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I carried a legit backup weapon when I first started bow hunting but have backed off in recent years.
I used to carry a ruger GP 100 .357. One day I came across a forky buck while bow hunting (and IT WAS legal to shoot a buck with a gun with the tag and season dates I was within) and popped him square in the shoulder. Long story short, I followed him up found him (i dodnt know that he was not not dead yet) and went to dress him out. I ended up in a hand to horn fight to the death with him and rode him for 15yds before I killed him with my knife.
After I cleaned my underwear out and started skinning him I found that the only lethal penetration I got from the gun was from a few bone fragments into one lung. The Federal Home Defense load I had completely disintegrated on impact.
As I said, long story short, I would not suggest using a pistol for hunting unless you had some very well constructed bullets with A LOT of powder behind them.
I carry a pistol on me every time I leave the house but have NO desire to ever hunt with one ever again.
BUT, had you shot him BEHIND the shoulder the bullet probably would have penetrated the vitals
Shot placement is key.