Deer Jumping the String

[dxthunter57]

my buddy missed a doe last week he said she was at 15 yards and he said she jumped the string
he also has a problem of lying
im not saying he is and i havent told him anything that i dont believe him but could a deer jump a string at 15 yards
he has a mathews switchback so it is very quiet
he told me the deer had no idea he was there
and he said he shot at the heart and it sailed over her back
at what range can you expect the deer to be able to jump the string
could she jump the string at that close of yardage

[PrairieShadow]

As a rule of thumb for myself,
 
I feel anything inside of 30yds is impossible for a deer to jump the string.

[Woods Walker]

Short answer......YES!
 
Deer have reaction capabilities that we mere humans cannot even begin to comphrehend. They have to...their lives depend on it.
 
Now in your friend's case, I will mention a couple of points, that MAY apply, as I was not there and didn't see it.
 
1. The deer may have not known that he was there (if it had, he may well have never even gotten the shot off in the first place), but the deer could have been in "alert" mode due to a trace of scent (from either your friend, another deer, coyote, 'coon, etc.), or maybe your friend had used a call of some sort a while before it came by. The deer could have just simply had a case of the "willies", as they are wont to do. It doesn't really matter what caused it.....if it was in even a reduced alert mode it's reaction time is even that much more quicker.
 
2. If the deer was standing still when he shot, and not engaged in an activity like eating, or sniffing another deer, then it could very well "jump" even a fast bow like as Mathews. They ARE fast, but the last I looked, they are stil NOT supersonic.
 
    This is the reason why I like to shoot at a deer with an arrow as it's taking a step forward...preferably the inner front leg coming forward. A deer that is in motion, sacrifices a bit of it's ability to react. It may not be much, but that nano-second can be the difference between a hit, or a miss/wound.
 
As I learned to bowhunt after several years of gun hunting, I realized that one of the more difficult aspects of making a good killing shot on deer with the bow, was learning WHEN to shoot. This is one of those things where experience is not only the best teacher, but maybe the ONLY one.
 
This is also why I like to shoot at deer that are engaged in feeding activity, as they are mentally occupied with food, and their head/eyes, while always in defensive mode, are more occupied with where the food is, and that will gain you some precious seconds.

[Patriot]

I'd say it's user error in this case.  I'd say there is a VERY small chance a deer could jump the string on a 15 yard shot...especially one shot with a fast bow like a Mathews.
 
It is possible that the deer saw your buddy and was starting to duck and run just as he released the arrow, but to duck 8-10 inches on a 15 yard shot seems highly unlikely.

[mag30079]

Anything is possible in hunting.
 
You have reason to believe your buddy is full of it, then he probably is. I did so work with a bow company on this subject. We placed microphones at 20,30,and 40 yards and recorded the shot. I gave them (bow company) the data and they compaired it to what they had and told me that 20 yards was the cut off for a deer jumping the string on todays compound bows.
 
As woods walker said if the deer is on alert its much more plausible.
 
A red flag for me is your buddy said he took a heart shot, most of the guys I've talked to shoot for the lungs with a bow not the heart. I'm not saying its right or wrong. My opinion is if your off on a heart shot you could hit the shoulder bone and not recover the deer or wound the deer.
 
I hope I didn't open a can or worms, just wanted to share some inside info with ya.

[Bowtechian]

 Your friend was probably telling the truth that he was "aiming" at the heart, but I doubt the arrow was going to hit there if the deer stood still. Fifteen yards is less than a split second even for a Mathews.[:D]

[paulie]

I will testify that a deer can move with lightning speed!! Two years ago, I took a shot at a deer (between 20-25 yrds) totaly relaxed, when I released the arrow, my upper cam struck the roof of the blind making a very pronounced "thud"[:@]!  My arrow sailed wide left, and before it was anywhere near him,(Im talkin a fraction of a second) he had turned a full 90 degrees, and was well on his way to the next county ! Needles to say, I missed[:(]! Now I dont know if your buddy is being honest with you or not, but I do know from first hand experience, that it is quite possible for a deer to move that fast!

[JOEL]

deer crouch lower to the ground before they launch into hyperspace .you can very easily shot over a deer because of this.thats why its better to shot center mass than a lower heart shot

[vipermann7]

If your buddy may be lying, I would guess he is in this case. A heart shot is a pretty low shot. if the deer ducked the arrow, it would have to have been damn near lying on the ground when the arrow got there to still duck the arrow, especially at only 15 yards. that close of range does produce a little smaller target than say 25 yards away(from a treestand that is), but 15 yards is pretty close. Its not impossible for the deer to duck the arrow, but if it was relaxed like he also said, very unlikely. it could have been alerted and maybe your buddy didnt know, and so perhaps it did jump the string. from what you wrote however, I am inclined to believe he just made a bad shot. yeah, deer are fast and have some good reaction time, but it is still awfully hard for a relaxed deer to duck an arrow at such close range. not impossible, but highly unlikely, i would guess, in this case.

[fasteddie]

When you make a bad shot , you have to blame it on something other than you just made a bad shot . I had aimed low on a couple deer a few years ago , thinking that they would "jump the string" and shot under them . Apparently they hadn't read the articles that I had read or they would have known they were supposed to lower their bodies and leap ! [8|]