Another note from my experience…….a deer hit in the heart or lungs with any bullet or slugs is a dead deer quickly regardless of what you hit it with. Bullet placement is key. A deer can go a long way with an improper hit. But they die quickly and cleanly with a proper hit.
On the estate where I hunt, we often get crop damage permits. Even though it is shotgun only during the regular season, we were allowed to use any gun for crop damage deer. I liked to test different calibers on those deer and have used everything from a 22 magnum up to 30-06. We’d kill a bunch of deer and then call the game warden to pick them up. We weren’t allowed to keep them. I used a 22 magnum near the big house so I wouldn’t wake my friend’s wife with the shot. She liked to sleep to noon. I never took a shot over 50 yards and killed quite a few with lung shots. They only run about 50 yards with a lung shot. I am not recommending a 22 magnum on deer, but the use of a 22 magnum highlights my point that a deer shot in the lungs is a dead deer quickly regardless of what you use. My favorite deer load is a 243 with a 100 grain hand load, followed by a 270 with a 130 grain handload. Deer taken from fields with those loads usually dropped in their tracks. I have also killed moose in Saskatchewan with that 270 130 grain handload. A lung hit moose usually dies within 80 yards or so. I’ll say it again, bullet placement is everything.
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