my 1st bow kill

**harm** · 22-06-2010, 10:07

Wildebeest calf,shot at 25 mts,double lung,arrow pass-through
the shot was a bit high as i did not have time to range it,estimated at 30 mts [used the 30 mt pin], while the animal was limping away.it had broken it's leg in a poacher's snare,and the wound was infected,and had wire imbedded in it.
the second pic is of the wildebeest lying down.
estimated weight was around 95 kgs.
bow used was the Reflex Bighorn,70 #
arrows - Easton ST Excel,300,10 gpi
broadhead - 125 gr Rocket Ultimate steel fixed
method - walk and stalk
the arrow entered on the right side
the tracker asked me to kill the calf due to the nature of it's injury,and the farm owner agreed with the decision.

after the 1st shot the calf walked about 70 or 80 mts and lay down.i walked around the back,got to within 15 mts [that's when i took the 2nd pic].
i was very concerned about the arrow placement and decided to take another shot,as the animal was looking around,moving it's head from side to side.
i put another arrow into the vitals and the calf ran for another 5 or 6 meters and collapsed.after seeing the exit wound and frothy blood i realised that my 1st shot was decent,and the 2nd arrow was not necessary.
the farm i hunted on was not equipped for bowhunters,nor did the trackers seem to be educated about bowhunting so,immediately after the 1st arrow,the tracker wanted to start after the animal.fortunately the area was flat and not very bushy so we could see the wildebeest.
i only got to look for the 1st arrow after all this,which confirmed the shot placement,which i now realise was not all that bad since the animal was quartering away slightly.the arrow was broken off just in front of the fletches,both pieces were found on 1 side of the blood trail,which was very easy to find,as there was copious amounts of bright, frothy blood.i think there was some lung tissue on the broadhead as well.

i did not pose with the animal as i felt that i did not hunt this poor beast but put it out of it's misery.

**HoggerNaut** · 22-06-2010, 10:33

Congrats anyhow!
Damn poachers. I get so pissed of everytime I see a animal suffering because of these folkers.
Hope you got him for free!

**KK20** · 22-06-2010, 10:37

harm thank you for sharing

**The Saint** · 22-06-2010, 10:38

Done a good deed- I also want to get into bow hunting. Most of my friends has taken this up in stead of rifle hunting.

**Sako 30-06** · 22-06-2010, 14:05

Well done,give yourself a pat on the back for putting the animal out of it's misery,good shot aswell.damn poachers,you should put them out of their misery too.

**camouflage762** · 22-06-2010, 14:46

Well done.

**harm** · 22-06-2010, 16:35

thanks guys.
this was on Sunday morning.we started hunting on Friday afternoon,had a few good stalks,on the best i got to within 40 mts of a group of Impala.
so on Sunday morning i tried an ambush strategy.this animal was part of a herd leaving a waterhole.at another waterhole,the tracker went to scout for some animals and returned with a snare.we also picked a snare up on 1 game paths we followed.feral dogs are also a problem on this farm and there's a R100 bounty on them,provided the tails are brought in.
i did not keep the animal,so was not charged.
i'll post some pics later of the beautiful scenery.