Went hunting with my buddy this weekend. He shot a running doe but it ran off. I tracked it down and it was still alive and moving. I finished it off.

I said, "looks like we both got this one, wanna split it?" He immediately replied "sure!"

But now I'm second guessing myself, should I have given the whole thing to him since he got the first shot?

This is my first time shooting a deer so not sure what proper etiquette is.

Both parties in agreement to split. Both parties get deer meat. Happy hunters on both sides. I don't see a problem here. If it was a reluctant sure, then maybe just let him have the whole deer. He got the first hit and apparently enough damage to result in a recovery. I guess it depends on how solid the "sure" was. If he is an experienced hunter, and it's your first time, he is probably good with it. I would certainly be fine splitting a dear to support a new hunter.

I voted split it, because that's what you agreed to.

I the state of WI whomever finds the harvested animal is entitled to the spoils.

Sounds like you have a great hunting partner. Around here everyone involved in the days hunt gets a piece of the meat.

Try that with a 10 pt buck sometime and get back to us.

Who tagged it?

The law here is whoever tags the carcass first is the lawful owner of the carcass.  Does not matter, legally, who shot the deer.  

If you happen upon a dead deer in the woods and tag it, it's your deer.  Whoever shot the deer has no legal recourse as far as I know.  


Whatever you two can peacefully agree to is the right answer.  What that is doesn't really matter to me.  


In our hunting party, generally speaking, whoever put the first fatal shot on it, gets dibs on the carcass.  So, if I shot the deer 1 lung and liver, that's a fatal hit.  If someone else in the party finishes it, it's my deer.  If I hit it in the leg, and someone else double lungs it, it's their deer.  If we can't tell or are unsure of which round hit where, we just come up with some sort of agreement.

Being it’s your buddy, yal did the right thing.

If it was a stranger technically it’s yours.

I would have done the same.

Question is, if it was a stud buck, what would you have done?

Split because you don't renege on a deal with your buddy. Now who's tag should get burned on it is a separate conversation.

He tagged it, I bought dinner 😁

Neither of us care about the money, just wanted to make sure I wasnt being a dick laying claim to the deer.

Thanks for everyones input!

If a wounded deer is still moving, walking, it is fair game for whoever shoots next.

If a wounded deer is laying on the ground not able to move, except maybe it's head.  I would say it belongs to original shooter. It just needs finished off.  

Last month my brother got a nice 8 point with his muzzleloader, it "ran" into the woods about 10 feet.  The deer was looking around, just could not walk.  He was out of primers and could not fire a kill shot.  
I walked over and finished the job.  I kidded him about "my" deer but  gave it to him as he got it.

Hunting with a buddy, I would have given it to him.  But splitting it is a fair compromise.  

It's a doe, not some trophy. You are friends. Stop being petty and both of you eat well and stay happy.

What would Moses do?

+1

I voted buddies deer. I think it as far as proper etiquette goes it’s his but splitting it is definitely what friends would do in my opinion. Hell if I go with my buddies and I drop one in its tracks and my my buddy doesn’t we are gonna share it and vice versa.

My brother in law got the first deer of the year, we split it. I got two this past Saturday and he got skunked. He will get all he wants from those two.

This. He shot it first, he makes the call. If he's fine sharing then enjoy your half. If he doesn't want to share, congratulate him on success and shoot your own.

Either way, that's one that won't get hit by a car.

If two people shoot the same deer, I’ve always gone by whoever took first blood.

But in this case you knew eachother and agreed.

If it was a stranger who shot it and you tracked it down first and finished it, still their deer.  If it was a stranger who shot it and gave up the chase and you tracked it to the end, your deer.

Take back straps and give him the rest, or vice versa.

I've gotten a lot of geese on public ground when the guy who winged it was too lazy to follow up. Never had it happen with deer. I hunt one farm, my group and the neighbor's group help each other out when one is wounded. The one shithead who hunted the same area has been gone for years and none of us want to start that shit again.

Long story, but it's relevant to this thread.

About 10 years ago, was hunting muzzleloader season with our usual group.  One of my best friends is the son of the land owner.     Anyway, I had never hunted this particular farm and they put me in the point of a creek that dumped out into a big cut corn field.   I think there were 8 of us total with 4 people on stand and the other pushing the property and woods.   I hear a bunch of shooting across the road and was wondering who was target shooting during hunting season.   About 10 minutes later I see my buddy blazing down the road in his truck and he stopped and started yelling at me to come to the truck.  He was at the top of a ridge and shooting at a buck down on the edge of the field below him.  He said he hit the buck but ran out of bullets for his muzzleloader and was headed back to the house to get more, but told me where to go and gave the instruction, if it is still alive - put it down.

I walk out across the road to the other field and head in the direction on where he told me to go.  Soon I was able to see the deer thrashing around in the thicket.   He had spined the deer.  I got about 30 yards away and put the finishing shot on the buck.   This buck was a freaking beautiful 11 point that scored in the 170's.  Biggest deer that I've ever laid eyes on in the wild.    It was spine hit, caught up in the multiflora rose thicket and was not going anywhere.    

Anyway, the rest of the group got there and then my buddy got back and we all celebrated a little.  Gutted the deer and then loaded him up so my buddy could go show it to his dad.....and that is where the story got interesting.   My buddy was telling his dad about how it all unfolded and when he mentioned that I was the one that finished the deer off, his dad immediately said "Oh, so Timberghost is the one that killed the deer?   Then that is his buck and not yours."   I tried to explain that the buck was unable to run away, would have died and I just finished him off to avoid suffering.....  To which his dad said (and his dad was not one you wanted to mince words with) said, yeah....you killed that buck and congratulations.

There was some seriously awkward silence and his dad walked back to the barn.   My buddy walked up to me and said "My dad is right, that is your buck."     There was absolutely no effing way I was going to lay claim to that deer and I told him as much.

Interestingly enough, situations like that happened several other times over the years and people were fighting over who got to keep a deer.   For that past couple of years, my buddy and I are the only two people that still have permission to hunt on their property.

TLDR - People go full retard when it comes to killing a nice buck.

That last line is absolutely true.  When I started deer hunting, I tagged out on opening morning-early. Didn't want to quit hunting so I grabbed a bird gun.

Wound up finding a big buck sleeping in the bushes, left and went to get the neighbors who still had a tag.

That deer wound up scoring 162, and the guy who bowhunted the farm was PISSED. Tried to get my father in law to quit letting me hunt the farm.

Fuck it, I can't kill them all. If you have a good day today, maybe tomorrow will be my turn.

Well, this is considered proper etiquette in Mississippi in disputes over contested road-kill deer  -  basically cussing, threats, and blunt instruments:

https://archive.org/details/mov-8448

It depends on where it has been shot. If it has been gut shot or lots of bullet holes I always give it up!

Absolutely this!


I voted OP's deer because in OH it would legally be his, but splitting it with your buddy is definitely the cool thing to do.

I put down a 7 point my stepdaughter shot high and severed the spine behind the shoulders.  He wasn't going anywhere but wasn't dying quickly either. I never once considered it mine. But that's a different story.
 I think since you were both happy, it's fine. Just remember when shoe is on the other foot.

It’s a doe and was dead on its feet. Split it and be happy!

ETA that’s one hell of a bad day for that doe