I am not debating if the using is considered ethical because to me a hunter needs to do any legal thing they can do to recover downed deer. I am red/green color blind and can barely see a high volume blood trail, never the drip trails my father and son aid me with but my dad is medically unable to deer hunt any more and my son is relocating for work so my deer hunting will probably to solo from now on and I need to find a method of game recovery that I can have some confidence in. Have tried blood lights, sprays, first gen low end IR devices without any real success. Newer gen IR's are coming out now with prices that are within my reach and would like to know what ones, if any, anyone thinks is working. This is for JUST recovering a downed animal - but most often in heavy cover.

I think you want thermal, not IR.

If it went down pretty fast you still should be able to find , but if a deer traveled very far and layed down and died , the heat would probably leave it before your thermal image could even detect it i would think.

When we shoot a deer and it snows within a few minutes the fur insulates the deer so well that it doesn't melt. I would think it would be very hard for any kind of heat sensing device to work very well. Do you know anyone that could let you barrow one?

I'm also red/green color blind and it's a real struggle. I need to get on my hands and knees just to see the best of blood trails. Let me know if you find something that works.

They just bought some new pocket-sized thermal imaging cameras for the officers at our local fire department. They cost about $300. They are so effective you can see the residual footprints in the carpet someone just walked across. You can see wiring inside the walls, hot manifolds inside of an engine compartment, etc. I'm sure you could see the warm core of a deer that has been dead for hours, even though the outer surface is as cold the surrounding environment. It's amazing how you can see in the dark with those things.

thermal would work like a charm. If the deer is down within sight you could find it in about 10 seconds. However even having that in the truck with you during deer season down here will get a nice ticket and the game warden a new toy to play with. handheld or not.

My near 15 year old blue heeler is what you need.

Not allowed here either but TIC (Thermal Imaging Camera) would help you easily locate a downed animal fora couple hours after the shot.

The TIC would show the body, but you would need to be eye ball close already, wouldn't you?
Would the tracks or blood drops retain enough heat to show up later?

Dog would for sure be best/fastest way, if trained and if legal.

their is a thermal camera that plugs into your smart phone. Cabelas has it $200 ish. But I guess it drains the juice from your phone quickly.

A good blood tracking dog is the best and surest way of recovering wounded big game. Unfortunately tracking big game with a dog is not allowed in MN.
https://www.unitedbloodtrackers.org/state-regulations/

The IR devices in the '90s weren't real effective. Fortunately technology has advanced considerably since then. Best of luck in your quest.

Many years ago, my brother shot a doe in the front shoulder at about 30 yards. She ran off. There would be a spot of blood every 20 yards or so. He was sure he hit the deer in the front shoulder. We searched for several hours and ran out of blood. We told a neighbor in the area. He brought his beagle into the area. The dog found the dead deer within 5 minutes. The bullet hit bone and never exited the body. The only blood was coming from the deer's mouth.

There's a fine line between running deer with a dog and finding a dead deer.

Thermal may be the correct technology description. I'm not talking about what is in visible nightscopes. It shows heat differences. FLIR is one brand/maker(but till now the were several K to 10K) for professional use. They can image standing Big game for thousands of yards quite clearly. Newer less expensive(hundreds) are now being offered but are not as sensitive. I tried a SEEK handheld last season(not the smart phone add-on as I don't have one) and it showed a standing person out to a few hundred feet but didn't show a downed deer in heavy cover until close enough to see it without it. Internet vids and reviews are intriguing but need verifying before spending 6-7 hundred or more(without unconditional return policy as the SEEK did have). I have used very hi-end thermal readers on the job and they show amazing images but am not able to afford one of those or borrow to test for game recovery.

When I have hunted solo in the past I have only taken head, neck or spinal shot and dropped them where they stand but that eliminates many other lethal shot opportunities and makes potential CWD a concern. I know thermal is the tech I need just waiting to see what it will cost me.

Even if it was legal pretty hard to train family dog to leash trail downed deer and not have it running every other one that crosses its path when the wife is walking it or when bird hunting.

sounds like it is time to start petitioning the MDNR to allow dogs and or thermal , maybe make it so that you can not have a weapon on you when locating with thermal since they don't trust you.

start talking about your disability with your state rep and get them to start in on the DNR for not accommodating you.

I'm in the same boat as you are, really stinks when you can't see a 10' circle of blood!

I just purchased a Flir this summer for the same purpose you speak of. The amount of heat it detects is amazing. It would pick up a dead deer at least an hour after the shot. The only weakness if you must have a clear line of sight.

I have a Flir III 240. When I say you need a line of site I mean it will not see through golden rod etc. however I can say I can easily spot deer 10 yards or so inside a woods that I cannot see with a naked eye. Well worth the money in my opinion.