PotashRLS Posted September 28, 2009 Report Share Posted September 28, 2009 I had a pretty good argument this past weekend with the in-laws about Wisconsin's new bill that now allows 10yr olds to hunt with an adult mentor. They are to be within arms reach at all times and there is only one gun. They don't need hunter safety though until they normally would prior to turning 12. I am in favor of it because it allows parents to take an active role in getting their kids "hunting" earlier if they are ready for it. Many states have lower age requirements. Myself and my Father-in-law are both Wisconsin Hunter Safety Instructors but in different locations. He is dead set against it as are 5 of their 6 instructors. I told him they were missing the whole point and are doing an injustice to the future of our hunting heritage. By the time kids turn 12 and can hunt, they already have too much other "crap" taking up their time. My Brother-in-law told me that the first kid that shoots someone he would rub it in my face. I told him that could happen to anyone if they are careless or have an accident, not just a kid. I would love to hear your oppinion!! What do you think????? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hammerforged Posted September 28, 2009 Report Share Posted September 28, 2009 I gotta agree with you here, my father first took me 'in the field" when I was eight. I was allowed to hunt at 10 on the family farm in Volens, Virginia for rabbits. Both of my daughters were at the range by 8 years old and are now both hunters and are really better shots than I am. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arrow32 Posted September 28, 2009 Report Share Posted September 28, 2009 I agree with you. I was going out in the woods with my dad before I was 10 and I was shooting or atleast trying to shoot squirrels and anything esle he'd let me kill before I was 10. Look what its done to me I didn't turn out to bad:D:D As your BIL how many adults shoot other hunters every year and ask what he says:D But I agree with you man. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhunt Posted September 28, 2009 Report Share Posted September 28, 2009 Welp Tracy, my oldest killed her first deer when she was 9, had several opportunities to kill her first deer at age 8 with the muzzleloader, but she passed because she just could not get her shakes under control and she did not want to make a bad shot and lose an animal(pretty mature thinking for an 8 year old girl). She did not qualify at that time for the states early weekend youth rifle hunt, so we had to sit that weekend out. She took her hunter safety course at 10 and scored 99 out of 100. The kid was shooting sub 1 inch groups at 100 yards with my .270 back before her and her mother went to Alaska, she is 13 now. I would venture to say at age 10 she was probably as capable/competent with a gun as several adults out there. To be honest I think a parent shoud be able to judge when their kids are ready. Some 12 year olds may not be competent or ready, that is why the adult is supposed to be there ready to take control, some 8 year olds are probably as ready as some adults out there. Kids are different. Tennessee there is no age limit. Youths here for the qualification of the youth hunt used to be defined as 10-16 year olds, I wrote the TWRA back probably 6 years ago asking them to change their definition not to exclude the younger hunters who were very capable, the year after I wrote them they changed their definition to include 6-16 year olds. Maybe what I wrote found its way to someone who took it into consideration, don't know. My oldest daughter was then able to hunt with the rifle for the youth hunt the year she was 9 for the first time, and that was the year she killed her first deer. She has been hooked since before she ever killed her first deer, and kids like her will hopefully keep hunting alive for many years to come. Best as I can remember I was taking her with me from about the time she was 4, and she sat with me many a times when the conditions were just right and no telling how many deer we watched together in those early years before I felt like she was ready to be the one was hunting. Just my opinion, but I think we need as many of these kids as we can get out there and that means teaching/sharing with kids at as young an age as they are ready. The hunter safety ed classes here are for kids 10 and up, they do allow 9 year olds who are soon turning 10 to take the course. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevebeilgard Posted September 28, 2009 Report Share Posted September 28, 2009 the anti's are fully aware that if a child is not involved in hunting until he's 12 or 13, the interest rate drops dramatically. that is what this bill is truely about. keep te kids dis-interested inhunting and let the sport die on the vine. i think 8 years old and younger, with an adult, is a better idea. my kids were in the field with me by age 5. my grandson shot a goose from my lap at age 7. he's been on elk, deer, and antelope hunts with me since he was 3. wyoming law says he needs to be 12 before he kills a big game animal, so he still only gets to watch. 3 more years.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dance.and.shoot Posted September 28, 2009 Report Share Posted September 28, 2009 I honestly really don't see a problem with it. If the kid is mature enough to handle the gun and the parent is a responsible adult, then what's the problem? Yeah, accidents are going to happen. but honestly, most of the gun accidents you hear about, whether in the field or out at home, are about adults. Kid's brains work different than an adults. and A LOT of kids I know are more mature than adults... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Texan_Til_I_Die Posted September 28, 2009 Report Share Posted September 28, 2009 No problem at all as long as the adult is competent. I killed my first deer before I was 10. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ashley Posted September 28, 2009 Report Share Posted September 28, 2009 I don't think it's wrong at all. What's wrong with getting kids involved with hunting and the outdoors at an early age? Aren't there some states that allow kids to hunt when they're even younger than ten? I know I've seen some hunting shows on TV where the kid can barely hold up a gun, but they still manage to take down a deer. My dad always took me out in the woods goose hunting and watching deer and I was shooting a bow by age three. I plan to do the same thing with my son when he gets older because I think getting kids outside and especially in the woods is a positive hobby. I shot my first buck with the rifle when I was twelve and first buck with the bow when I was thirteen, and I know I would have shot one way earlier if the age limit wasn't twelve in Wisconsin, and I would have been ready. If you give your child a weapon, it's up to you as the parent to teach them how to use it responsibly. If you demonstrate proper safety when you use a rifle or bow, your children will learn by example and in turn learn to use their weapon safely. Kids are like sponges, what you teach them, they will soak in. Accidents do happen, and like PotashRLS said, ANYONE could have one -- someone who's hunted for 40 years or someone who just got their hunting license. It is beneficial for kids to go through Hunter's Safety, but I think they should already have experience beforehand in the woods and with hunting so they're prepared. I know when I took Hunter's Safety, I already knew a good deal of what they told me because I had been taught, but it was good for me to know things before the class. Some kids were completely lost, and I think if you wait until your kid is twelve to try to get them interested in hunting, you've waited too long. Most impressions are made on kids before the age of ten, when their brain and interests are developing and they're becoming their own person so I think it's only right to involve them in hunting before it's too late. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jesse8953 Posted September 28, 2009 Report Share Posted September 28, 2009 Ohio has a apprentice program it works great. http://www.dnr.state.oh.us/wildlife/dow/regulations/apprentice.aspx Also if you can read and write and take the hunters safety test by yourself, there is no age limit on the test.My nephew is 10 and got his liscence a the age of 8.He went hunting his 1st year and didn't get anything.When he was 9 he got his 1st goose and 1st duck.Age 10 got his 1st turkey and 1st dove.He is safer than alot of the older hunters are and he isn't afraid to tell anyone that they are being unsafe. {no matter how old they are or who they are}People need to get there kids off the video games and into nature,for a better society. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lilmisswtnhunt Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 (edited) one time when i was 5 or 6 , my dad got a buck one morning. he took me with him that afternoon. a really wide 7 point walked out and i was telling my dad "you gotta shoot it daddy" but he couldnt. another time when i was 7, 9 does were out in the field and 8 of them went back into the woods. my dad didnt see the one that was still out there even though i was telling him it was (this was during the muzzleloader season) when i finally got on it i just couldnt make the shot ,i was shaking to much when i was 9 two bucks walked out during the youth hunt(a spike and a 4 pointer) when they started fighting two more came (another spike and a 5 point) after a while a really nice 7 point walks out of what we called the big buck's bedroom he starts fighting with all of them a finally gets within about 75 yards and i relax and take the shot with my mom's 243 rifle, this was on a saturday afternoon. the next day we all went and looked. my dad went and looked in the`big buck's bedroom` but he wouldnt let me look because there were a bunch of briars. he went about 100 yards into the woods and didnt find it. my mom convinced us that i must have missed. that wednesday he was doing some work with the tractor back there and saw a buzzard fly up. well he went about 15 yards past where he went before an saw my buck (missing an eye ewww ) YAY! the coyotes found it before we did and there wasn't any meat left i went to school the next day and i was so excited . i was showing off my picture. all the boys said"you didnt shoot that your brother did" im just like "i dont even have a brother you idiots" boys:"then it was your dad" me:" no it wasnt!":nono: they thought girls couldnt hunt but i have been involved in hunting all my life, and i love it:gun1: Edited September 30, 2009 by lilmisswtnhunt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doe-ee Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 WTG Christina! Those boys were just jealous. Maybe one day you can take them out and show them how it's done! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adjam5 Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 Great story Lilmisswtnhunt. Good luck this season. Love hearing what happened on the hunt though a youngsters eyes . I think children/youth should be involved in the outdoors hunting and fishing as soon as possible. I agree totally with the fact that their minds get cluttered up with other distractions. When they start early, they will continue throughout their lives. Hunting teaches some good lessons in life. Teaches a early respect for weapons, firearms and the capabilities of such. Schools and the media demonize hunting and trapping. Set the record straight teach 'em young. That is why it is so important to mentor any youth you can get your hands on, as young as possible; and pass on this wonderful lifestyle we live. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeramie Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 You can take any child, any age, into the field in Oklahoma. I remember carrying Rabits when I could barely walk in snow period. I also remember killing my first squirrel at about 12, however, I had been squirrel hunting for Years and years before that with my dad. I see no problems with it. Its all about the adult being responsable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orion_70 Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 Personally, I think that's what is wrong with America right now. We don't need government to pass a law dictating when someone can take their child hunting!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gzilla45 Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 I like this but I think they should have to take hunter safety first. Granted they should be with a responsible hunter but there is so much they can learn from the course that i think it should be mandatory. I started hitting the woods with my grandpa/uncles when I was 11 to learn the important tools of patience and observation. You can't learn these things in the classroom and they are so important to hunting. The more a beginner can experience before they get their license and are able to hunt by themselves, the more successful and safe they will be. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Kid Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 I had this talk with my girlfriend talk,, well more like an arguement,, i told her its important to get young kids involved into hunting at and early age so they understand how to respect the gun and to respect nature,, she argue back by saying that they could hurt someone with the gun,, and then i said its better if they learn how to handle the gun correctly then to sneak behind there parents backs to handle a gun when they obvisouly dont know how to??? needless to say i win the arguement but she was upset for a day or two:hammer2: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
camoman1 Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 I am all for allowing 10y/o youngsters to hunt with the required adult supervision and the other rules that go along with it. I agree that the sooner a youngster is involved with hunting, the better the chances that they will grow to like it....however...actually pulling the trigger is only a small part of the hunting experience. A kid doesnt 'need' to drop the hammer on something to get a sense of what hunting is all about. But I surely do not see a problem with the age being lowered to 10. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RangerClay Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 one time when i was 5 or 6 , my dad got a buck one morning. he took me with him that afternoon. a really wide 7 point walked out and i was telling my dad "you gotta shoot it daddy" but he couldnt. another time when i was 7, 9 does were out in the field and 8 of them went back into the woods. my dad didnt see the one that was still out there even though i was telling him it was (this was during the muzzleloader season) when i finally got on it i just couldnt make the shot ,i was shaking to much when i was 9 two bucks walked out during the youth hunt(a spike and a 4 pointer) when they started fighting two more came (another spike and a 5 point) after a while a really nice 7 point walks out of what we called the big buck's bedroom he starts fighting with all of them a finally gets within about 75 yards and i relax and take the shot with my mom's 243 rifle, this was on a saturday afternoon. the next day we all went and looked. my dad went and looked in the`big buck's bedroom` but he wouldnt let me look because there were a bunch of briars. he went about 100 yards into the woods and didnt find it. my mom convinced us that i must have missed. that wednesday he was doing some work with the tractor back there and saw a buzzard fly up. well he went about 15 yards past where he went before an saw my buck (missing an eye ewww ) YAY! the coyotes found it before we did and there wasn't any meat left i went to school the next day and i was so excited . i was showing off my picture. all the boys said"you didnt shoot that your brother did" im just like "i dont even have a brother you idiots" boys:"then it was your dad" me:" no it wasnt!":nono: they thought girls couldnt hunt but i have been involved in hunting all my life, and i love it:gun1: Great story! I'm glad you are on my team! :rockon: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hollywood Posted October 1, 2009 Report Share Posted October 1, 2009 I am just glad they didn't have those laws when i was a yungin'....I don't know about the rest of you folks, but those are the memory's i cherish the most when i was young hunting with my dad in Maine..and now my grandsons (7&9) want to tag along...got a .243 that will fit them just right.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dance.and.shoot Posted October 1, 2009 Report Share Posted October 1, 2009 I had this talk with my girlfriend talk,, well more like an arguement,, i told her its important to get young kids involved into hunting at and early age so they understand how to respect the gun and to respect nature,, she argue back by saying that they could hurt someone with the gun,, and then i said its better if they learn how to handle the gun correctly then to sneak behind there parents backs to handle a gun when they obvisouly dont know how to??? needless to say i win the arguement but she was upset for a day or two:hammer2: When my ex-fiance were talking about what our gun's in the house rules were going to be once we had kids, we both knew that we want our kids raised around guns...because they'll learn to respect them at a VERY early age. We weren't going to have all our guns locked up in a safe, they would be up on the walls. and we would teach the kids to realize that guns are dangerous, but they can be fun too. and that they would only be allowed to handle the guns if one of us was there and said it was okay. each child would get a gun for their 10th birthday if the proved they could be responsible with it and respect it. I totally agree with you on getting the kids introduced to guns at an early age! I feel it's the best way to prevent acccidents with guns. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redkneck Posted October 1, 2009 Report Share Posted October 1, 2009 My Brother-in-law told me that the first kid that shoots someone he would rub it in my face. I told him that could happen to anyone if they are careless or have an accident, not just a kid. I would love to hear your oppinion!! What do you think????? OK Tracy, this thread really gets me fired up! First thing's first! 1) I cherished those early days of hunting with my dad & grandfather. I was tagging along at around 6 or so, really into it by 8, and took my first deer at ten years old on a solo hunt. Best I remember I was about ten when I took hunter's ed, and yep we shot .22's in those days to qualify, which is unheard of in these days. My girls just turned ten 2 months ago, they took their first at 8 years old, I helped them the best I could by attaching a laser sight to a .20 gage (cheap wally-world laser level taped to the barell works great) to make sure we had a clean kill. They are not ready to hunt solo by my estimate, nor do they want to anyway. 2) The quote above by your brother-in-law really ticks me off. How in God's creation should a child of that age be allowed to kill someone?!? I've preached gun safety to my kids and preached it. They understand to the best they can that there are no second chances - I preach that to them. I began to let them carry a gun to the stand 2 years ago - UNLOADED. They weren't ready - how could they shoot someone? I began to let them try to get positioned on deer in the field, shaking, safety ON - they weren't ready. I would give them the absolute most experience handling a gun as I could give them. Still, they're young. They're slowly gaining maturity. What ticks me off is that it's the adults folks! No way can a child make a mistake with a gun unless the ADULT allows it! That's the problem in this country! We don't need freakin trigger locks on our guns! I sure don't own one (not talking about toddlers in the house). My kids ABSOLUTELY knew by the age of 5-6 that you DO NOT TOUCH DADDY'S GUNS-PERIOD!!!! They've never been locked away since, and if I left my 300, or SKS, or 12GA locked and loaded safety off on the couch, my kids would stay AWAY from it, not that that scenario would ever occur. 3) I've lost my train of thought in my rant, lol... so maybe there aint a 3! But when I was young, a neighbor's kids killed himself with a 22 trying to clean the freakin thing, he was 11 years old. When I was in Jr high, a good friend of mine shot his dad in the chest while crossing a fenceline. When I was in high school, my cousins dad was shot in the guts while carrying a climber out of the woods with no orange by an 18 yr old kid that thought the climber looked like horns. The 30.06 ballistic tip gutted him and he died ten days later. NOW... what did a d#$% one of these things have to do with age? They were all regrettable, but unexcusable mistakes made by young hunters that were not properly trained. I can't tell you how many hunts I made with my dad carrying a BB gun while he monitored my disposition, the safety position, the muzzle direction, etc, etc, that all good parents pass down to their kids. Sorry for this being long-winded, but it don't matter what the age of the kids are, as long as they have an idiot for a parent, we're going to have problems. One last note to drive this home. 2 years ago, in the county south of here, a 20 something year old kid stops on the highway looking over a food plot and decides to shoot the blind overlooking it!!!! His first round went into a father's shoulder, he immediately pushed his 5 yr old to the floor. The second round went through his leg. He called his dad who lived close by and within minutes he was there. The old man died of a heart attack while climbing the ladder. The kid was prosecuted. Guess what? He had passed his hunter safety course as well. sorry for the rant- just one of those things that strikes a chord with me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PotashRLS Posted October 1, 2009 Author Report Share Posted October 1, 2009 Thank you all very much for the opinions and thoughts. I still welcome more who have something to bring forth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joeaveragehunter Posted October 1, 2009 Report Share Posted October 1, 2009 Huge fan of this. The younger the better, with adult supervision of course. Lots of kids pick things they want to be when they are young, 4,5,6. If you wait til theyre 12 I think you lose alot of potential hunters. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The_Kat Posted October 1, 2009 Report Share Posted October 1, 2009 He is dead set against it as are 5 of their 6 instructors. I would love to hear your oppinion!! What do you think????? That statistic blows my mind................ I shot and killed my first deer when I was 7 years old. Waiting til a kids 10 is to late in my opinion....get em out as soon as they can hold a gun steady and safe. I will teach Cash how to hunt safely and ethically. Not some instructor at a safety class. He'll take the class only because the law requires him to. Why deny a child the oppurtunity to enjoy the outdoors and hunting. You need to set your buddies straight.....they're not thinking right. In an arguement I can try to see both sides, but in this arguement I just don't get the other side.....not at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swampbuckva Posted October 1, 2009 Report Share Posted October 1, 2009 I 100% agree I live in Va and its very common to see kids hunting with their dads as early as 7 years old. I started going when i was 8 and started carrying a shotgun when I was 11. I also agree with what you said about a kid being 12 and it being too late because their into different activities by then and sometimes getting in trouble. I have 2 nephews that are 14 and 17 and thats all they have ever wanted to do is hunt and fish. I think if your with an responsible adult its just fine!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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