Pretty damn frustrated...

[Bear44]

... with my ability with a crossbow.

I just had a chance to get rid of this ****er and made another bad hit.

This is the first yote I have seen on the property and have the first pic of it just a couple of weeks ago. I have gotten pics two times since then. All at night. About an hour or so ago it stepped right out at about 25 yards and stood there like it was ready to have it's pic taken. I bracketed it between my 20 and 30 yard crosshair and had a very steady rest with a stationary broad side shot. I let fly and the yote ran, but not very fast and it did not vocalize at all.

I found the bolt and it has blood on it from tip to nock, but not much and I found a blood trail immediately, but not much of one. I was able to follow it for about 50 yards and never found a good splash of blood. Most of it was very small spots with a few good drops. Further searching produced nothing. WTF?!!!

That's my first two shots on animals with a crossbow and both were bad. The first one I'm sure the deer jumped the string, but now I have serious doubts about how well this scope has held zero, too.

Maybe the worst part is that I have had a higher quality scope for a couple of weeks and have not taken the time to mount and zero it. It can be tuned to the speed of my bolt and it is illuminated. I don't know if it would have made a difference, but I'm betting I would have a dead yote right now if it had been on the crossbow.

Just damn!

 

[Porter Rockwell]

Sorry bear... I know that’s a horrible feeling.

 

[MRH]

The only way to know is step out back and shoot the target a couple times. Sorry you lost him. That sucks. He will probably die, though, so that's good. He won't be killing your fawns.

 

[GeauxLSU]

I shot one THREE times with a .22-250 from less than 50 yards and it was still alive. Finally had enough and climbed down from the stand to go shoot it with a .44 from up close and it expired in the 2 minutes or so it took to get there. Shot another with a .25-06 from about 15 FEET and it ran off a solid 75+ yards. Point being, they are TOUGH.
(Of course I've also dropped them DRT with a .22 mag at over 100 yards so... )

 

[Bear44]

The only way to know is step out back and shoot the target a couple times. Sorry you lost him. That sucks. He will probably die, though, so that's good. He won't be killing your fawns.

Though I don't like the idea of any animal suffering needlessly, I'm not bothered as much about this thing as I am the deer. I just want it dead, so it doesn't get a pack started here.

Even though I had blood on the bolt, it has to have been a very superficial wound. With the broadheads I'm using, if it had gotten a sold hit anywhere on him it would have torn him the hell up.

 

[Bear44]

Another thing that's really weird. He was right in the middle of where the trail cam takes pics and moving around for about a minute before I took the shot. He actually started feeding on a protein block I have out. I pulled the card and there is not a singe pic of him from today. There are pics of deer that were there earlier today and of me when I examined the area after the shot, but none of him. Very strange.

The cam is set up to take pics every five seconds it detects movement and is frequently tripped by raccoons, squirrels and even birds, so WTH?

 

[Granite3]

I shot a 100 lb sow with a 30-30 from 20 yards with a 170 gr HP. Knocked her down into the palmetto grass, heard some moving and a bunch of her 10lb piglets occupied me for a second or two.
When I walked over 5 mins later little bit of blood, no pig, and small drops that led away into swamp. Went back picked up the 2 piglets and headed in.

Next morning in the stand, looking for deer and when it got light, there is the sow, rooting in the dirt with her whole bottom, intestines and all dragging in the dirt. No idea how she was still alive. 30-06 to the head put her DRT.

These things do happen.

Why not just verify your current zero before you swap scopes?

 

[crippen]

Another thing that's really weird. He was right in the middle of where the trail cam takes pics and moving around for about a minute before I took the shot. He actually started feeding on a protein block I have out. I pulled the card and there is not a singe pic of him from today. There are pics of deer that were there earlier today and of me when I examined the area after the shot, but none of him. Very strange.

The cam is set up to take pics every five seconds it detects movement and is frequently tripped by raccoons, squirrels and even birds, so WTH?

You shot something interdimensional.

 

[Allsmiles]

Just a thought, check your x-bow and make sure the limbs are seated correctly. I shot at a couple with mine before I realized what was going on. One of the limbs was not in the pocket correctly and causing the arrows to fly erratically.

 

[MRH]

Though I don't like the idea of any animal suffering needlessly, I'm not bothered as much about this thing as I am the deer. I just want it dead, so it doesn't get a pack started here.

Even though I had blood on the bolt, it has to have been a very superficial wound. With the broadheads I'm using, if it had gotten a sold hit anywhere on him it would have torn him the hell up.

No I don't want them to suffer either, and unlike many hunters, I don't hate coyotes. I think they are cool animals just trying to survive, but they definitely need to go. I don't hate them, but don't want them around either. I admit I have seen videos of them attacking deer and it made me mad, but that's mother nature taking its natural course. I

I hope he crawls off and dies somewhere.