A Turkey Hunter's Worst Nightmare: Needing One More Shot

[jaybird62]

This is a link to an article I wrote for my column in Turkey Hunter Magazine a few years ago that'll give a turkey hunter something to think about.

A Turkey Hunter’s Worst Nightmare: Needing One More Shot - ShootingSavvy.com

Find out how many shots it takes, on average, to bag a wild turkey.

shootingsavvy.com

 

[megalomaniac]

Good article!

Personally, I only shoot once, and don't let those that hunt with me shoot more than once, unless the tom is obviously injured on the first shot.

If I miss with the first shot, he wins and I let him walk or run off. And I'm OK with that. Just my personal rules.

Now I do carry 2 more lead 6s in the magazine following my #9 tss initial shot. Those are to dispatch an obviously injured bird (one with his head still up and moving on the ground). Fortunately, that has happen only once since I made the switch to TSS 4 or 5 years ago... one my son shot a little low, the bird rolled, and as we were walking to him, he picked his head up with an obviously unsevered spinal cord. I had him put a 2nd shot of lead 6s into his upright head.

But to me, slinging shot as a followup after a miss is going to result in an injured but unrecoverable bird more often than an ethical kill.

 

[TheLBLman]

But to me, slinging shot as a followup after a miss is going to result in an injured but unrecoverable bird more often than an ethical kill.

While I totally agree with this, many assumed misses are in fact lethal to the bird, as in a single pellet to the stomach. Also, I've seen many mortally wounded birds run or fly away, dying unrecovered.

Over the years I've killed several birds someone else had wounded a day, week or so earlier, and they were so infected I felt they were dead birds walking.

Maybe the best thing we can do is only take very high-probability head/neck shots well within good range as any 1st shot.

 

[cowhunter71]

A single shot shotgun in the hands of someone without "extreme" discipline, is a nightmare waiting to happen when it comes to Turkey Hunting. Even with discipline, if you shoot at enough Gobblers with a break open gun, there will be a time when you eventually will need a second shot. Unless it is under 10 yrds, there is no such thing as a miss with a scatter gun. Turkey is taking hits, no matter what you may think.

 

[timberjack86]

Agree, if you shoot at one with a scattergun he is hit and it's probably fatal. Especially if your shooting tss. Shoot till he goes down. Nothing worse than a slow agonizing death. We owe it to them to put them down as clean as possible.