Mac,

I agree with you 100% that having to go into the weeds to sort out an angry bite-back is not good. That is precisely the reason I like to just go ahead and decapitate the dang thing and be done with it. The thing I don't like about the chest shot, is that even if you make a good one, there is still a pretty good chance he's gonna run off into the briars, especially here in east Texas where the briars and thorns are so ridiculously dense. And even if you don't have to worry about a charge, you still have to find him, and in this briar patch that is often a nightmare for me, especially when I shoot something right at sunset! Another thing that makes it kind of a pain is the fact that when it comes to tracking, if there is not a decent blood spoor, I have a problem because I am not exactly what you would call an Apache scout. I do not have PH's and trackers to help me when I shoot him in the chest and he runs into the thorn and briar scrub.

And with a chest shot on a buffalo, if you only get one lung, you could REALLY have a lot of drama on your hands.

I will give you an example. Back in June I decapitated a wild boar. I could have just as easily heart shot him, but the clearing he was in was only about 5 yards across. The last thing in the world I felt like doing that night was going into that tangled briar mess and sort out an angry chest shot wild boar alone. And even if he dies before I reach him, I don't have to worry about a charge, but that doesn't make finding him in all that crap any easier. Why in the heck would someone want to have all that drama on their hands? I hate drama! I say just decapitate the dang thing and call it a day.

I know what you are thinking - I need to improve my tracking skills. Yes well, believe me, I try, and I would like nothing more than to be the next Davy Crockett, but as of now, I am not quite there yet. Even if I were, though, it is still a thousand times easier for me just to decapitate the thing, and head for the casa, eat dinner and get a warm shower.

Obviously, the decapitation shot is not available for me every time, but IMHO, all too often, I see people fail to take advantage of it when the animal is just BEGGING to be decapitated!

Ingwe