re: Tracking a buck after being shot

slapahoe,
Too late for y'all now, but the key is to handle it differently next time (and there WILL be a next time) you're encountered w/ a deer that has a marginal hit. A deer w/ a marginal hit may well die Just lie your buddy's deer may well die), but not immediately. If one doesn't find a good blood trail or LUNG blood near where the deer was standing at the shot, the hunter should back off the trail for at least a couple of hours (depending on time of day) just like some earlier posters said.

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Without a dog, y'all should of backed off at that point and waited till morning. If he was bedding down, he is hit bad enough that he will not make it. Never push a deer unless you have a good tracking dog.

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W/ or W/o a trailing dog, there's still a very good chance you'll find the deer today IF it was gut/liver shot. If not, you probably won't find it, even w/ a dog.