This Will Drop a Deer Instantly 

At long distance or fast shots I have done this to compensate for margin of error and it does drop them instantly . Usually I do heart lung and it dies the trick . What I do like about the shoulder is they don’t run and you don’t lose them . Which is a big importance in rugged terrain .

I do something similar, but I move my shot to just about an inch forward of where the neck meets the body. Large target, instant drop, and the deer is dead before it hits the ground. I use a .30-06 with 180 gr Core Lokt PSP and only lose a couple of ounces of neck (stew) meat. Has worked like a charm for me for decades.

The first deer I ever killed I shot with a high shoulder shot, dropped dead on the spot, the largest deer I ever shot, a large 10 point buck on my wall, dropped dead on the spot with a high shoulder shot. I've shot more deer with high shoulder shots and neck shots and the farthest one ever went was a neck shot, 200 yards and that was it. The rest, on the ground where shot.

Without knowing Why that shot placement works it’s been my favorite for 45 years, since it first happened to me by accident. The buck dropped without taking another step! I decided to do an autopsy after hanging & skinning our the buck. Was amazed at the amount of damage that .300 Savage bullet did, through the shoulder blade & completely shattering the spinal column. Have used it since and it works Every time. A Very humane kill shot. ThankYou for explaining it.

Explains why my between the shoulder blades spine hit dropped my buck without even any residual kicking. He just dropped and that was it. It wasn't just severing the spine, it was frying those nerves. It was the only shot placement I could get as it was almost too dark for me to see him ( 14 or so minutes left of light, but in the woods where its always darker). He was straight on head down at 50 yds and I was shooting from about 11 feet up in a box blind. I had almost no wasted meat too! No bloodshot, just some around the wound I had to trim due to bone and bullet fragments. The heart was intact and I took that with me too.

Very well done video. Most average guys dont know the anatomy and bodily structure of the animal. Being a butcher and meat cutter by trade I am very familiar. Watched just to see how accurate and precise it would be, and was not disappointed. Again, well done. My only concern is meat damage. Shot placement like this basically destroys both top blades, part of the top loin, and some of the neck from hydrostatic shock. But thats not the purpose of the video, again meat cutter views here....I prefer a back lung shot, just in front of the diaphragm, a few ribs back to avoid any meat damage to the shoulder and leg muscles. That is if the animal had room to make its death run and expire in the few seconds it will take. Im an eater, and want to maximize the yield from the carcass. If I cant take a headshot at close and confident range thats my .02.....But very informative and accurate none the less. Great job, very well done.

I love your book "Whitetail Wisdom". I have bought about 6 copies and in addition to reading it several times myself, I have given copies of your book to family members and friends that were new to hunting. Thanks for sharing useful knowledge.

Thanks for sharing this with me. I've got a friend who had never hunted until last year. And even though I tried to explain where to place his shot messed up thoroughly. And then tried to track a wounded elk for 5 miles. Needless to say he couldn't catch up to it. So I'm hoping that he pays attention to your video. Thanks again!

Used this same shot placement on a coyote today, legs curl up and they drop like a rock. The other thing happening is you are sending a shock wave, bone fragments, and bullet debris into the spine after you pass through that scapula. If you want to waste less meat on ungulates, do as many have suggested and move the shot slightly forward of the neck/shoulder junction and you will get the same result while saving good roast and steak meat. Great video sir, thanks

Outstanding video. A concise, informative and direct to the point explanation of how to humanely harvest a deer. VERY well done!

I’ve had this happen several times in my hunting career. Never really understood why and never made the correlation. Now I do. Excellent point and delivered perfectly.

In my opinion this is the very best shot. I started hunting again two years ago and this past season was able to take my first deer in over a decade. It had been a long absence for me from the deer woods. I was on a ledge and took a high shoulder shot on a buck quartering slightly towards me. He dropped instantly. Didn't even flinch. I've only done that one other time with a similar shot placement. In my opinion, high shoulder is the most ethical shot.

It always helps to get great information from a reputable source

Great advice, I use a 25-06 with bal tips and shoot the neck with the same results...but you are exactly right on high shoulder, I was young, and my friend dropped one like that pole axed we call it. High shoulder 30/30 winchester. Done it and seen it many times. Any round with power I'd say .357mag and up but 30/30 is my favorite.

New to hunting. Good video but any way you can provide still pictures of real live deer with the "kill shot" indicated. The skeleton and chart are nice but I think pictures of a buck and doe would be educational. Thanks again.

Thank you for the update brother !

What a great video. There’s not enough helpful videos like this on gun hunting

Great content and advice in this video! Keep em coming!

This is a terrific explanation! Thanks - much appreciated…

A great lesson, hope to see the results of I get a chance to go this year. Thanks for sharing!

This explains so much! I keep thinking the bullet changed path and hit the spine!

I’m just getting in to hunting and I’m so grateful for this video. I would never forgive myself if I botched a shot and caused the animal to suffer

Very well explained! Thanks

Im over 60 now. All my shots are high shoulder. Im done chasing! Great video.

Kudos on your finely made and presented video. I specially liked your introduction in which you unequivocally and clearly address the issues of ethical hunting and the humane treatment of the quarry which entails proper shot placement, shooting within your true skill range and being proficient with the back up shot. I'm an avid fan of long distance precision shooting, and though I'm not a hunter myself, I accompanied my Grandfather who was an accomplished and respected hunter ; through him I learned the ethical and sportsmanship behavior that should be observed while hunting. It saddens me that these fine and important aspects of hunting are often barred aside in many presentations and videos, and all or almost all the emphasis is directed at discussing range issues, calibers and intermediate ballistics, optics, etc., with no consideration made about terminal ballistics, effectiveness of shots and shots placement, and to discussing when is best not to attempt the shot at all, which are the hallmarks of a true hunter and sportsman. Well done!!!

Thank you for the advice!

Got a 12 gauge for Christmas. I’m 16 and ab to go hunting. Very excited!

good tip for rifle. as for the crossbow i shot a nice 10 point at 50 yards with a $250 killer instinct 380. deer ran probably 60 yards before it died.

Excellent, thank you.

thank you that was a fantastic lesson

Very informative. Good video.

Thank you for this Great Video !!!!!

Really appreciate you guys...

Thanks for the tip. I accidentally hit a nice 8 point there, from 30 yards with my crossbow, while intending to hit 3 inches lower and back. I tracked a weak blood 🩸 trail 200 yards over a 2 and half hour period and never recovered the deer 🦌. I did attempt this shot later on a doe, at 125 yards, with a 30.06. I hit slightly behind the mark but the damage done only allowed the deer to travel 30 yards. I will practice to improve for future hunts.

Interesting! Appreciate the anatomy lesson. I’ll be looking to try it this year. Thanks!

After having shot deer in several places, I wholeheartedly agree. This spot always does the trick, quickly. Works well with hogs too.

I have used both the heart shot and the shoulder shot. It is surprising how far a deer can run with a massive hole in its heart. The shoulder shot does drop it instantly, although I never knew why. Great video! Thank you!

This it very helpful thanks

thank u im going to start hunting soon so this is very helpfull i love the detail

I shoot for low in the kneck when possible. I find the high shoulder shot works very well, but makes a mess when cutting it up. Mid kneck is great if you can make it, not for everyone cause it’s not a large area at distance.

You had me at the first ten seconds. Thank you!

That quartering shot with the rifle destroyed half the loin!

Very good info

Good info.

You are exactly right here in Louisiana people like to double lung shoot them but they run forever before you find them. I always sacrifice some front shoulder meat which is crap anyway by shattering those front shoulders and I have never lost a deer. You are correct it drops them in the spot you shoot them and they do not move however you do lose a little bit of shoulder meat due to the blood shock

High neck on bucks & head shots on doe has worked for me for 20+ years. Drops them on the spot.

Good information, I’ve always done heart shots and it is amazing how far a deer can go with a heart shot, for me, as far as 45 yards! I will now concentrate on the shoulder.

I've always gone for neck and head shots, seems to work pretty good, been doin it for years.

That shot placement also works very well with my 300 Winchester on cottontails...

Merci’ , very , very useful info .

Would the meat damage issue be less of a problem if you are using a big slow caliber such as 44 Magnum, 45Colt, or 12 gauge slug?

If you use a bow or crossbow then is it a good idea to go for heart instead? Cause it might not go through shoulder blade

i have used this shot for years and not had to track one. every deer on my wall is high shoulder or neck shot and they drop on the spot. Poeple question it and think i am nuts for taking such shots just glad i see someone validate it. great video and great way to break it do, ive tried explaining all the nerve to to even my dad but most dont understand until they see it happen. Oddly this was an accidental shot i made and tried again and never went back to the behind the shoulder.

I've got a 405 crossbow. You think the shoulder shot would work with the 2inch shwacker broadheads?

Seems like an add for TenPoint. Mines about 6 years old. Drops deer every shot. At any range up to 45 yards,( haven't had a deer further yet), pinpoint accuracy. Just know your pins. On paper, 3 inch variant from center at 75 yards. I would trust it for an ear shot on a hog. With that said I would not try for the scapula, no matter how close. Should you miss the nerve bundle it will run and with a sealed wound leaving a minimal blood trail. I do like this new Tenpoint look and will check it out. Like to push the 75 yard comfort zone to 100 yards.

TY4 very gud vid! Have full 58 years deer hunting exp. Dad taught me to WAIT, PICK SHOT. #1 heart(many pepl do NOT KNOW where heart lies; 4 inches above sternum) #2 vertical line where neck meets body. You either hit jugular or, as you explain, the nerves. It has worked reliably for many sucessful years.

Wow! That's the best hunting top I've ever heard.👍 I never liked the idea of an animal running 75 yards and then expiring.

Do you have a video that shows this method when using a crossbow. I’m using a Ravin R10x 425 ft per second

Great meat and potatoes info! If you up the bow game to adult arrows and that darn scapula gets in the way they’ll make short work of it! 👍🏻

Will that work the same way with a handgun cartridge say like a 10mm

New hunter here. Out of curiosity, would this also be the suggested location for a shotgun as well? Slug I could imagine well, assuming the shot is accurate, but buckshot? This is all new to me but the one thing I know for sure is I don't want the deer to suffer. Also, I hunt in Japan, so the Shika here are about half the size of a whitetail, but I imagine the anatomy is similar.

Great video. I did this with a crossbow a few days ago on a deer at less than 10 yards. Farther, and I would not have tried, but at that close range the bolt was more like a bullet and the expanding broadhead was 2". Dropped it.

Beautiful intro song. Great video

3:30, dropped but didn’t die on the spot. Scene then cut. Taking out nerves doesn’t alway result in immediate death, it just means the deer can’t run away. So is your definition of dropping a deer meaning just that, not necessarily killing instantly?

Thanks for this video . I hunt a small property and this shot has done great for me on 2 deer this year. Dropped them on the spot , didn’t have to ruin my neighbors hunting tracking a deer

2” behind the ear in the beginning of the neck, and they drop too! You just disconnect the computer from the machinery.

Worked for me last Sunday of NY muzzleloader.. Hunt 10 acres and did not want to terrorize my neighbors with a deer on there lawn

This video was very helpful. I have a 5 acre lot and was researching shot placement to prevent runs as my previous harvest was with a bow and it almost ran off property. Not a bid deal, but something I would rather not deal with. This placement plus my 20ga slugs @

will elk and bear have the same type of reaction to a brachial plexus rifle shot? assuming the round breaks though the shoulder

Great information. Have not hunted in years (getting old) but when young I hunted a lot. I had tried the so-called heart shot with limited success. Very seldom did an animal drop immediately even though they were dead. When the .243 was first introduced one of my friends bought one and complained it would not kill a deer. I borrowed it. I also did not have much use for it after shooting a small buck at about 175 yards. The first shot through the heart only caused the buck to change direction, other than that couldn't tell it had been hit. An immediate follow up shot through the top of the shoulder dropped the buck on the spot.

Thanks

Love videos like this. And content like this. I know too many people that preach and preach and preach to use this and that broadhead, or this and that bullet. As if that is the only deciding factor to a kill. Shot placement is and always will be king. Last year I took a doe with a rage mechanical (I'll never use them again). The shot was a front facing quartering shot at the heart/lung. But my bow tilt threw the bolt towards the rear and I gut shot her rear and high. Poor shot but I lucked out by fully severing the Femoral Artery that is just below the spine. I like to inspect what my arrow or bullet actually damaged while I gut and field dress. I'll check every organ that was impacted to see exactly how it died. Basically an autopsy in the woods. But even tho I could easily prove that the shot placement cutting an artery in half. I still had family and friends giving credit to the broadhead. ANY BROADHEAD WOULD HAVE DONE THE SAME THING. All the head needed to do was cut the artery. Luck, is what happened. A lucky shot that hit the artery, forcing a rapid bleed.

I did this once on accident. Will remember this for this weekend.

7mm 08 in the bread basket works for me everytime. Shot an 8pt this year and he dropped instantly with a lung shot. Shot 3 does one dropped instantly with a heart shot, the other like 30 maybe 40 yards max with a front side through shoulder and heart, the other trotted off and died only about 30-40 yards with double lung shot. I'll stick with aiming for vitals.

Really informative - thank you! I mostly hunt with a muzzleloader and had really bad luck last year - I lost a deer and almost lost 2 others during the course of the season but was able to locate them after a lot of tracking. This year I had much better luck - almost every deer (and a black bear) dropped in its tracks. I attributed this to a change in bullet choice - went from a solid copper to a cup and core bullet. While the bullet change probably has a lot to do with the improvement I think that shot placement may have been equally or more important. I noticed that some of my deer that I almost lost (both does) last year were heart shot but left no blood trails and one actually got 70 yards away and almost out of the public land I was on. In comparison - this year I shot two large bucks and I selected a slightly higher and further forward shot than last year and both dropped in their tracks (with similar results on two does and a black bear). I didn't realize that there was a nerve component - I mostly thought the high shoulder disrupted the motor functions of the front legs but those "instant death" like reactions did look as if there was a nerve component as well - especially considering that the bones were not broken on these deer.

The deer I shot this fall was this or close to it. He was quartering-to and ended up being a high lung, spine shot. Would have hit his shoulder if he was more broadside. The only openings I had was his head and the front 1/3 of his chest. 7x8 point and by far my personal best. Wide and decent mass but not very tall.

Good breakdown, sad to see the Doe drop... The reaction shot to the bow round may seem a bit dramatic to some but when you feel it you feel it. Rough day, that one?

excellent

The first deer I ever shot was a 140lb doe with a .223(legal in PA), it was a single lung shot, only hitting one. She took off running and I took a second shot taking out the hind leg. That was what it took, now I’ve switched up to a .308

How much damage is done to the back straps by shooting the brachial plexus?

Hit one today, dropped instantly. 6.5 creedmoor, plexus, gone...first deer ever taken 😊

How does this method work on elk how far can you shoot in this spot with a 300 Win Mag 180 grain soft point? Thanks for the great video brother 🇺🇸 2A 🇺🇸

Interesting. Good to know, but I think I'll stick with the vitals.

My first two deer were taken with a. 222 Remington and both were shot center body, right where the neck meets the chest. Dropped both deer in their tracks. Stone dead. Pretty much where he said the ulnar nerve was

What about a muzzleloader? I hunt where I cant afford the deer to even go 40 yards. I have a thicket on both sides that goes 100 yards straight down. I have always shot behind the front shoulder. Anywhere else to aim, high shoulder, neck etc.. with a blackpowder? If so what grian bullet would you reccomend?

I’m just wondering if the fact that the spinal cord is behind that shoulder blade makes a difference? I mean thanks for the lecture about all the nerves though. I’m pretty sure the smashing of the spinal cord is what drops a deer in it’s track.

This shot is a great option when it works. I shot a big doe with my 06 this year. Punched through the shoulder and blew off a chunk of the heart. It only ran 30 yards, but that broken shoulder swinging around ground that whole shoulder roast to hamburger. If you knock it down, you shouldn’t have a problem

I’m trying to educate myself on the most humane shot possible. This seems to be very effective. I have read some of the concerns shared by others about meat preservation. Does this shot damage the meat? I ask because I’m very new to hunting.

Daniel, so on 5 acres ( and can’t let the deer run to neighboring property ) a shot that would most likely be 30 yds or less what would the top 5 calibers be in your opinion? I’m thinking top 2 would be 12 or 20 ga slug. Thanks for an excellent video!💥🎯🥩

Hello sir, where is the best shooting point for a deer hunting bullet with a PCP rifle?

Interesting, makes total sense… except doesn’t that shot ruin the shoulder meat? I hunt mainly for meat and a rack is a bonus here and there but I’m all for a deer going down faster to.

Best shot is the lung-heart-lung shot with longbow/crossbow at ground level or long range from above in my opinion. Doesn't drop on the spot (last 3 I've shot have gone 20, 30, and 15 yards) but saves more meat than gunshots and you're more likely to also save the heart while contributing to massive blood loss.

I spin shot mine last year, was aiming for the heart but some how I shot the spin but a kill is a kill

What could be done to quiet it down? I have a Ten Point crossbow, and don’t like the noise....

I find that if they are standing facing you looking straight at you , one between the eyes works well. I actually thought I missed that one lol , but it never took 1 step

3:23 ?? Never rest the barrel on anything to shoot. Rest on the forestock.

I learned something good here as a new hunter…!

A few questions regarding the Scope on the NXT 400; does the Scope illuminate? What type of reticule? Lined or dotted?

Your high shoulder shot does work but you will mess up a lot of meat but if you hit the neck does the same thing with less meat looks the second best is a face on shot at the halow space in the brisket otherwise stick to the hart lung shot and use enough gun

If you do want to scapular shot a deer with a bow, use a heavy grain bodkin and high poundage bow. The point as I understand it is to crack the bone and send a shock through the nervous system rather than kill by bleeding as most archery hunts do. A good heavy bodkin with a correctly tuned heavy bow should work just fine. A 3 sided bodkin will probably split the bone apart with enough force.