Tips for the Outdoorsmen : The 45 Minute Rule

Story by Kevin Wilson (Alberta Outdoorsmen Magazine)

Whether you've been mentored or educated through the school of hard knocks, if you're a seasoned bow hunter you know about the 45 minute rule; and if you don't, you should.  What's the 45 minute rule you ask?  Simply put, it's an unwritten rule of thumb reminding us that after every shot, we need to wait at least three quarters of an hour before following up.  Yes, I know there are exceptions to every rule, but the only exception to this one should be if you can see that the animal is down for the count.  Even then the savvy hunter still waits a few minutes before approaching.  It never ceases to amaze me how many archers and gun hunters for that matter, rush in to collect their prize without giving shot game adequate time to expire.

Perfect arrow or bullet placement will collapse game on the sport or within 50 metres of the point of impact.  That said we all know a good percentage of game falls victim to less than perfect shot placement.  In these instances it's wise to evaluate and act accordingly.  

Allow me to illustrate with the events of a a recent hunt.  A few weeks ago I was bow hunting mule deer in northern Alberta.  With an extra antlerless tag in my pocket, I capitalized.  Sneaking in to close range, the wind was in my favour.  I ranged the lone doe at 40 metres.  Totally unaware that I was there, she had her head down.  Just like shooting at the 3D range, I drew back, took my time, locked my sight pins on her chest and released.  My arrow entered in the bottom 1/3 of the chest just behind her shoulder and, because she was quartered slightly toward me, it exited half way back on the opposite side of the torso.  Jumping and then trotting toward me, she clearly didn't know what had happened.  The doe covered about 30 metres, slowed and immediately bedded down in the standing canola.  Some distance away my partner was observing through his binoculars from a high point.  As I looked toward him, he motioned that her head was still up so I backed away and joined him.  For 25 minutes we watched intently and finally her head dropped.  My partner was convinced it was done, but I was skeptical.  I've been bow hunting for nearly 20 years and I've seen just about everything there is to see when it comes to arrow wounds.  The one thing I know for certain is that every shot is different and unless you play your cards right, you stand to lose any game that isn't hit through the vitals.  Sound decision-making is critical and in this instance I was tempted to bend the rule to erroneously appease my curiosity.

Arrow placement had been nearly textbook but because the doe was slightly quartering toward me, i guess I'd only taken out one lung and passed through the diaphragm and liver.  Long story short, we opted to approach slowly.  With another arrow nocked I went to full draw and covered the last 20 metres with the notion of launching a finishing shot if necessary.

By all appearances she was down for the count.  Then, all of a sudden she sprang to her feet and bolted.  Clearly weak but in a last-ditch effort to escape, she managed to make it to the nearby willows.  Dumbfounded to say the least I could hardly believe my eyes.  I remember reprimanding myself for not waiting the 45 minutes!  I knew to wait it out but I opted to push it.  Well, to make a long story short, minutes later I walked up on my doe and she'd expired almost immediately upon entering the small bluff.  Despite the significant trauma inflicted by a fixed 4-blade Muzzy broadhead passing through her torso, my deer still had enough life to get up and go after 30 minutes.

So, what's the moral of the story?  In retrospect, this was a lesson for me and should be for all of us.  Sad but true, far too many bow hunters, not to mention gun hunters, lose games each year because they fail to wait before following up on their shot.  I remember watching an elk hunting video produced by famed bow hunter Larry D. Jones almost 20 years ago.  Following a less than ideal hit, he and partner Dwight Schuh were adamant about waiting at least 45 minutes before following up on the shot.  I'm normally militant about this rule myself, even if I've made a good hit.  Why did I break the 45 minute rule?  Basically because we had seen her head go down.  Was it the right decision?  Absolutely not!  We all get excited in the heat of the moment.  We're anxious to collect our prize, but in the end it's all about making the right decisions; decisions that will inevitably determine the outcome of our hunt.

Source: Alberta Outdoorsmen Magazine