10/21/2026
Hunter shot a buck. Dark blood, broken arrow, everything pointing to a liver hit, possibly catching stomach or lung too. He did what a lot of us do. Tracked until the blood ran out, then called us.
I brought my second pilot, Chris, so we could cover ground fast. Lots of open farmland broken up by patches of woods, any of which could hold a bedded deer.
About four fifths of a mile out, right at the edge of a woodline, the thermal picked up a fox working on something. As I dropped in, the fox ran off.
It was a deer leg. Completely detached, scapula to hoof, already being chewed down.
Based on the line of travel, we're confident that was his buck. And here's the hard truth: if a leg is already torn off and carried away, the rest of that deer has been opened up and scattered by coyotes and foxes. Thermal works off body heat. An opened, scattered carcass cools fast and the signature breaks apart. There was nothing left to recover.
Here's what every bowhunter needs to understand.
On a liver hit, the advice is to back out and give it hours. That advice exists so you don't push the deer. But predators aren't on your clock. Coyotes and foxes can find a dying or dead deer in a short window, especially overnight.
A drone takes that dilemma off the table. We search from the air with thermal. We don't walk the blood trail, we don't bump the deer, and we can cover hundreds of acres in the time it takes to grid search one section on foot. You can respect the wait AND get eyes on the deer before the coyotes do.
Don't wait until you've lost blood to call. Call when you hit the deer. We'll talk through the shot and plan the search.
Precision Drone Services
Maryland's first drone deer recovery specialist, serving MD, DE, VA and PA since 2021
Call 443-982-6782
Text 717-379-1529
Share this with your hunting buddies. It might save someone's buck this season.
