I live/hunt in west Tennessee. Recently, I was granted permission to hunt a 75 acre farm that adjoins my home. So I set up a nice ground blind overlooking a picked corn field and an unharvested soybean field, surrounded on three sides by woods. The first time I hunted it, I saw 24+ does and 3 small bucks.

The landowner asked me if I'd take him hunting there as he hadn't gone in 5 or 6 years and kind of missed doing that. So I helped him sight in his .243 and away we went. I went about 500 yards away where I could sit by an old dilapidated camper and watch a creek bottom and another bean field. As the sun went low in the sky, I heard "Jeff" shoot. I hustled up to the blind only to see Jeff wandering around in the corn field. Evidently a darned good buck walked out into the field and stood broadside about 80 yards away whereas Jeff proceeded to miss the buck completely! I thought "Oh well, it can't get worse than that..."

WRONG! Tonight, Jeff asked if he could go with me again. I couldn't really say no to the guy that's given me exclusive permission to hunt the property, so we set up like I did before, him in the ground blind, me by the camper.

Again, just as the sun was going low, I was watching some does through my scope, trying to decide if I wanted to put one in the freezer when I heard a shot ring out! I started wandering up to the blind when I heard another shot! I thought "he has to have one down now."

When I got there this time, he was wandering around in the bean field. I asked where the deer was standing when he shot. He said, "Well, one was standing over by the fence in the corn field, and the other was right here in the bean field!"

By this time, it was damned near pitch black out, so I'm going out in the morning to see about following up on TWO possibly wounded deer. It'll be cold enough tonight that the meat won't spoil.

But jeez! How do I tell this guy that he's a friggin' idiot to be shooting at two different deer????

Maybe next time you should sit WITH him and maybe be a guiding hand?

I asked him if he wanted me to sit with him and he said no. I thought after the first miss that he might need a little "coaching" but he insisted that he knew what he was doing.

I don't want to get the landowner ticked off with me, but darned it, he's shot at three deer now in two outings. I'll know in the morning better if he hit, missed or wounded, but dang!!!

What we do to hunt deer.

GWB

quote:

Originally posted by Geedubya:
What we do to hunt deer.

GWB

Yeah, but what can I do? It's not like I have a ton of money to spend on a lease when I'm living on a firefighter disability pension....

I'd say nut-up and tell him the truth. I won't blow smoke up someones ass just to maintain a benefit like that. If he can't take the truth and cuts off your privileges you can bet he would have pulled some other kind of funny stuff eventually.

Take him to the range for several practicing sessions, take a .22 lr with a brick of ammo to spend, shoot often, then, as already stated, sit with himn in the blind and let him shoot a couple of does, to reduce the risk of "buck fever".

Hey Shof,

All stuff you know - but mention to him that what made the biggest difference to your success was just a couple points:

Shooting off a rail or bipod sticks from the blind.
Get him resting his rear elbow on his knee.
Don't let the fore-end rest on the rail, insulate it with your hand.
Get him zeroed at +2" at 100 yds & ensure he aims centre of the shoulder to maximise his chances of a fatal, immobilizing shot between 0 & 250 yds.

Make sure the ranges from the blind are known, and that he shoots at a distance that matches his ability!

Above all - sit with the guy.

DUKs suggestion of .22 practice to ensure he is squeezing instead of yanking is probably the thing that will do the most good for any of us!

Best of luck - been where you are sitting now!

Rgds

Ian

I think the suggestion of taking him to a firing range is the best solution.

As silly as it sounds, I think he is recoil conscious (shy) even with something as recoil free as the 243. Range time might cure that. Or make him give up hunting. Either way you win and do not lose your hunting property.

Thanks for the suggestions guys! All of them are thoughts I've already had and guess I knew, I just needed to hear it from someone else, especially the part about possibly losing the access. It's not something that I wanted to hear, but I can't have him shooting at (and possibly wounding) more deer!

Well, I guess it's time to head out once more and make darned sure he didn't wound any, and if he did, follow up on them.

I love deer hunting, but I hate this. Thanks guys...

find another "lease"

Is he a nice guy or a jerk? I hunted for a number of years with a really good guy who was not much of a hunter or much of a shot, but was friendly & fun to be around (no land involved). Eventually, some know how & ethics rubbed off, & he began to take deer, but for a year or two, we followed up several wounded animals & saw a number of clean misses.
If he is someone you enjoy hanging around with, invite him to go shooting with you as others have suggested, and give him the benefit if your experience when he makes a mistake in the woods. If he is not someone you enjoy, life is too short.

quote:

Originally posted by 505 gibbs:
find another "lease"

As tempted as I am by this thought, it's taken me two years to gain access to this land. Good deer hunting land in west Tennessee isn't easy to come by. And living on a firefighter disability pension, I don't have a whole lot of money to play with for a lease!

quote:

Originally posted by eliscomin:
Is he a nice guy or a jerk? I hunted for a number of years with a really good guy who was not much of a hunter or much of a shot, but was friendly & fun to be around (no land involved). Eventually, some know how & ethics rubbed off, & he began to take deer, but for a year or two, we followed up several wounded animals & saw a number of clean misses.

If he is someone you enjoy hanging around with, invite him to go shooting with you as others have suggested, and give him the benefit if your experience when he makes a mistake in the woods. If he is not someone you enjoy, life is too short.

Jeff is a nice enough guy and fun to be with. I think that I'm just going to have to consider him to be a "work in progress" and train him up properly to be an ethical hunter. That's going to involve a whole lotta time at my shooting bench poking holes in targets though. His "woodcraft" skills definitely need some work as well.

He insisted that he missed both deer last night. I wasn't so sure... So this morning as I was having coffee, I sat and stewed about it. I couldn't imagine how he could miss BOTH deer. I know his rifle was shooting great when we did the initial sight-in session at my range.

So I went out and replayed the whole scene at the blind, imagining where the doe came out into the bean field and where I imagined she'd go when hit. A short time later, I found blood and trailed it in the opposite direction from where Jeff thought it went. About 80 - 100 yards away, piled up in a gully was the piebald doe, hit hard in the shoulder and NOT in the front of the chest as he insisted the shot occurred.

I called him up and made him come out with me, where I refused to field dress it for him, but coached him through the process instead. I then gave him a hand getting the deer from the gully and dragging it to the truck, but now it's up to him as well for getting it in the freezer. I'll help him with the skinning and processing of the meat, and I'll even loan him my vacuum sealer, but he's going to be getting his hands dirty again. It's the only way he's going to learn.

Shof, you are doing the very right thing here! Good job, effort and time very well invested.

One question though, what is a piebald doe?

Shof, good job, don't lose patience, treat him right, and you may end up with hunting buddy for life. And the world gains another hunter.
I had a situation a few years ago where I took a younger guy out with me that had been talking to me about deer hunting for a couple years. When I took him out, we put him in the "hot seat" so he would get the best chance at a shot. One of my friends did a one man drive and a bunch of deer headed his way, he shot eighteen times! We assumed he had a whole herd on the ground after all that lead. When my buddy and I walked up he had a doe and a button buck on the ground, both had been hit numerous times, at that point this kid was almost hyperventilating because he had finally shot his first deer Not every one may have as much as experience as they might tell you.
DUK, a piebald is a deer with white patches or spots

Piebalds are brown and white. Kind of like a paint horse.

I think the "work in progress approach" is a good plan. If he is a basically good guy, you will be surprised what he will pick up after a few years of hunting with someone who knows what they are doing, and you will get a good feeling if you turn him into a decent hunter.

Again, thanks for the words of encouragement. I needed to vent after last night and your kind words helped me see that there can be a silver lining to this cloud!

Could you convince him to go as your spotter for a few hunts? Might be able to show him by example that way and he not be too embarrassed by his own ignorance or inability.

LWD

No problem. Just drive up to middle Tennessee. nothing like that ever happens here. Nope. Unh-uh. Never happens. Not ever.

quote:

Originally posted by mauser93:
No problem. Just drive up to middle Tennessee. nothing like that ever happens here. Nope. Unh-uh. Never happens. Not ever.

Pretty good suggestions. Maybe help him fill his tag, then get him out of the way. Your a guest on his place, so tread lightly.

I think you dragging him out to check for a bloodtrail, & following up on his actions is absolutely the right thing to do. Likely he's not been taught in the past and would continue to shoot many deer that he doesn't follow up on.

Your efforts and companionship will likely help him in several ways.

Just a thought you may consider. After deer season is over and things quiet down, take himout calling coyote & fox. The time in the field and the excitement of the animals coming in getting his blood pumping will get him settled into hunting with animals quickly showing up. He may develope skills much quicker than you think if he just has the experiences it takes. Nate