Deer reaction question

[duckduck84]

Ok all, I've got a weird one and I'd love to hear what ya'll think, even if it is anecdotal experience.

I had a buck come out Sunday morning around 300 yards. He went into the woods, a doe ran out, a few minutes later the buck comes out near the same spot. I finally got him to stop long enough for a shot, settled my BDC reticle on him for what I assumed was around the same 300 yard range and fired. From what I saw he kicked his back legs out and his tail was down when he ran off. I assumed good hit, waited 30, climbed down, moved the truck to the far side of the field and went to get my deer. However, I was surprised to find no blood, no hair, and after several hours of walking the field and the woods for about 500 yards or so back and forth, I never found any sign that I hit the deer.

So here is my question, is it possible I missed and he had a weird reaction to the bullet hitting near him? Did I hit him and just couldn't find him? No mans land shot? Any ideas?

I will say this, I routinely shoot at long distance, my rifle was sighted in prior to season and I was using the same Hornady 308 ammo I've used for several seasons now. I've never not gotten blood from a deer I shot except for one time and the deer didn't go 50 yards from where I shot him. For this deer to get out of the field he would have had to go almost 100 yards just to hit the treeline and he was no where in the first 200 yards of the woods that I searched. I'm just stumped.

 

[JKC]

When he kicked his back legs and his tail was down makes me think that he was hit and probably dead somewhere. That's what I think.

 

[jetwrnch]

I've seen the jump/kick when the bullet hit the ground under the deer. Not sure about the tucked tail though. If I had taken the shot I would presume wind drift to the gut.

 

[Southern Sportsman]

I once shot and grazed one's back and it mule kicked and ran like that. But it stopped and I killed it on the second shot. One kill shot and one fresh bullet groove in the back.

 

[bowhunterfanatic]

I agree with SS. I'd say you just barely grazed him and the deer will be fine. At 300 yards even if it was a pure gut shot I would think you'd easily be able to find evidence of a hit.

 

[MUP]

But, even if you just grazed him, there should be hair IMO. I've grazed one before and there was a little chunk of meat with white hair on it, watched the deer run off, then walk away on thru the woods after it got out a ways. I would think, if any hit at all, there would at least be some hair in the area of the potential hit.

On the flip side, I've shot deer that didn't react at all, other than turn and run wide open out of sight, only to be found dead just past where they disappeared to. They did however leave sign of being hit at the poi, and subsequent trail of blood.

 

[DaveB]

If you had a round that hit the dirt EXACTLY so that it would throw rocks/dirt up on the deer, you just saw a miracle. Same thing if you clipped him with no hair or blood at all. That tail down is a good indicator.

308 at 300 yards would kill so your deer is dead. I'm thinking he hit the woods and doubled back parallel to the open area and being older had plenty of adrenaline pushing him on. He is probably about 100 yards from your first sighting of him. Shooting what through the 308?

 

[cbhunter]

Sounds like a hit. If he was 100 yds out into the field, it can be very hard to pinpoint where he was standing to find hair. However, it does seem like you would have found blood somewhere. Strange things happen sometimes but generally the actions you describe are from a deer that has been hit.

 

[duckduck84]

If you had a round that hit the dirt EXACTLY so that it would throw rocks/dirt up on the deer, you just saw a miracle. Same thing if you clipped him with no hair or blood at all. That tail down is a good indicator.

308 at 300 yards would kill so your deer is dead. I'm thinking he hit the woods and doubled back parallel to the open area and being older had plenty of adrenaline pushing him on. He is probably about 100 yards from your first sighting of him. Shooting what through the 308?

Hornady American whitetail 150 grain. It's dropped every other deer I've shot with it within 100 yards or so. Killed 2 at around 400 last year with it and that's what just has me scratching my head. I believe I hit him solid, but I couldn't find anything. The field was cut cotton and I walked each row in the area and a good bit beyond and no blood or hair. The woods he could have ran in to are fairly open and I walked in, out, and across. After about 200 yards into the woods there is a steep drop off into a drainage area and I saw no sign of him near it or in it. I also checked the nearby pond all the way around and in the water, nothing. It's just a really odd one. I'm hoping that I grazed him and that's all.