Another (true) tale about shot placement. About 25 years ago I used to go and assist a friend in the final week(s) of the stag season on a renowned estate in NW Invernessshire. He told of how when he had started on this estate, about a decade earlier, he had a member of that week's party out, and nearing the end of the week, so he knew how well this particular guest could shoot, they stalked a stag high at the western end of the estate. They were on extremely steep ground where he had been warned by his predecessor that animals frequently rolled and tumbled in to the bottom of Coire C and one then was left with a bag of broken bones/broken antlers. The target stag was stood on a contouring trod half way up and down the slope (about 1500' from top to bottom and all steeper than angle of repose). RB asked the guest Mr H to not shoot where he normally aimed, but to shoot about 4" back (into the liver) and that then, with luck, the stag would run about 300 yards to where there was a small sheep like "rub" which widened the trod to about a yard wide and lie down before dying. Mr H did as requested and to the iota the stag did as RB predicted. It lurched on impact, ran the 300 yards to the sheep rub and lay down before expiring without further movement. Mr H was astonished at my friend's knowledge and gave an unusually large tip at the end of the week, retaining his unfailing faith in RB's skill as a stalker until he could no longer take to that hill. The ONLY man to complain was the ponyman who had to get his charge rather higher up the hill than usual to collect as they had to be very careful not to lose control of the stag on the descent towards the pony path.
I also remember the late Ken Whitehead saying to me nearly 40 years ago that he often shot running roe in the liver (he was very good at it even in his early 80s) as they never ran more than 50 yards when so hit. I experimented deliberately one day when training a young dog and the roebuck I shot ran precisely 49 yards in a quarter circle (usually into the entry wound side) before falling stone dead in thicket stage sitka spruce. Good blood trail, but even my bathwater smelled of spruce resin that evening!
I also remember the late Ken Whitehead saying to me nearly 40 years ago that he often shot running roe in the liver (he was very good at it even in his early 80s) as they never ran more than 50 yards when so hit. I experimented deliberately one day when training a young dog and the roebuck I shot ran precisely 49 yards in a quarter circle (usually into the entry wound side) before falling stone dead in thicket stage sitka spruce. Good blood trail, but even my bathwater smelled of spruce resin that evening!
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