[Rutger]

I shoot archery, but I don't bow-hunt and have only had a passing interest in killing something with a bow. However, in a recent discussion with some rifle-hunting friends, they took a pretty adamant stance AGAINST bowhunting for two key reasons.

1) Arrows are less likely to kill quickly on the first shot. Unless you hit in the spine or brain, they work by bleeding out the target and this takes time. During this time, the panicked animal is running around freaking out, and its muscles are filling up with adrenaline and endorphins that make the meat taste poor.

2) Because arrows require bleeding to kill, shot placement is critical. Apparently many hunters see otherwise healthy deer wandering around the forest with poorly placed arrows hanging out the sides of them with infected but not lethal wounds.

As I said, these ideas come from people who have never bow-hunted and have made up their minds to never try, because they do not think it is a responsible and human way of dispatching the animal. Your thoughts?

 

[300WSM]

I'm no expert by any means I'm a gun hunter with above average shooting skills I practice alot and love shooting a rifle that being said I only started archery hunting because the season starts early here and the woods are less crowded and the deer have not been pressured so hard that they become nocturnal. I hunt to help feed my family.
1. From what I have seen many deer don't know what hit em when a arrow passes through their vitals I seen them trot off go 30 yards stop and even try to feed again and drop.
2. No one who I hunt with has been able to get a second shot on a deer most times when you miss or they jump the string they run out of bow range and stop.
3. My mentor has killed 30 deer with a bow he will not rifle hunt but he puts the time in he kills ground hogs with a bow at 30 yards but he is retired and archery is his passion.
4. I have lost deer with the rifle and the bow shot placement is crucial in any type of hunting. Arrows leave a nasty hole and if you hit the same spot as you do with a rifle I feel it is a humane way to hunt and in fact the first hunters used Sharpe edge weapons.

I'll end by saying I have found bow hunting to be challenging and harder to close the deal and while I have heard the stories of people killing deer with a bow at 50 yards I for one don't have that type of skill if I can't get them within 25 yards I will not take the shot I’m still a rookie now when guns season opens I’ll put down my bow and out comes the 300 short mag. I got back strap fever!

 

[LuniticFringeInc]

Im a Bow Hunter although I still hunt with a rifle. I love the added challenge of having to get closer to score on game, its made me a much better hunter as a result. It has forced me to maintian much better sound and scent control and really pay attention to camoflage. Tthe other spect that I really like about it is the fact that I can bow hunt in areas that are too built up due to urban sprawl to use a gun. More than a couple of times last season I was in a tree stand just minutes after working an 8 hour shift, and managed to score a couple of bucks within easy site of a housing development! Try that with your favorite magnum rifle!

Yes kills arent as quick as they are with a rifle. Shot placement will be critical. While I can consistently hit a 9 inch paper plate at 50 yards I wouldnt recommend a shot beyond 30 yards. Both of the bucks I took last year were at 20 yards or less!!! A bad shot with a arrow or a gun is still a bad shot 8 days a week and will often result in lost game.

A good bradhead is critical as you are killing the game through the loss of blood not shock from a bullet at high speed. A arrow will often pass completely through the game animal. It will run off but will usually stop and continue on about its business while it bleeds out before laying down and expiring. Becuase its such a quiet way to hunt you wont scare game animals into the next county.

Its a great way to hunt, and the most thrilling way to take a game animal I have found. In fact I rarely get my guns out anymore! It does take some skill but not that much more than a rifle, you just got to practice a bit more than you do with a gun. The added plus is I can practice just about anywhere even in the city allowing you to stay on top of your game skill wise. I often practice in a wood lot close to my home after work shooting a few dozen shots before heading home and getting dinner. It only takes a couple of minutes to set up a shooting decoy and get up in the stand in the tree. It also gives me a chance to relax and unwind after work and enjoy something I like doing while increasing my skill.

 

[aek0004]

I agree, responsible bow hunters only take a good shot and I have seen deer go straight to the ground with a properly placed shot. It is also safer to hunt during bow season because you don't have to worry about getting shot by a stray bullet. That's my take on it.

 

[Kronos]

Well, I've killed alot of deer with bows, and I agree it is not normally a fast kill. It can be a slow death. But, what I was taught to do when I first took up bowhunting, was after arrowing an animal, stay in place and don't move. Ususally, the animal doesn't know what happened, and if they are never spooked by you they will often only walk a few feet, lay down and bleed to death. Normally after arrowing a deer, I try to lay down and take a nap for an hour or two, before getting up and tracking them. More often than not I find them within a couple hundred yards of were I shot them. This keeps the meat tasting good, as they never get adrenalized and take off running.

The worst thing you can do, is arrow an animal, then instantly go after it. They can and will often run for hours and miles and miles if they are scared. This is why some animals are never found by the archer, but found by other hunters later on.

On a side note I killed an elk a few years ago with my rifle, and it had a broadtip in its hip that was deeply imbedded. I showed it to a game warden, and he said it had probably been there for several years!

Lastly, don't kid yourself....there are alot of bad, rifle hunters that hit animals with bad shots amd never recover the animal. In genral I've found bow hunters to be more ethical then the vast amount of rifle hunters

 

[pass-thru]

Clearly you don't know anything about bowhunting. The ideal bowhunting shot his through the heart or lungs, broadside or quartering away. These are the only shots that should ever be attempted and result in death is seconds, as the deer will run until it bleeds out. Spine shot and femoral artery also result in humane kills if accidently hit, but are small targets that should not be attempted. Liver hit is lethal and will take longer.

Non lethal arrow hits are cleaner wounds then gunshots and the deer will typically survive.

With regard to deer running around the woods with arrows hanging out of infected wounds, BS!! The deer will break an arrow off at the wound within seconds. And hunters who are harvest deer with arrow fragments from non-lethal hits would never know until the butcher it.

 

[mike6x7]

I'm not a bowhunter, but I am an archer also. I've known some gun hunters that would brag about shooting off a deers leg or gut shooting one and how far they had to go to retrieve it. I kept asking them why they were bragging about being a BAD hunter? Gun or Bow, you have to practise to get proficiant, and then practise to stay proficiant

 

[razadp]

I've shot a feral goat with a crossbow. It gave two jumps, then kept on grazing until it fell over from loss of strength, and dies a few minutes later with no panic.

So no, its not a quick death, but apparently not panic inducing or extremely painful either, with decent placement.

 

[Rutger]

Who is this directed at? If me, then what are you trying to instigate. I am asking the question because I DON:T KNOW and I'm asking...

Clearly you don't know anything about bowhunting. The ideal bowhunting shot his through the heart or lungs, broadside or quartering away. These are the only shots that should ever be attempted and result in death is seconds, as the deer will run until it bleeds out. Spine shot and femoral artery also result in humane kills if accidently hit, but are small targets that should not be attempted. Liver hit is lethal and will take longer.

Non lethal arrow hits are cleaner wounds then gunshots and the deer will typically survive.

With regard to deer running around the woods with arrows hanging out of infected wounds, BS!! The deer will break an arrow off at the wound within seconds. And hunters who are harvest deer with arrow fragments from non-lethal hits would never know until the butcher it.

 

[woodcricket]

I love hunting, whether its bow hunting or hunting with a rifle, but i think it is much more of a thrill and a challenge to bow hunt. Hunting with a bow is just like anything else, it takes practice. A good hunter, whether it's with a gun or a bow, needs to know his limits on distance and shot placement, because there is nothing worse than shooting an animal and not finding it.

 

[USMC_KAK]

A bad shot is a bad shot regardless of if with a bow or firearm. Bow hunting takes more discipline and often more skill which seems to be a reason why many bow hunters choose that method. (not that all hunting doesnt require a lot of skill!)

I have never really heard the argument that "i choose not to bow hunt because it is less humane" In my experiance the bowhunters I have come across tend to have a deeper respect for the game they are pursuing due to the need to understand the animal more in order to be close enough for an ethical shot.


I do both, but would prefer to take an animal with my bow, because it is a more chalenging hunt. I enjoy that moment of being close to the animal, undetected, in his enviornment. With that said if it comes down to getting meat in the freezer or an empty freezer, a rifle and a doe tag I go! ......... "I don't hunt to kill, I kill to have hunted"

We should all be striving to make ethical clean kills regardless of if it were with a bow or a rifle.

 

[raglan]

It is a great way to take your hunting to another level. You must however put in the time to become truly proficient with you equipment. You can't just buy a bow and spend a few weekends with it and expect clean, humane kills. An arrow does kill pretty quickly if you place the shot properly and use razor sharp broadheads. Also, don;t give up on the blood trail. Get on your hands and knees if necessary, but don;t stop until you are very sure you didn;t kill the deer.