Anatomy of a high shoulder shot

[mkjstep]

I find it somewhat ironic that my #3 son has killed his only two deer with a high shoulder shot. I did not teach him that paticular shot but he seems to use it well. What I what to know is exactly where below the top of the shoulder should one aim? Do you aim in line with the leg?
Is there any pics out there in WWW land that I can see?

Thanks

[jims]

I thought on the previous board there was a photo of that. I copied it from somewhere. The deer have a yellow and white dot on their bodies showing the lung/heart shot area in white and the high shoulder in yellow. I am not in a position at this time to post any photos but perhpas someone remembers where and can. The one photo had 2003 Gregory K. Scott on it if that helps anyone remember.

[olegburn]

This link may help:
www.turbosquid.com/FullPreview/Index.cfm/ID/292686

[youp50]

It has been my experience that a high shoulder shot may require another shot to kill the animal. Properly executed, it will result in two broken shoulders and a severed spine. No tracking required. It is the best shot placement for bear.

[wilmsmeyer]

As with any shot, the angle presented will dictate if BOTH shoulders can be broken. Understanding the 3 dimentional cross section of an animal is more important then drawing a spot on a picture of a deer. The spot is almost always on a different place!

When I was coaching my girlfriend on shot placement, we used my calandar, full of big bucks. As I flipped from month to month I gave her a sharpie and had her make a spot as to where she should hit the deer. The deer were at different angles. The exercise got that "one spot from the hunter safety course" out of her mind. When she drew a spot that wasn't right, I talked to her about why.

The point is, you have to be ready for any angle. With that in mind, IMO, it's best to criss-cross to heart lung area. Usually, deer are rarely perfectly broadside and you catch an upper leg bone on the way in or the way out. This takes deer off their feet almost all the time and they die before they can get up...or stuggle around about as long as it would have taken to sprint 100 yds.

I did not read the link in the above post. If it covers anything I said, I apologize for being redundant.

[edge]

IMO, the high shoulder shot is supposed to hit the near side scapula. The scapula moves with the front leg in a more or less up and down motion, but it is very prominent when you look for it.

Since whitetail deer are thin skinned and spitzer bullets do not always open quickly you ensure that they hit bone directly under the skin. .
This will ensure a quick opening to the bullet;
The scapula will shrapnel into the heart/lung area;
This is close to the spine and nerves in the shoulder which will often take enough of a shock to temporarily incapacitate the animal dropping it to the ground instantly.

Some folks think that the deer is killed quicker with a high shoulder shot than with a heart shot, but IMO that is generally not the case! It is true that the deer travels less of a distance, but an animal dies when the brain is destroyed....almost always that is due to a lack of oxygenated blood.

edge.

[younghunter86]

Feb 5, 2009 10:18:09 GMT -5 edge said:

Some folks think that the deer is killed quicker with a high shoulder shot than with a heart shot, but IMO that is generally not the case! It is true that the deer travels less of a distance, but an animal dies when the brain is destroyed....almost always that is due to a lack of oxygenated blood.

This is very true and often overlooked and one of the reasons why I like shoulder shots, but tend to avoid very high shoulder shots that just nick the lungs, only hitting the top of the scapula the spine. A spine shot is just that, it cuts the spinal chord regardless of what else it hits. I really prefer to have the deer die quickly and humanely, not just simply paralyzed. Yeah it sounds sappy, but oh well. There is nothing fun about going over and slitting their throat or putting another shot in them. I always like to hit heart/lungs in one way or another. That eliminates the need for follow up action from myself. If I can take out the shoulder as well, that even better.

It is possible to hit the general area near the base of the scapula and still have the deer go virtually nowhere. (Edited to add:this doesn't work when completely broadside, but I don't get many deer walking perfectly broadside.) That is where I would aim. I'll see if I can get a picture of it somewhere.

[mkjstep]

Thanks guys for the answers so far. I'm trying to get a head start on next year.

[mshm99]

I agree with youp 50. I've had to put the "coup de grace" on several shot in this manner. Elevated shot angle also figures into this. From an elevated position the POI becomes more critical. Placed correctly , at the right angle, it does not mess up very much meat, but from high sharp angles it mostly misses the spine and desroys the off shoulder. I reserve the high shoulder for flat shots.

mshm

[Buckrub]

Good grief.

I try to hit BROWN......failing often!!!

Just kidding (almost). I have always tried to take the vertical crosshair and split their front legs with it (unless a perfect broadside shot, which is rare), then take the horizontal crosshair and put it halfway up the deer, and adjust slightly up or down. S L I G H T L Y. If it is perfectly broadside (again, I'm floored by the number of folks who bring deer to camp claiming the deer was broadside and we skin it and the entrance and exit holes are a foot apart, or more!!), then this method doesn't work too well, but it will work even then.



P.S.
Type of bullet matters greatly here. Wilms is right about angle. I sometimes hunt from 30 feet up or more.