My initial thought was the bullet type was to blame. I'm not trying to start a debate or a bullet war, but shoulder shots are the bread and butter of WFN HC bullets. Deer flesh and bones are easy to penetrate, and in my opinion, and only my opinion 😉 an expanding bullet creates more damage and leaves much better blood trails. I know I use a lot of single shots, but the deer I've shot with 44 revolvers and expanding bullets bled like hell. Shot placement is much more important than bullet type though. I say this all the time, but testing bullets on your own game animals is soooo much more telling than info that you would read. Sh*t happens though..keep at it👍