The Art Of Deer Hunting and Ethics of a Clean Shot

It’s that time of year yet again, deer hunting season and hunters are getting equipment ready to go and take the first shot of the season. It’s important to know that when you spot any game animal in your gun scope or sight in your bow and arrow that you make sure the animal will not suffer. Ethical hunting means that you will do something with what you kill and not leave any part out in the field to rot overtime. When you believe the animal was hit either walk to your spot on your property where you had sight or use an ATV to get there quicker. On the property I hunt we use an ATV to drag deer off the field.

According to any Hunter’s Ed class you take a clean kill is defined as a shot that takes your game down right away rather than injuring the animal. The best target for a deer is the middle of it’s backside because this part houses organs like lungs and other primary things that need oxygen. One thing to be sure of is the angle at which you shoot or cast your bow because in the long run that will help with the confidence of not missing once you take your game. Other types of hunting like quail and turkey have the same sighting in procedure but you just follow a sky path if it’s a flying bird. I’ve hunted turkey before and actually got one a couple years back for Thanksgiving. Be sure to have the right devices to crank up your deer so that you can begin the gutting and skinning process so you can get your meat and put it in your cooler. Do not puncture any vital organs that could spew during the gutting process as you don’t want to risk tainting your meat. Be precise when cutting through to your cuts of meat be it back-strap or a roast cut. You are better off having someone with you while on a hunt for safety reasons. In some processing and cutting having someone hold on to a part of your game is extremely important so you don’t get a cut or another injury. It makes things a lot simpler when you have an extra set of hands to do certain things.

If you are unsure about the laws surrounding what you do with the antlers or skull you can run to your nearest taxidermy office and see a staff member. You must put a tag on anything that you shoot and it must have the county name and the type of game you are hunting plus the current date the tag is filled out. Remember to always know what is at and behind your scope view so that you don’t hit anything else besides what your main focus is. Some properties have houses within a 10 to 15 yard radius and others may have a gas plant that is installed. Know your property, plan and limits.

Those are some guidelines for this year’s hunting season.

-Tristan