Gut shot elk

[jmez]

Question on tracking one. All the elk I've been in on have been hit in the vitals and recovered quickly. If you gut shoot an elk with an arrow will they bed quickly? I've gut shot a few deer and every time, if you do not disturb/push them, you will find them within 100 yards of where you hit them. Do elk do this if not pushed or do they keep moving?

[WapitiTalk1]

Yes. I've had the misfortune of hitting two elk in the paunch; both were recovered. Both were at dusk and for each incident, I marked where I shot from, marked where the elk was standing, got a pretty good visual on the direction they were heading and "backed out" immediately. The spike went a bit farther (perhaps 200 yards) but the cow bedded down within 100 yards of where the shot occurred. I was back right at daylight as was able to track them to their beds and put a lethal arrow in them. Yep, they were both alive in the morning!

[Swede]

I agree with RJ on his take on the matter. I agree about marking the location you shoot from, but would caution against advancing to where the elk was when hit. RJ's situation may have allowed that much advancement in the direction of the elk. Our party had a gut shot challenge in fairly open timber, where going that far caused the elk to leave after it bedded. The bull got up and was never recovered.

[Indian Summer]

Not much to add as Swede and Phantom pretty much covered it. Elk can tend to go a little further than deer before bedding, especially if the rest of the herd runs off and they follow. But pretty quickly they will let the herd go and bed. I have also seen them stand still for a little and literally bed down right where they were standing. Deer are usually dead by the next daybut like Phantom said elk may very well still be alive so approach the area with extreme caution and have an arrow nocked and ready. Use your binoculars as you make the approach to try spot them before they see you. That can give you a chance to finish them off if needed instead of bumping them out of their bed.

[navet]

If you recover the elk, the next day, or the second day, do you worry about the meat being tainted?

[Indian Summer]

Yes! We had a thread on here about that... I can't recall the title. If it's September and warm it's definitely a concern. Especially the side facing the ground. But if the elk lives for half the night or more it obviously lessens the chances of spoilage.

You definitely want to get out of camp in the dark and try to find it asap! I lost an entire elk one time. Shot at very last light and found only 150 yards away a half hour after sunup. But it was downright hot out even that night. It was marginal when we got it quartered and literally went bad on the pack out and drive to the processor. I've seen guys lose just half and salvage the top side which was able to dissipate some heat. Had one client kill a bull and it appeared (and smelled) ok. He called me later that winter and said when he opened the first package to eat it he realized the damage was a done deal. Elk are tough. They have thick hides... bottom line is do everything you can to make a good shot and don't take any chances.

Bone sour happens from the inside out. Some think they can trim the bad stud off and salvage the rest. if you see any green tint or notice a sour smell it is NOT looking good because its worse inside than it is out.

[navet]

If indeed the elk has bone soured, do you pack it out anyway just in case you are approached by the game warden? Or do you leave obviously soured meet on the carcass and deal with the warden if you see him? Can you just tag and take evidence of sex with you leave the rest if it is bad?

[WapitiTalk1]

If indeed the elk has bone soured, do you pack it out anyway just in case you are approached by the game warden? Or do you leave obviously soured meet on the carcass and deal with the warden if you see him? Can you just tag and take evidence of sex with you leave the rest if it is bad?

Interesting question Nathan. This is a quote from the ID Regs: "Hunters are required to remove and care for the edible meat of big game animals, except black bears, mountain lions and gray wolves. This includes the meat from hind quarters as far down as the hock, meat of the front quarters as far down as the knee and meat along the backbone which is the loin and tenderloin. It does not include meat of the head or neck, meat covering or between the ribs, internal organs, or meat on the bones after
close trimming."

I read edible meat and I think edible, non-spoiled meat. Without hearing any other input on this topic (and conferring with the appropriate state F&G), I would personally only pack out the non-spoiled portions of my elk (obviously, with proof of sex) and be prepared to explain why if asked. Again, good question and I'm curious to see what others have to say on this topic. RJ

[ElkNut1]

Yep, most gut shot elk will bed within 250yds if not disturbed by you or other hunters in the area. It's best not to go after them at all as blood is worse than sparse! If weather is rainy you'd best do your best to get a positive direction so you have a good idea as to their exit route.

I would not pack any meat that was not edible, you may be asked to show the kill site though & have to go back to it for proof. I try to take photos of any meat that was destroyed/bloodshot & not edible by an arrow or bullet than isn't coming out with us. A photo is worth a 1000 words!

ElkNut1

[LckyTylr]

I'd lean more on the side of taking the meat out. From some of the horror stories that I have heard (Lord only knows how many of which are true), a Game Warden or LEO has pretty much ultimate authority if they want to be jerks. If they REALLY want to stick it to you, they will pin you with some kind of technicality or another. I also live in Idaho and have known about the "edible" meat law. I am probably too careful, but I'm only 28, I have a LOT of hunting years left ahead of me and am unwilling to loose my privileges because of a little spoiled meat.

From my perspective, and from a nasty LEO/GW, if I leave "spoiled" meat on the mountain, but take out all of the "edible", how can I 100% argue that it was sour when I got to it. If it's as green as grass and shows up as such on a photo, then sure, I'll buy that. If I were a mean and nasty GW, I'd look at your bags of meat and say "Where's the rest?". When you tell me that you left the spoiled meat on the mountain, I'd say "Well, how do I know that it was actually spoiled . . . if we took the time to drive / walk all the way back to the kill site, of course . . . all of the remaining meat will be spoiled . . . but who's to say it was NOT spoiled when you left?"

IF you take all of your good meat back to the truck, get it hanging in the cool shade over a creek, and then go back to retrieve the bad meat separately, you will have proof of good meat and bad meat to show the Warden.

Who knows, it's an interpretation of the letter of the law . . . when a judge and a Warden are making a decision later on, they are both playing from the same playbook.

[Indian Summer]

If I knew for sure the meat was spoiled I wouldn't pack it anywhere. I would take pics. Just to avoid any problems I wouldn't stop by the local bar and tell the world either. I would be sure to punch my tag which clearly shows there was no intent to try to kill a second elk.

And as always remember it is the hunter's responsibility to be able to show a conservation officer the kill site. If you can't and the answer is "I swear it was right here" then you may be up ch1t creek.

[slim9300]

This is a sore subject with me. Between my dad, partner and myself, I have seen a few gut shot elk that all knew they were shot by a person (ie. looking at the shooter). In my opinion this really matters due to them getting their adrenaline up and doing everything they can to survive as long as possible. None were ever recovered (despite always spending no less than 4 hours looking and in one instance 5 days) I have tried both ways (waiting a few hours or coming back the next morning) due to weather constraints. This is one of the main reasons I started shooting elk in the shoulder, rather than 'behind the crease.' If I screw up and hit the shoulder, the elk lives. If I screw up and gut shot the elk, it's dead and my luck must really suck.

I feel like when an elk or deer is gut shot without any clue of what happened, your chance of recovery is much greater. That had been my experience with deer at least.