How often do you find unrecovered animals?

How often do you find unrecovered animals?


  • Total voters
    174
Joined
Mar 7, 2024
Messages
54
Location
Colorado
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I found a cow this year in first rifle CO, first time in 5 years I've stumbled across a critter but im sure more to come. She was shot on opening day and I found it the morning of day 2. We crossed paths with the guy who shot it on our hike in that morning, chatted and he said he was unable to locate a cow he shot. Mid day I was still hunting through some darker timber and cut some pretty fresh tracks so I followed them and I found the animal that made them...tried to reconnect with the guy that shot that day in hopes he could salvage something but never crossed paths.
 
Joined
Aug 18, 2015
Messages
1,605
Location
Harrisburg, Oregon
Here in Oregon we can’t legally recover antlers with the skull attached.

Unless we kill it, of course. But finding a dead buck/bull with antlers we have to let lie.

Legally.




P
 

pods8 (Rugged Stitching)

WKR
Rokslide Sponsor
Joined
Mar 12, 2014
Messages
4,850
Location
Thornton, CO
Where the spike is my guess is he didn't fall at the shot so nobody tracked, very close to the road.
Was it in CO? If so are there any tags that allow harvest of a spike? I am not readily aware of any, someone likely shot a spike on accident and didn't own up to it versus not find in is my guess.
 
OP
sndmn11

sndmn11

"DADDY"
Joined
Mar 28, 2017
Messages
10,613
Location
Morrison, Colorado
Brain fart on my part now that you mention it. I never hunt in those units but that did cross my radar when I was looking at some options for my kids hunts, I just forgot about it again.
I'd LOVE to see them rotate that into other hunt codes for a BGSS. I'd bet the results would be a wider distribution of bull ages.
 

Dogone

FNG
Joined
Dec 25, 2023
Messages
68
Have found mules , antelope and white tail over the years. Last one was a160 wt only eighty yards from my house. My dogs had barked all night . Only spine and head left. Was I season but couldn’t determine reason for death.
 
Joined
Jun 23, 2013
Messages
373
Location
Whatcom County, WA
A few years ago my cousin and I found a dead cougar during scouting in September then found a gut shot buck during rifle season. Both in the same drainage. Public land a couple miles back behind a gate.
 

go_deep

WKR
Joined
Jan 7, 2021
Messages
2,047
Found lots of dead critters, can only definitely say one was shot by someone and not found, a whitetail buck.
 

Jtb.kfd

FNG
Joined
Oct 3, 2024
Messages
60
Between elk and deer season, one a year or so. This buck was found right before rifle in a 3pt min area. I would guess it was from muzzleloader season. Too bad, it was 30yds or so off a well used trail IMG_6535.jpegIMG_6536.jpeg
 
Joined
Oct 14, 2023
Messages
1,559
Location
Houston (adjacent) TX
Not many times here in Texas as most land is private. However, I did find a large bodied deer that was headless dropped less than 100 yards from my lease’s (at the time) front gate. Don’t know if game wardens ever found anything about it
 

hunterjmj

WKR
Joined
Feb 3, 2019
Messages
1,400
Location
Montana
Found quite a few dead heads over the years but I have no idea if they were from hunters, winter kills or predation.
 

Jethro

WKR
Joined
Mar 2, 2014
Messages
1,416
Location
Pennsylvania
Have not archery hunted PA at all this season. First trip in yesterday afternoon to do some stand/blind work. Found dead doe within 10 minutes. No chance for autopsy. Just a head, 2 legs and a big mess of hair where the body should be.
 

grfox92

WKR
Joined
Mar 14, 2017
Messages
2,771
Location
NW WY
When I lived in NY I found them all the time. Hardwood timber, briars, very easy to lose a deer.

Where I'm at in Wyoming you are lucky to beat the bears to something you put a good shot on, let alone a wounded one.

Sent from my SM-G990U using Tapatalk
 
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