Stock design and rifle weight have slot to do with recoil also.

Time shooting will help her too, imo.

6.5 grendel gets my vote, perfect for deer hunting. I'vee used about everything out there, and I carry one for deer/bear hunting when shots are going to be 350 yards and under. this was my 53rd deer season, harvested 2 bucks and a doe with it

7x57 139gr Hornady SST is my caliber of choice. To me it is the perfect caliber. 257 Roberts would be my choice for whitetails. My wife shoots a .243 95gr Hornady SST, everything she has shot dropped there or within sight of the shot.

Any excuse is good to buy a New Rifle

If I know someone is recoil sensitive, I want to see their targets, and even more so if shot at the same distance and from the same place they are shooting from in the field. They have to be able to reliably place all shots inside a 4 to 5 inch circle at that distance and from that place. If they can do that, they are good to go with most rifles, including a 243. If not, it's not the rifle's fault. Shooter needs a lot more help with time on the trigger.

223. No recoil. Kills them dead. Use a good bullet and put it in the right place. No problem. Any doubters I would ask how many deer have you shot with a 223?

Around here, first blood takes it regardless of finishing shot by another.

Either way, she didn’t waste the deer, it was recovered. I can see being disappointed but she shouldn’t beat herself up about it. IMO. Get back on the horse!

Not sure about this case but imo a lot of “get aways” are wrongly blamed on the rifle.

If you can't hit the right place with a 243 then a heavier recoiling rifle is not the answer. What she needs it trigger time and an understanding in deer anatomy. If you load that 243 with something like a 90 grain TSX or TTSX, there is not a deer on this continent that will walk away inside 300 yards IF you hit the right spot.
If you want more energy down range, you will get a harder thump on the shoulder in return. You just cant beat physics.

Just my 2 cents worth and probably worth less than that.

I have used a 243 for many years, on open country deer. Use 100 gr nosler partition bullets and reload. Lots of 200 yard shots . Prefer heart lung shots They are down within 100 yards., death run. If later in the day, I will use a front shoulder shot and down them in place.. Quite often find bullet , under the skin on the opposite side. . I use a 308 auto loader with a peep sight for brush hunting, 180 gr nosler partitions, for deer and moose. I have shot my grand daughters & mm 08 , and really like the round , I loaded her up some 140 gr nosler partitions. I think lots of practice , know your rifle and a good bullet are the places to start. old 243

Interesting.

I suspect we have a lot more people hunting a given tract of public land than you do; but around here, the [general] consensus is the one who anchors it to the ground is the victor. Having said that, it's not iron-clad...you have a young kid hit a deer and you drop it when it runs by? c'mon...give the kid his deer. and a pat on the back...

I've personally shot 2 deer with the 22 250. More energy than the 223. Both well placed shots. Both recovered within a 100yds. But I didn't like the terminal performance I saw. 22 calibers. 22 calibers put too many limitations on shots on deer for my preference.

I've also helped track 2 deer shot with 223. One good shot placement, one probably poor shot placement. Neither any blood which made recovery very difficult. No blood with either of my 22-250 kills either.

Totally agree with you white marlin..... what a scumbag for taking his kids deer a young girl at that how proud can he really be of it...really following this thread have a daughter I need to buy a rifle for soon

Some of you guys are missing the entire point of this thread He is wanting some caliber that has a better margin for error. Less recoil. Plus makes recovery easier. His hunting place is going to get thicker as time goes on. Not every one hunts spots that you can watch the deer fall over after running 75-150 yards. He’s wanting this for his kid . You haven’t felt anxious until you are looking for a a deer you know is dead but had ran into a maze of tunnels in briars over your head. Multiple that times infinity when a young hunter is behind the gun shaking with excitement

Stop with the 243,223, will kill stuff. We know it will. More deer has fallen to a 22 rim fire but you want her to hunt with that? He’s looking for a happy medium. Not shoulder breaking recoil. Knock down power if marginal hit. Hole big enough to have a blood trail
I don’t own a 350 legend never will. But it seems to fit the bill on all he’s wanting. Plus legal in some shotguns only states

My 14 yr old daughter isn't a big kid by any means and she shoots her Tikka 6.5 Creedmoor very well. Decent price, low recoil and the thing is a tack driver. Lots of bullet options to fit your ideals.

I mounted a middle of the road Vortex on it. She loves cranking it up to 15x and looking the deer over.

A rifle and or scope set up that fits her is going
to get her on target faster
than any magic number.
But this is the web and guys love their calibers.

Typing this thought brought on by the above post, not a slap at the OP.

Too many people buy an extra box of shells and go to the range, lay over a truck hood or side, set at a makeshift table etc and burn those 20 shells up on a target. That doesn’t necessarily make you ready for the hunt or even a hunter, Nor does just passing a hunter safety course and purchasing a gun.
There is a lot more to take into consideration during the build up and trigger pull. To be a hunter. There should also be ever-present the thought of a search and recovery involved and an honesty within of wether you can accomplish that critical component of a successful hunt, in whatever terrain you have chosen. That factor hinges strongly on the shooters ability to stay on the sights and see and understand the impact location.

There was a thread here a day or two back where a deer was shot and left until the morning retrieval. A good bunch of guys here called the hit pretty darn well just from explanation of the deers reaction to the hit. Terrific example of knowledge seldom taught these days and should be stressed more.

Hunting with other good hunters every chance to put a “newby”” of any age on a hit trail should be taken advantage of. That’s where the learning happens blood on the trail or not.
Hooved animals leave trails some very subtle, but they are there.

This is a long way around to saying a .243 is just fine, in a HUNTERS hands. I know plenty of guys on this site and others who are hunters. To them a blood trail is certainly no deal breaker in choosing caliber. No matter the caliber things happen, blood trails are no guarantee. Comfort, practice and familiarity with the weapon, fit and tuning of the chosen weapon, conditions/limitations when using the weapon, and again holding in to see the result of the shot, hopefully on the quarry.

A couple weeks ago I posted a tale here of a young lady with me on her first big game hunt and the success she had. She took a fine mule deer buck at a fair distance with a .243 loaded with Hornady 90gr ballistic tips. I knew that was a small hole in and don’t count on an exit set up. As we waited for the opening to shoot, guns ready I had plenty of time to switch her over to the .270 I was carrying. She had practiced a lot of rounds, different rifles ahead of time with me from a .17 up to a 30.06 with a brake. I knew she could handle the .270 just fine.
I left her on the .243 because I knew I could track down whatever happened. Even on dry broken prairie. The bullet did exactly what I thought after breaking two ribs, stayed inside. After the shot and she calmed down our first walk was to the hit site and picked up the scuff marks where the buck bolted, then followed what there was straight on to the dead buck. No blood trail at all, no biggy.
The deer wasn’t far, I saw the hit was good and she saw the deer “hump” with the hit as well. All good things I think she learned and retained. No heroics, Indian secret knowledge, armor piecing do all bullets and rifles, or red spray just hunting 101 and some experienced guidance made it all come together.
I think basic knowledge, experience and common sense trump’s technology in many cases and needs to be more leaned on again. “Thump the magic rifle” is just a myth.

Osky

By what I read on the original post is that the kid hates recoil. So anything with more power than the 243 she is using now is going to have more recoil. I stand by using the 243 with copper mono bulets or even the nobler partitions. If you then shoot for the high shoulder, any tracking will be of the vertical kind. But you have to practice and know where to put it. Its that simple. If she thinks that the 243 has to much recoil to shoot comfortably, how much is she going to practice with a 7-08 ?? Handing a kid a gun once a year to shoot at a deer is not going to cut it ...( Not saying that that was done in this case but it happens way to often ) My neighbor is a case in point. So I have taken his two daughters down to my range with me to get them some rifle time under their belt throughout the year. They both have filled their tags for this year with no tracking involved. In the UK, the 243 is by far the most popular deer round ... as a side note. I have used 6.5 Swede for many years because ... that is what I had and it worked on everything I pointed the thing at. But it has more recoil than a 243.

If it's a recoil issue, reload to weaker charge and drop bullet weight.
70 grain Nosler ballistic tip is a fantastic deer bullet.
Any smaller framed person should be able to handle it.

My $.02 -

I purchased Tikka T3 Lite rifles in 6.5 Creedmoor for my sons matched with Leupold Freedom 4-12 scopes with 6.5 Creedmoor reticle.

They have shot deer out to 350 yards. Incredibly accurate rifles with mild recoil.

That's the rifle I got my kid.

IMHO - The stocks look and feel like cheap tupperware, but I like walnut and blued things.