use them.  same for broadheads.  Rage Titaniums have just worked so I'm still using them.  even after being discontinued because they were crazy expensive. 

[VermontHunter]

You truly want a devastating broadhead ?? One that fly's tru and actually does what it claims. Check out Flying Arrow Archery's, Toxic Broadhead. I was skeptical until I used it in the field this past bow season, I made a very marginal shot on a Doe, and I'll tell you she left a blood trail a blind person could have followed. Not that I really needed the blood considering she didn't clear the meadow I was hunting. When I walked up on her I noticed I hit her farther back than I expected, but the Toxic bore such a wound it didn't matter. I just wish I had my video camera with me that day to show what I was seeing. Really check them out and watch some of the videos they have on their site of actual hunts and see what I mean. I think I've found the monster of all broadheads ...

By the way Fly, those are some very nice deer ... Congrats !!

Here's the link to their webpage. 

http://flyingarrowarcheryusa.com/

[fly]

Al, great deer you posted in the contest thread - Congratulations! If your MO group ever has an opening for a redneck with a PhD keep me in mind. LOL  You're certainly right about the terrain looking different once you get down. I do the same things you speak of. Too many times I've had to get back up in the stand to figure out where the shot spot was. Dan, I agree - stick with what you are most accurate and consistent with. Mr. Luke, Sticking with the hybrids for the rest of this season as they are already paid for - I'll look into those Toxic heads for next season - thanks.

[Ravin R10 man]

Luke, wow those things do look like they would EAT!  Ive never seen or heard of them until this post.

[RangerClay]

See that hole.  That was made by a 1.5" 3-blade expandable broadhead.  It was a complete pass through with a sharp downward angle.  You would think with a lower complete pass through you would see plenty of blood early with no chest fill up.  In fact it was a very poor blood trail.  This buck went about 100 yards after the shot.  The first 50 yards there was just enough blood for me to follow.  The last 50 he plugged up and I lost the trail.  I finally found him on a grid search.

The reason I chose this broadhead was because of Youtube videos with blood gushing from deer.  It goes to show that no broadhead is perfect.

[VermontHunter]

Joe, I switched over to Toxics this season, I had the very same issue last season with Slicktricks. So I went on the search for a better broad head and came across the Toxics by Flying Arrow Archery. I was skeptical at first, like you because I was relying on videos like yourself ( but really what else have we got to go on ?? ) I have taken a Doe and an Black Bear with this broad head and I have to say I was very impressed indeed, especially with the bear, with a bad shot placement from me, but still had great blood. Here's a link to check them out. Scroll to the bottom and watch some of their actual videos, impressive to watch.

http://flyingarrowarcheryusa.com/

[Turkeygirl]

That's a great shot Fly! I have to say The Thunderheads I've shot have for the most part left good blood trails. This year switched to Slick Tricks. Shoot great, got a buck with them but shot was a little high so of course not going to see a ton of blood till the chest fills up. I had blood but glad I saw where the deer went down or I might have been looking longer. Other factors to consider also is I think of is the muscle, you put a hole through it, the tendency  for the muscle might be to close back up a little as, there are layers to some of the muscles and all those muscle fibers, hence impairing blood flow, hair gets shoved in the hole, etc. Ground litter like leaves or pine needles also make it tough to track. I agree though, shot placement has alot to do with the blood you get

[Stinger-Hunter]

I had a post on here around 2007 or so where I asked about the loss of deer (inability to find) for archery compared to firearms.  The ratio was almost 4:1 archery vs firearms.  I would imagine it is due, in part, to a lack of blood trail.  

[fly]

I've shot 33 deer with a bow and I can remember about 6 that I hit and did not not recover = 81%. I've shot 32 with a gun and have recovered every deer I've hit = 100%.  Of the 6 I did not recover two had no blood trail to follow and the rest I lost the blood trail after 50-100 yards.

[Rhino]

No way I could recall those numbers over all the years I've hunted.  Considering hits vs. loss ratio, you have to take into account hits you believe were lethal.  I can recall 3 deer I hit bowhunting where I hit near the front shoulder/leg joint and got virtually no penetration, thus non-lethal.   Recovered the broken arrows twice thus knew the lack of penetration.  You hit a deer in the same spot with a rifle...should be a dead, recovered deer.  I can also recall several, no doubt, non-lethal hits while hunting with a recurve and a couple with a compound bow. There have been a few others I hit and lost that I thought were lethal hits.  Then there's been a few I didn't recover and a lot more I did recover where I wasn't exactly sure where I hit them.  Those instances were usually due to low light conditions.  There have been a few deer I hit with a rifle or muzzleloader that I didn't recover.  I can recall 2 that were later killer by another hunter.