Shot Placement and Ethics: Making Every Shot Count

Every hunter owes the animal a quick, clean kill. That responsibility starts long before the trigger press, and it does not end until the animal is recovered. Good shot placement is the single biggest factor in a humane harvest, and it is a skill any hunter can build.

Aim for the vitals

On deer and most big game, the heart and lungs sit low in the chest, just behind the front shoulder. A broadside animal offers the largest, most forgiving target: aim about one-third of the way up the body, tight behind the front leg. A shot there damages both lungs and often the heart, and most animals go only a short distance.

Many experienced hunters pass on head and neck shots. The target is small, a slight miss can wound rather than kill, and the margin for error is thin. The vital area offers a much larger, more reliable target.

Wait for the right angle

Broadside and slightly quartering-away angles are best. With a quartering-away animal, aim so the bullet or arrow exits near the opposite front shoulder. Avoid steep quartering-to, head-on and straight-away shots unless you are very experienced and your equipment is suited to them. Patience is part of ethics: if the shot is not right, let the animal walk.

Know your limits

• Shoot only within the distance you have proven in practice from field positions.
• Use a rest whenever you can: shooting sticks, a pack, a tree or the rail of a stand.
• Be certain of your target and what is beyond it. Never shoot at sound, movement or color.
• Pass on shots through brush, which can deflect bullets and arrows.

After the shot

Watch the animal's reaction and mark where it was standing and the last place you saw it. Wait before following up; giving a hit animal time to lie down usually leads to a shorter recovery. Look for blood, hair and tracks, and follow the trail slowly. Make every effort to recover the animal, and ask a friend to help if the trail gets difficult.

Respect the rules and the resource

Follow your state's regulations on legal hours, tagging and reporting. Ethical hunting also means respecting landowners, other hunters and the habitat that keeps game populations healthy. Taking a hunter education course, even if you already have your license, is one of the best ways to sharpen these skills.