If infection sets-in you can actually smell in on the deer.  I've never shot one like that but the folks I've hunted with who have wouldn't go near it with a 10 foot pole.

It really depends on the injury itself. If, like Davis said, it is a recent injury and there is infection then, all of the meat will be bad because the infection will travel throught the blood and enter into all the other meat. However, if it is an old injury that has healed and the animal appears otherwise healthy, the meat should be just fine. The only thing is, the damaged leg will have very little meat since it is muscle and if the animal can't use it then he can't build the muscle tissue. I honestly can't tell from the picture because of the text on it. I have eaten meat from animals with old injuries and there was no difference in the meat that I could tell. Also, if the animal is in real bad shape, you may want to go on and put it down just to be humane. Put him out of his misery so to speak.

"Hate me if you want to, Love me if you can" Git-R-Done!

Thanks

i have shot 2 three legged deer in my life, the injuries had all healed nicely and they were otherwise healthy.....and tastey

Last year I shot a buck that looked just like that one.  I shot it on opening weekend thinking he had recentlyl been injured.  I actually saw him stumble a couple of times and I reluctantly decided to burn one of my buck tags to put him out of his misery.  The stress of the injury had caused his horns to grossly malform where he had 2 points on one side and 5 on the other. Both sides spiraled up together almost making him look like a unicorn.

After shooting the deer I was really suprised when I went to get him and noticed that the injury had obviously happened the year before and had actually healed up as good as it was going to.  It looked like someone had shot off his front leg at the 1st joint and the rest of that leg just atrophied up.  There was no infection, and the meat was just fine.  I did not try to keep anything off that front right shoulder.

In retrospect, I'm really glad I shot the deer.  Would have been really sad to have him trying to survive such a rough year out in the Rocksprings area, as hindered as he was trying to walk.

Thanks. This buck in the picture is also in the rocksprings area.  Im pretty sure if I see him I'll take him down. 

Old injury...you're fine.

Infection...no bueno.

Quote: (larrymeador)  The stress of the injury had caused his horns to grossly malform where he had 2 points on one side and 5 on the other. Both sides spiraled up together almost making him look like a unicorn......

After shooting the deer I was really suprised when I went to get him and noticed that the injury had obviously happened the year before and had actually healed up as good as it was going to.

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Interesting, I work with veterinarians around the world.  A veterinarian in Tennessee told me last year that he had always heard that if a deer got an injury to one leg, the antler on the opposite side would be malformed the next year.

His son had shot a deer they knew to have a previous year leg injury and the antlers confirmed what he had been told.  Your story further backs that theory up to an extent.  Do you know if the 2 point antler was opposite the leg injured?