Young children and hunting

[sonrisa]

60? 120? I don't know. But I don't want my minor children around firearms.

[heyjude]

I'm not a hunter and I hate guns but I don't see the big deal especially if this is about hunting for food.

[penguingrrl]

I would be incredibly uncomfortable with that. There is no way my children could be trusted near a firearm at 8 and 6. they aren't old enough to understand the permanency of death and therefore truly comprehend the grave potential consequences of a gun.

I would think 14 or so would be the youngest that could possibly go hunting.

[hopecounts]

I would not want a 5 yr old handling a gun.
I would have no problem with a 5 yr going out hunting with a parent as an observer though most would find it mind numbingly boring.

[overture]

Eh, if hunting is part of your family culture, I'm not sure why 5 is too young to go along, as long as the parent is experienced and teaches safety. It would really depend on what I knew about the parents in general. If it were my dad, who is very serious about children understanding the power and danger of guns, was an avid hunter, and took me clay shooting when I was a kid, I wouldn't bat an eye. If it were my step-brother-in-law, who liked to down a six pack and shoot cans shirtless, that's a different story.

That being said, letting a 3 year old hold a gun, no matter how much supervision is involved, is not something a "responsible gun owner" does.

[truckentruck]

My husband grew up in an area where hunting is common, and 12 was the age he had to be before going out.

[ttt]

I think 5 years old is way too young. I would expect kids to be old enough to accompany adults hunting around age 8 or so, at a minimum. At least 12 to actually handle firearms.

[laurenpetro]

I was ready to be slightly breezy about it until your add on about the 3 y/o handling guns. If they allowed that at 3 then I don't for one second believe that at 5 she didn't handle a gun at all during the trip.

I'm with the PP about 12.

[josieposy]

As long as safety measures are taken I can see going along. Handling a gun? No.

We had a local father accidentally shoot his own kid during a turkey hunt because of failure to use basic safety precautions (like knowing what you are shooting at).

[eclaires]

Most people I know who legit hunt for food start their kids really early. I know jack shit about hunting but it seems to me they take a lot of safety precautions. Generally it seems they start going without a gun and eventually have one along with their own hunting license, which I think requires some sort of training but that might vary by state.

It's not for me or my kids but while I am sure there are some asshats, most serious hunters take their guns, hunting and gun safety seriously. I'd trust them and their choices over many other types of gun owners.

[partiallysunny]

I took a hunter safety course when I was a 14/15/16 (I can't remember exact age).

My brother was out scouting/spotting with my dad at a younger age, but not as young as 5. Maybe when he was 8 or 9. He always complained of being cold and bored.

We also went to shooting ranges frequently, just to give an idea how I grew up. We were around guns and we did target practice at a young age.

I think 3 and handling a gun is crazy. I don't care if it's unloaded. 5 and sitting/spotting on a hunting trip isn't all that crazy, but I can't see how a child that young could be quiet and sit still long with to attract an animal. I think 7/8 is more the age you start teaching "where your food comes from".

* full disclaimer * I don't hunt. I've never hunted (the course was wishful thinking on my dad's part). I don't own a gun.

[Deleted]

My kids accompany DH rabbit hunting as young as 5. They don't carry a gun, obviously, but with rabbit hunting you just walk around the woods and see what you can scare up. You don't have to be as quiet. DH wouldn't want to take the kids deer hunting until they are old enough to sit still and be quiet for hours at a time.

But DH has let my boys shoot a gun before. We are a hunting family and they are growing up around guns. My husband wanted them to see firsthand what guns do. Both boys shot the shotgun (while DH was also holding it) and nearly fell on their behinds. After that they were scared to even go near the guns, which was the intent.

[gibbinator]

3yrs old and handling a gun is a bad idea.
I don't really see a problem with a 5yo accompanying adults on a hunting trip *assuming * there is a second adult on kid watching duty.

[jeaniebueller]

I wouldn't have a problem with a 5 year old accompanying adults on a hunting trip. My DS is 6 and my H has just started talking to him about learning how to shoot a BB gun, with the hopes that he will want to hunt in the future. I am not comfortable at all with a 3 year old handling a firearm though. Newp.

[aurora]

A 3 YO handling a firearm is crazy and would color my opinion, too.

I don't have a philosophical objection to a 5 YO accompanying his/her patents on a hunting trip, so long as parents are truly gun safe.

Where I grew up a lot of people hunted for food, and a lot of people also said they were going hunting because it was a good excuse to get out into the woods for a few days. These latter might shoot something if the opportunity arose but weren't really driven by that goal. So in that case it would be more like a camping trip for the kid.

[omgzombies]

If it were my own child, I probably wouldn't let them go on a hunting trip (no gun for them) until they were about 8 or 10. Old enough to understand what is going on, and to reduce the likelihood of something happening in the split second that you look away.

But someone else taking their 5 year old doesn't bother me assuming that they aren't given a gun, and they take the proper safety precautions, and they think the child is mature enough to not be frightened by the whole thing.

[foundmylazybum]

I wouldn't say his son was "hunting." He was standing watching. Just like anyone else in the party. In our state you can get a license to hunt when you are 12 and that is under direct supervision of another licensed adult. Both must have taken a hunter education course.

I don't really see an issue with a person watching if they are taking the proper safety precautions.

[pescalita]

I agree that hunters are in general a safe bunch, but there are still loaded, unsecured weapons around (incl sidearms, people forget hunting involves handguns too), which would give me pause with a young child. More so on an overnight trip where the firearms aren't attached at all times to your alert person.

Still, it's vastly safer than having a home defense weapon in the home.

I'm more in the 10/12 camp.

Hell no to 3yo.

[aprilsails]

My nephew goes Turkey hunting with his father and uncle. He's 3 and only one of them hunts while the other scouts with nephew. I don't see a problem with it. He is most certainly not handling weapons of any kind.

My family has a very long history of hunting and my Dad provided most of our meat that way as a child. I grew up doing target practice in the backyard (maybe starting around 8 and please note we were on 50 acres so no neighbours) but my Dad would not take us out hunting for real until we took the safety course at age 12. I wasn't interested but my Brother goes hunting some times.

Alternately my Mom was a huge hypocrite about all of it and would make us all watch Bambi every year before my Dad took off hunting and then explain how he was going to kill Banbi's Mom and Dad and then we were going to eat them. Yeah... My Mom is weird.

[msmerymac]

It's easy for me to say never, because I'm a vegetarian who doesn't own guns or need to hunt for food.

If this family NEEDS to hunt for food and this is part of their lifestyle, I would say they can/should take their children out when they are able to handle a gun, so more like 11-12. I wouldn't want to have to watch a 5 year old around firearms. They do not always take direction well, and guns are not likely to be locked up when not in use while in the field.

[msmerymac]

Sept 3, 2015 7:53:04 GMT -5 @peggyolson said:

Pennsylvania has a law about this, but doesn't mention age which I think is not okay. 

"Mentored Youth Hunting Program
Youth ages 11 and under may purchase a Mentored Youth Hunting Permit to pursue five different species in Pennsylvania – squirrel, groundhog, antlered and antlerless deer, fall and spring turkey and coyote. Youth must be accompanied by a licensed mentor who is 21 years of age or older.

A mentor may accompany only one youth in the field and only one firearm can be used by the pair. The firearm must be carried by the mentor while moving but may be given to the youth once the pair stops. Youth must remain within arm's reach of the mentor at all times when holding the firearm. The required amount of fluorescent orange must be worn during the appropriate seasons by both youth and adult mentor.

A Mentored Youth Hunting Permit may be purchased at any license issuing agent or online for $2.70. Both residents and non-residents can purchase this specific permit. Hunter–Trapper Education courses are not required for a youth to participate in this program.

For more information and opportunities on this program, consult the Pennsylvania Hunting and Trapping Digest. Information on Hunter Safety can be found in the online study guide: Today's Hunter & Trapper in Pennsylvania."

I do agree there should be a minimum age, but this seems to say that anyone under 11 has to have the mentor permit, and therefore can't hunt with their own gun, just shoot the mentor's gun with adult supervision? I'm okay with that being law. Of course, I'm pretty sure there are plenty of people who don't follow the law.