A deer liver shot creates uncertainty for hunters. While not immediately fatal like a heart or lung shot, it often leads to complex tracking and recovery. Understanding its implications is important for ethical and successful outcomes.
Understanding the Liver’s Role and Impact
The liver, a large, reddish-brown organ, is situated behind the diaphragm and below the lungs in a deer’s abdominal cavity. It filters blood, produces bile for digestion, and stores nutrients. Impact to the liver causes significant internal damage and bleeding due to its rich blood supply.
This trauma causes a rapid drop in blood pressure and internal hemorrhage. Deer often hunch their back, move slowly, or bed down within 100-200 yards after a liver shot. A specific reaction, like a “bronco kick” (kicking hind legs backward and upward), may also occur.
Prognosis and Survival Likelihood
A liver shot is lethal for a deer, though it results in a delayed rather than instant demise. Death is primarily caused by significant blood loss and organ failure. A deer carries about a gallon of blood; losing approximately one-third (1.5 quarts) is fatal. The liver contains roughly a pint of blood, so a direct hit causes substantial internal bleeding.
While death is expected, the time to succumb varies from minutes to several hours, or longer. Factors include the extent of damage, precise shot location, and whether other organs or major blood vessels were impacted. Severing a main artery or vein connected to the liver can lead to a much quicker death. Though rare, minimal damage without infection might allow survival, but a significant liver hit is almost always fatal.
Tracking and Recovery Protocols
Identifying a liver shot involves specific signs. The blood trail is typically dark red to maroon, lacking the frothy appearance of a lung shot. Consistency might be thicker, and the trail often moderate and steady rather than heavy spurts. Bile, greenish fluid, or small tissue fragments may be present, indicating damage to the liver or adjacent digestive organs.
After a liver shot, deer often hunch up, walk slowly, or bed down quickly. Patience is crucial before tracking. Waiting a minimum of 4 to 8 hours is recommended; some experts suggest waiting overnight if conditions allow. Starting too soon risks “bumping” the deer, causing it to run further and making recovery difficult due to a diminished blood trail. When tracking, marking the last known sign with tape or GPS can be helpful, and additional people can increase recovery chances.
Responsible Hunter Practices
Responsible hunting emphasizes making a clean, humane kill. This includes diligent practice for accurate shot placement, ideally targeting the heart or lungs for a swift demise. When a liver shot occurs, the hunter’s responsibility extends to thorough and patient recovery.
If the animal is located and still alive, follow-up shots are necessary for a humane end. Hunters must exhaust all reasonable efforts to track and recover the deer, even if it requires extended time, effort, or experienced help. While recovery is always the goal, recognizing when a search becomes impractical, especially in challenging conditions, is also part of responsible decision-making.