Elk reacting to being shot with rifle???

[belshawelk]

Thank you. Exactly why i shoot elk differently now, with different equipment. And yes i used to use a 300Wm

 

[sambo3006]

I shot a Colorado bull slightly quartering to me downhill with a 225 gr Accubond from a 338 RUM. At the shot, his front legs collapsed and his brisket hit the dirt. He stood right back up and quartered to me a little more. A second shot through the neck and into the chest dropped him for good. The first shot had shattered the big bone of the near shoulder and shredded the lungs, lodging just behind the far shoulder. No deer on this planet could have taken that first shot and stood back up. Another time, I put a 200 gr Partition from an 8mm Rem Mag through both lungs of a big Utah bull, and hit him with a quick second shot as he ran for the oak brush, shattering the front leg just below the chest. A half hour later when we could finally get to him, he was still alive and required another shot. I have witnessed a couple other elk shot by others that laid there not moving for 20 to 30 minutes after the shot, only to require a second shot to finish them off. One was a cow that jumped up and ran off, costing my friend a fractured tibia and torn ACL as he ran after her and his leg sunk down into a mud hole. I'm in the camp with the guys who say keep shooting until the elk is down, then reload and be ready when you approach.

 

[squirrel]

two good reasons to not keep flinging lead, waste of tasty elk meat, and shooting a few additional elk.

If neither of these are a concern hammer away. After a few dozen you may care about wasting the elk meat, and this will lead you to be selective on your first shot placement, never a bad thing.


Shoot two at a time and eventually you will figure out that the next day is painful.
"it hurts when I do dat". "den don do dat"

 

[brymoore]

@Braveheart Your next elk question should be about gutting/breaking down and potentially packing an elk.

I’ve been on a lot of elk kills and I still say Oh Sh*t everytime I walk up on a dead elk.

 

[Braveheart]

I am hoping the landowner will help me quarter and pack it out. He says he can get his skid steer close enough to save us the hard work. I guess I am cheating my first time, with my luck, he wont be home!!!

I have watched a shit ton of videos about it. I bought some game bags and sharpened some knives. I really wont know what to do hauling 300 plus pounds of meat home. I have butchered alot of deer. I am hoping the anatomy is close to the same just on a larger scale.

 

[Jbotto]

I have watched a shit ton of videos about it. I bought some game bags and sharpened some knives. I really wont know what to do hauling 300 plus pounds of meat home. I have butchered alot of deer. I am hoping the anatomy is close to the same just on a larger scale.

You’ll be fine. The first time I touched an elk was when I was showing a guy how to butcher one. He had shot a few at that point but always brought them to a processor, I had cut up a few dozen deer at that point and showed him how to do it. Piece of cake if you have done deer before. Everything is bigger and easier to see, there’s just more of every cut.

 

[Benfromalbuquerque]

I am hoping the landowner will help me quarter and pack it out. He says he can get his skid steer close enough to save us the hard work. I guess I am cheating my first time, with my luck, he wont be home!!!

I have watched a shit ton of videos about it. I bought some game bags and sharpened some knives. I really wont know what to do hauling 300 plus pounds of meat home. I have butchered alot of deer. I am hoping the anatomy is close to the same just on a larger scale.

It’s been my experience that there is nothing more important than cooling the meat ASAP. And not cooling by quickly packing it in ice in a cooler. An animal 3x bigger than a deer slowly dissipates heat 3x longer.
If you go with the skid steer, it’s probably better to field dress like a deer. If not then gutless and hang. It’s a big deer. If you’ve ever cleaned a salmon then you know what you’re doing.
Elk are nothing like salmon, not one bit. However, a salmon thrown in the dirt out in the sun all day and then filleted will taste strikingly similar.

 

[Tlrussell]

Well as everyone knows or might not know, I am going on my first elk hunt this fall. Since my elk IQ is weak and not having any time in the field pursuing elk. I have been reading and watching elk videos for a few months now trying to absorb what I can.

I have only shot whitetail with a rifle. Often a good shot will be signaled by a mule kick and rapid running off vs a gut shot is a humped up back and slow movement.

I have seen on video now hundreds of elk shot (thanks to youtube). I have noticed that even with 10x on the kill spot shots, the elk just seem to stand there and not act hit. I have always heard that you shot and elk more than once because they are very tough animals. I just cant seem to understand why they show no reaction to fatal gunshots.

Is this mostly the case that they dont react to a fatal hit? I will be hunting by myself and notice almost all filmed hunts the shooter has a spotter that tells him if he made a hit. When you are by yourself do you just reload and rapidly fire another shot or watch the animal for signs of being hit???

I will be using a 300 win mag with a 200 grain bullet, I cant imagine an animal not acting hit from that round. I have shot maybe a dozen white tails with it and they drop on the spot. Are most these guys in videos using a 6.5 creedmoor or are elk just that damn tough that they can absorb a hit form a magnum caliber with that much kinetic energy?

Well as everyone knows or might not know, I am going on my first elk hunt this fall. Since my elk IQ is weak and not having any time in the field pursuing elk. I have been reading and watching elk videos for a few months now trying to absorb what I can.

I have only shot whitetail with a rifle. Often a good shot will be signaled by a mule kick and rapid running off vs a gut shot is a humped up back and slow movement.

I have seen on video now hundreds of elk shot (thanks to youtube). I have noticed that even with 10x on the kill spot shots, the elk just seem to stand there and not act hit. I have always heard that you shot and elk more than once because they are very tough animals. I just cant seem to understand why they show no reaction to fatal gunshots.

Is this mostly the case that they dont react to a fatal hit? I will be hunting by myself and notice almost all filmed hunts the shooter has a spotter that tells him if he made a hit. When you are by yourself do you just reload and rapidly fire another shot or watch the animal for signs of being hit???

I will be using a 300 win mag with a 200 grain bullet, I cant imagine an animal not acting hit from that round. I have shot maybe a dozen white tails with it and they drop on the spot. Are most these guys in videos using a 6.5 creedmoor or are elk just that damn tough that they can absorb a hit form a magnum caliber with that much kinetic energy?

Unanswerable question. These guys are right. If they are standing, shoot. Be cautious if you are shooting at cows in a group. Easy to go over limit. Big bullet. Lots of powder

 

[mtmuley]

Unanswerable question. These guys are right. If they are standing, shoot. Be cautious if you are shooting at cows in a group. Easy to go over limit. Big bullet. Lots of powder

It's the powder that will get you. mtmuley Oh sorry????

 

[elkfanatic]

I love seeing the oh$#t look on newbies faces when they walk up on their first elk and ask now what five miles from the closest trail.

 

[44hunter45]

I am hoping the landowner will help me quarter and pack it out. He says he can get his skid steer close enough to save us the hard work. I guess I am cheating my first time, with my luck, he wont be home!!!

I have watched a shit ton of videos about it. I bought some game bags and sharpened some knives. I really wont know what to do hauling 300 plus pounds of meat home. I have butchered alot of deer. I am hoping the anatomy is close to the same just on a larger scale.

Even a 60" 4K TV Youtube isn't gonna help with the, "Oh shit, what have I done?" when you walk up on a down bull elk. Maybe that's why grown men cry on those videos.
But there is nothing like it.

Like you, I had processed a lot of deer before I shot my first elk. Same, just way bigger. Solo, you are going to need rope or gear to flop that thing around. I roll a deer on it's back and straddle it if I'm going to gut it. Turning over an elk takes a lot of rope and high school wrestling moves. To roll an elk, start by getting the head facing the way you want everything to go. Seems obvious, but you can forget a lot of things in that moment. My second elk died in a kneeling position in the blow downs. A saw or axe helps in those situations.

I'm not trying to intimidate you. If you can process a deer, you CAN process an elk. Traditional or Gutless, one man can do it. I've quartered more than I can count by myself.

I actually like de-boning elk more than deer. The same way I prefer wrenching on my GMC vs my Toyota Tercel.

If you are planning taxidermy, don't short yourself on the cape. Go at least to the last rib. Your taxidermist can trim a lot easier than they can stretch.

If you are allergic to wasp stings, make sure you have your Epi pen. Sometimes I think yellow jackets steal more meat than bears. They will arrive shortly after the first cut, and they will defend it.

As far as how many shots. I've had them drop DRT, but I have had them take as many as 6 180 grain .30-'06 rounds before staying down. Just make sure you get locked in so the first one counts. The rest are insurance. If a bull gets jacked up on adrenaline from a bad first shot, they can soak up a pack full of ammo. This effects the taste of the meat, too. If you have time, go through a dry fire sequence to get settled down.

Good luck and enjoy the hunt.

 

[RKstillhunt'n]

Well as everyone knows or might not know, I am going on my first elk hunt this fall. Since my elk IQ is weak and not having any time in the field pursuing elk. I have been reading and watching elk videos for a few months now trying to absorb what I can.

I have only shot whitetail with a rifle. Often a good shot will be signaled by a mule kick and rapid running off vs a gut shot is a humped up back and slow movement.

I have seen on video now hundreds of elk shot (thanks to youtube). I have noticed that even with 10x on the kill spot shots, the elk just seem to stand there and not act hit. I have always heard that you shot and elk more than once because they are very tough animals. I just cant seem to understand why they show no reaction to fatal gunshots.

Is this mostly the case that they dont react to a fatal hit? I will be hunting by myself and notice almost all filmed hunts the shooter has a spotter that tells him if he made a hit. When you are by yourself do you just reload and rapidly fire another shot or watch the animal for signs of being hit???

I will be using a 300 win mag with a 200 grain bullet, I cant imagine an animal not acting hit from that round. I have shot maybe a dozen white tails with it and they drop on the spot. Are most these guys in videos using a 6.5 creedmoor or are elk just that damn tough that they can absorb a hit form a magnum caliber with that much kinetic energy?

He's a runner

 

[DVCER]

Smash the front shoulder and they crumple. Even with the lowly.308.

 

[blacksheep]

I shot mine across a big draw @ 315 yds. Two 162gr ELD-X out of my 7mm dropped him like a rock. Didn't take 2 maybe 3 steps. Dirtnap.

blacksheep

 

[hank4elk]

Bang, and they drop. Sometimes after 100 yards. Most times in 20 ft.

Sometimes they get up after 4 rounds and keep trying.

Practice carrying 3 WT to prepare for an elk.

 

[Redman]

Seldom had the same reaction when I shoot them. Last one I shot back in 21 I thought had missed him completely. My wife was watching and said "No you hit him! I watched him stmble and heard the bullet smack!" From the recoil and the sound of the shot I didn't see or hear the impact. The bull ran flat out like the rest of the herd. He ran into a drainage where I couldn't see him go down and the rest of the elk went up and over the mountain and there were elk that I couldn't see join them. He died less than a 100yds from where he was standing. It was dry and didn't find hair or blood. Couldn't see him laying dead until I climbed up and glassed down in the drainage.

 

[Idahoarcheryhunter]

Take shots your comfortable with and shoot it until it goes down.

I’ll keep killing elk with my non magnums and vld’s……

 

[Fayez]

Keep shooting until your out of shells or it's down. They can take heart shots and keep on trucking. I shot a bull at 100 yards, broadside. Absolutely destroyed his heart, he turned and ran straight away from me. I kept shooting and 400 yards later he dropped. I hit him in the ass and the lower jaw as he was running away, missed with a fourth shot.

I have shot elk on purpose in high shoulder and they dropped on the spot but that was when I had time to call my shot. Get them down before they die in a hell hole.

Shot a 6X6 bull elk using 7mm 150 grain on public land in Canada. First hit on the brisket and the other in the gut.
Bull ran approximately 500 yards and collapsed on a private property. Fighting a court case and need to prove that an elk can travel such distance after being shot in the described manner.
My lawyer says we will need expert opinion from fellow hunters who had similar experience.

 

[wytex]

Make the 1st shot count and follow ups are not needed.

 

[Laelkhunter]

And then the bull that flops over upon impact, lays there for a minute but gets up to escape. That will mess with your head.

Yes !!! I'm sure we have all read about the hunter that shoots the elk (or maybe deer), then walks up to it and puts his rifle on the elk/deer to take the usual "grip and grin" photo. At that time the animal jumps up and runs off with the rifle/sling in it's antlers never to be seen again. If it really happened as many times as I read about it, there would be rifles everywhere in the mountains.