Loss of Blood Trail

When tracking wounded game, it is possible to lose the blood trail. There can be multiple reasons why, such as:

• Internal organs, or the arrow plugs or obscures the entry and/or exit wounds.
• The shot hit high in the body and blood is pooling in the chest and/or abdominal cavity.
• The animal may have bled out but is still traveling.

If you lose the blood trail:

• Begin a systematic search by making ever widening circles.
• Use a grid search pattern where you make ever widening paths with right turns.
• Use maps or GPS to make sure you are checking the entire area.
• Look for the white underbelly of a downed deer.