Bowhunting Fail Put on Display

The photo above, showing a unique display of deer ribs that have healed and grown around a broken-off arrow, was recently posted to a Facebook page for Vintage Bear Archery gear by Robert Stegall, with the following caption:

So today is my 30th birthday and for a long time I’ve wanted this! My dad shot this deer several years ago when he dressed it out he found this! Someone shot the deer years prior, but it wasn’t a fatal shot. It broke a few ribs and the arrow broke off, but it used the arrow as a splint and the bone growed around the shaft ( notice the Bear Razorhead)! Thanks dad for a great birthday gift!

Now that’s a cool gift. It’s an interesting display and an excellent conversation piece, and to me, a superb example of why bowhunting ain’t great.

Before you start flaming me, I will add that I have taken deer with arrows myself and probably will hunt with them in the future. But whenever I have the choice, I will carry a firearm. I do that out of respect for the animals I hunt.

Firearms simply provide a greater margin of error, and I believe the game we pursue deserves the most merciful death we can give them.

When I feel the need to add some challenge, I hunt with a handgun instead of a rifle.

Anyhow, enjoy this cool display piece that shows how amazing God’s creatures can be, and please use great care with shot placement no matter whether you hunt with bows, guns, or both.

Russ Chastain

Editor & Contributing Writer Russ Chastain is a lifelong hunter and shooter who has spent his life learning about hunting, shooting, guns, ammunition, gunsmithing, reloading, and bullet casting. He started toting his own gun in the woods at age nine and he's pursued deer with rifles since 1982, so his hunting knowledge has been growing for more than three and a half decades. His desire and ability to share this knowledge with others has also grown, and Russ has been professionally writing and editing original hunting & shooting content since 1998. Russ Chastain has a passion for sharing accurate, honest, interesting hunting & shooting knowledge and stories with people of all skill levels.