How young is too young to hunt.

[CowboyLeroy]

I've seem so many kids ages 5,6,7 etc. Taking there first deer. To each his own but I just think it's a little too early I mean I don't really remember much of anything at those ages certainly not in any detail.

I saw a four year old boy with a spike buck on the facebook the other day. On one hand I'm happy for the kid, bit on the other hand I think 'does he have any idea what's going on?' He certainly didn't do any of the work, he doesn't understand the gravity of life and death. His mother is a single mom and is trying to play both parents, but I wonder is she sacrificing the actual memory in a rush to make memories? Deer hunting is a different world than it was when I was a kid.

(Born in 93)

*boomer smirks*

Growth is a double edged sword. Being able to trophy manage game species is great, but having the surplus of deer, along with baiting, cell cameras, etc. really does seem to have devalued the tradition that used to come with hunting in general. Its not a coming of age like it used to be. Like what happened to first squirrels? First rabbits? It kinda makes me depressed.

 

[woods89]

And folks need to realize the 4 year old was likely chucking slugs in the 20-40 ft lb of recoil range. Maybe he was shooting a straight wall cartridge but that was just made legal for this year. I'd rather shoot my .338WM than my sisters youth 870 20ga slug gun.

How many kids tags do you think wind up getting filled by dad every year?

I'm guessing it's more than a few. If it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck.....

 

[Nick87]

I saw a four year old boy with a spike buck on the facebook the other day. On one hand I'm happy for the kid, bit on the other hand I think 'does he have any idea what's going on?' He certainly didn't do any of the work, he doesn't understand the gravity of life and death. His mother is a single mom and is trying to play both parents, but I wonder is she sacrificing the actual memory in a rush to make memories? Deer hunting is a different world than it was when I was a kid.

(Born in 93)

*boomer smirks*

Growth is a double edged sword. Being able to trophy manage game species is great, but having the surplus of deer, along with baiting, cell cameras, etc. really does seem to have devalued the tradition that used to come with hunting in general. Its not a coming of age like it used to be. Like what happened to first squirrels? First rabbits? It kinda makes me depressed.

Said it better than I could

 

[brockel]

How many kids tags do you think wind up getting filled by dad every year?

I'm guessing it's more than a few. If it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck.....

Plenty of older kids and wives this happens with too.

 

[MTLabrador]

Plenty of older kids and wives this happens with too.

Party hunting is a tradition that dies hard around here.

 

[brockel]

Party hunting is a tradition that hard around here.

“Hey Bob the elk are about to cross the state land”. “Well shoot me one too I’ll be out there in a little bit”.

 

[woods89]

I think about the kind of parents that yell at the ref in sports, then put them in the deer blind.........

 

[WildWill]

There's undoubtedly people who abuse the system I don't think anyone is saying otherwise. But do any of you really believe that the majority of parents are allowing or pushing their kids to hunt before they're ready? Like many aspects of life we tend to focus on the negative. Everyone sees the toddler with a buck on Facebook and gets outraged but pay no attention to the 9 other kids who did everything right.



My point is I don't think it's worth it to restrict the rights of the majority of parents to make decisions for their kids because of the mistakes of a minority. Personally I wish every state had a mandatory in person written and field hunter safety test before being allowed to hunt. Old enough to past the test Old enough to hunt that simple!

 

[Nick87]

There's undoubtedly people who abuse the system I don't think anyone is saying otherwise. But do any of you really believe that the majority of parents are allowing or pushing their kids to hunt before they're ready? Like many aspects of life we tend to focus on the negative. Everyone sees the toddler with a buck on Facebook and gets outraged but pay no attention to the 9 other kids who did everything right.



My point is I don't think it's worth it to restrict the rights of the majority of parents to make decisions for their kids because of the mistakes of a minority. Personally I wish every state had a mandatory in person written and field hunter safety test before being allowed to hunt. Old enough to past the test Old enough to hunt that simple!

No I don't think it's the majority at all. And yes I couldn't agree more with the written hunter safety. In person not online, that part is important.

 

[woods89]

There's undoubtedly people who abuse the system I don't think anyone is saying otherwise. But do any of you really believe that the majority of parents are allowing or pushing their kids to hunt before they're ready? Like many aspects of life we tend to focus on the negative. Everyone sees the toddler with a buck on Facebook and gets outraged but pay no attention to the 9 other kids who did everything right.



My point is I don't think it's worth it to restrict the rights of the majority of parents to make decisions for their kids because of the mistakes of a minority. Personally I wish every state had a mandatory in person written and field hunter safety test before being allowed to hunt. Old enough to past the test Old enough to hunt that simple!

I'm personally not advocating for restrictions, this is more of a philosophical discussion to me. At the heart for me is a belief that starting children killing things at a younger and younger age is not necessarily an established way to make lifelong outdoorsmen and women.
I believe that things that come too easy or quick don't mean as much, and that colors my views heavily. What I'd like out of this discussion is for parents to think deeply and honestly about where there child is, and not feel a lot of pressure to advance them too quickly.
Also, I don't necessarily believe that a majority of parents are abusing the system, but I do believe that enough are in my area that it's an issue. It's very difficult to prove, though, which is why it continues to exist.

 

[2rocky]

I'm personally not advocating for restrictions, this is more of a philosophical discussion to me. At the heart for me is a belief that starting children killing things at a younger and younger age is not necessarily an established way to make lifelong outdoorsmen and women.
I believe that things that come too easy or quick don't mean as much, and that colors my views heavily. What I'd like out of this discussion is for parents to think deeply and honestly about where there child is, and not feel a lot of pressure to advance them too quickly.
Also, I don't necessarily believe that a majority of parents are abusing the system, but I do believe that enough are in my area that it's an issue. It's very difficult to prove, though, which is why it continues to exist.

I tagged along with my dad on half day deer drives from age 6 on. When I was 9 he let me bring my BB gun to camp. I knew all the club members were watching how I handled my air rifle. They cheered when I head shot a jack rabbit in view of the picnic tables. I learned to skin on deer my dad shot, and he patiently let me learn and took the time to teach me at home away from the crowd. By the time I was 12 I was on stand with my grandfather. I got to learn over years, not all at once. Every new thing was another step up, another responsibility. By the time I was old enough to drive, I knew the canyons, and the Brush "runs" and I was trusted to still hunt evenings alone. By then I was expected to drag out the older hunters' bucks, or track a cripple.
I wish every new hunter got to grow up and be mentored like that.

 

[88man]

Depends as much on the parent or the person doing the mentoring as it does the kid. My daughter at 7 years old killed her first buck standing with her remington model 7 in 260 resting on a tripod one shot thru the heart at 75 yards. She was ready on the shooting side of things as we shot targets with various guns every week all spring and summer prior. Hunting wise she stalked and killed a few ground hogs that summer with a 17 hmr and a 222mag.

 

[Tlrussell]

If you don’t take your kids, who do you blame when you come home empty handed?

 

[noharleyyet]

Son of one of our lease mates. Last Sunday, he's now 11...3 three seasons ago on right.

*edit to add: ...with a Creedmoor for both no less.

 

[YellowCreek]

I thought mine were ready once, they weren’t. The law in Pennsylvania used to be 12 for a good reason.

I had to wait until I was 12, I now feel that is an appropriate age to wait until

 

[Boarmaster]

Its all about the kid ,preparation and experience. If the kid has been shooting at the range and tagging along on hunts for a while that is a lot different than just tossing a kid a rifle.

About 9 is where I have seen kids with experience do good behind a rifle shooting along side an adult on a hunt. A few years of that and they are generally ready to sit on their own on private property.

Public property where you don't know who's wandering around I personally wouldn't turn the kid loose on their own until about 15/16 years old and years and years of hunting experience.

I hunt private in Alabama and our kids in the lease have been good with no issues at 12/13 years old. Mentoring is important as well as setting some benchmarks along the way for a kid to earn their independence in the woods.