Appropriate Age to take a kid out hunting?

I do not think you can put an age on it. I think it is more kid maturity depended. As a former teacher I have seen some 16 year olds that I would not trust with a gun. It is purely a parent judgement call. Some states do have laws which would limit the age.
 
I hunted with a girl opening day that was 8. She was shooting a single shot 20 ga. She was very safe with handling her gun and if I remember right she shot herself 2 roosters.
 
I agree with Moeller, All kids are different and state laws are different. In my state, they have to have passed a Certified Hunter Safety Course to go afield and handle a gun. It all depends on a lot more than age.......Bob
 
There is an age limit (12) and hunter's safety required before they can carry a weapon in Mich., but I always liked to take them before they reached the age limit to see if they were really interested. Had to keep the hunt short because they would get bored quickly! I agree, read the kid and you will know! Glad you are introducing the young! Thanks.:10sign:

Rod
 
My son will be four at the end of April and has already been to the rifle range, on a hog hunt, squirrel hunt, and two duck hunts. We should also be going deer hunting this weekend. I bring hearing protection for him, snacks, drinks, and keep the hunt short and easy. We also "bird hunt" in the neighborhood with his cap guns. He's learning muzzle control and gun safety now, so that when he is old enough to handle a real gun, it'll be second nature. He's also been camping a dozen times or so, including one night with a low of 27 F. We've also taken an overnight horse camping trip where he rode his own pony, by himself, (I have a rein to her too, a mecate if any of you know what that is) the whole time. I know I'm earlier than most on this stuff, but I think he'll be handy as hell by the time he's 8, and no harms been done. You just have to take extra precautions and make it about the kid. Just like you train a dog by the tail, don't keep hunting to the point where they are bored to tears and sick of it. To me, the primary restriction on a pheasant hunt would be the amount of walking, but by being careful about the size of the fields, and duration of the hunt, even that shouldn't keep the kids away. Good luck.:cheers:
 
I was five on my first hunt...carried a top of the line Benjamin .177 cal pump shotgun :D. Killed everything I shot at...or so I was led to believe by my dad :). Took my boys out pretty young as well. They all carried the same old Stevens 20 single that kicked like a mule. The main thing is: teach safety, safety, safety.
 
My son has been walking with me since he was 7. He started out carrying a starter pistol to shoot blanks then moved up to a B-B gun. He is now 11 and will be taking gun safety and hunting with me next fall. The learning he got while walking with me at an early age has payed great dividends and he will turn out to be a responsible and ethical hunter.
 
I think kids can come along from the time they can walk. My kids (with wife as chaperone) have gone with me on our South Dakota trips many times since the age of two.

Always short hunts in light cover with plenty of time for exploring and fun. They love to watch the dogs hunt and its surprising how often you get a flush or two on these no pressure outings.

My daughter is seven and she went with me last season on all of the preseason training and conditioning trips to the local WMA's. She just recently checked out a dog training book from the library and wants to help "fix" my washout female lab.

As far as when they can start to carry a shotgun? IMO that is such an individual thing. Each child matures at a different pace but I'm very sure if you expose them to the overall experience early and often the right time will come quicker.

DB
 
Mine were "hunting" alongside me not long out of diapers (without a gun of course) - I even let them start learning to "drive" (in my lap) on some of those trips where it was totally safe out on a pig-trail in the middle of nowhere. There ware always lots of impromptu nature stops along the way that didn't necessarily have anything to do with the particular game being pursued. Lots of snacks, drinks & small-town pit-stops to eat too. I decided a long time ago that my kids would be my hunting buddies while they were growing up rather than being left out by my peers or cronies as I had observed teary-eyed from the house one too many times with the generation before me. As a result, I now have two grown-up kids who love camping, hiking/backpacking, hunting, guns, & anything outdoors! :thumbsup:

As to actually hunting themselves with a gun in their hand - my oldest one took his first deer (and turkey) under my direct supervision at 8 yrs old. By the time he was 12 I trusted his proven safety record in a red-hot dove field more than most grown men...As for my younger son, that's a whole nother story - although he loved to tag along & hang with the boys, he didn't show all that much interest in hunting with a gun himself until he was much older & even at 15 I wouldn't have trusted him with a gun in his hand if I was holding onto the other one! :eek: But man did he turn into an unstoppable wild-man once he dropped his first several mallards one morning on the Rio Grande about then!

Actually my boys (both in their 20's now) have somehow turned into total gun nuts! Don't know how they picked up this part - cause for me it's three shots in the pie plate & show me something with fur or feathers on it & instinct will kick in!...My kids now own enough & the kind of guns of their own to give Bin Laden a serious run for the money & they love spending hours at the target range (Uggh from me)...They love big-game hunting & LONG-range shooting, but for now at least the bird thing is not very high on their radar screen! I'm not sure if that's because they're spoiled rotten from the literally hundreds of birds each taken alongside me & the dogs in younger years - or leftover-fallout from all those butt-freezing mornings their thin, frail pre-teen & gangly teen bodies spent teeth-clattering in a muddy, wet duck blind with cheap, leaky waders! :D

Otherwise, over the years I have put many kids in the field at around the 12-14 yr age mark & helped them to get their first deer, called in their first spring turkey, or watched their eyes light up with joy & excitement as they dropped their very first dove-duck-canada goose & watched the dog bring it back to hand! "Sewing-machine" leg and/or a loud rebel yell upon a kid's first success is a beautiful thing to behold!!!...It's been awhile now - I'm older & the kids are all grown-up, but I actually get far more pleasure from this than my own hunting! It's like re-living that first time over & over again! :)
 
i have 3 boys 15 yr old twins and a 10 yr old. One of the twins has been my shadow since he was about 5 or so i would keep it short at first but most of the time he asked me why we were leaving so early ,he would stay out as long as i wanted to, now his twin brother is a different story the first 5 mintues he was thirsty then hungry and next it was the bathroom and then the other bathroom and finally after all that he said dad it's been 3 hrs let's go home in actualty it had been only 30 minutes. My shadow son shot his first deer and turkey at 8 his twin shot his at 12 .

My youngest son shot his first deer at 9. with all three they have shown different progression levels of maturity with gun safety and desire to hunt. Age not really a factor, once they understand exactly what damage a gun can do in untrained and irresponsible hands and fully demonstrate safety at all times and have complete respect for the game you are hunting and understand it's not always about killing something ,it's having fun with family and friends and the memories created in the field .I've always told my boys you make a mistake with a gun it's forever and i'm sorry or i did not mean to won't undo what you've done and always keep that in mind. so if they demonstrate safety at all times and show you they can handle a gun then take'em hunting and enjoy every hunting day with them you can.
 
I taged along with the old man coon hunting when I was 4 or 5, heck back then we stayed home alone and did dishes at 5. But I did not get to shoot till I was 8 or so, 22. Then bow hunting at 11.

If the kids wanta go, take em along, at least to watch, and walk around. I wouldn't push a kid I guess. You guy's with kids no better then me, Glad to see people involving youth and youth even wanting to be involved anymore.:thumbsup:
 
@Springer--WOW, tagging along on a coon hunt - that brings back some awful fond memories of running behind to keep up with my dad & his buddies following a bluetick or redbone baying in the dark w/their carbide lanterns...Pretty big adrenaline rush for a proud & scared little kid finally allowed to tag along! :D

I can also remember many a nite between 6-10 yrs old just me & my dad bullfrog hunting with nothing but a spotlight - no gig or anything, he would catch em' with his hands! I can still see as if it were happening right this moment, the time he & I both were wading in the water up to our chests - me watching from closer to shore while he picked bullfrogs from among the thick lily pads - when a big ol' water moccasin came swimming thru the light & disappeared under the muddy water right in between us - scary & exciting as all get out! :eek: ...I have tried & tried since he's been gone, but never have been able to duplicate that bare-handed thing (he could do it all by himself with the light in one hand & in one swift motion grab the frog with the other) - I'm still pretty handy with a gig though! :)

I'm sure those early experiences helped shape me into ever-the-hunter at heart that I am! I guess what age you take a kid along hunting depends on how you want to define "hunting" - it doesn't always or necessarily have to mean a gun in their hand! :thumbsup:
 
How old?

shorthairs4life said:
I went out on my first hunt when I was 10 but I've heard of kids out as early as 8. Just looking for some advice in this area.
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I am sure you will get a lot of advice and mine might be a bit different...quail hunter or pheasant hunters might do things different than other types. Here are my thoughts:
It doesnt matter how old a kid is when you take him...the point is take him...without a gun. Let him understand how the gun works in relationship to other people and the dogs. Let him do that for a good long time. In quail hunting...birds come up quickly and in many directions....having a young kid with a gun that gets excited can make some tremendous mistakes. First gun should be a single shot....no doubt about it. Some at home training is obvious..but all kids are different. But...let him tag along without a gun for a couple of years. Better to take one dog....when you get a single point...let him shoot it. Dont let him shoot a flushed bird...make it be a point. That way everything is set up and he can relax. I went with my dad bird hunting when I was 5 never shot a gun hunting til I was around 14 or so. Also taking a kid dove hunting while he is young...helps getting to know about guns and shot patterns before he goes quail or pheasant hunting. Glad to know he is going.Good Luck
 
i started when I was 8 or 9 a Thanksgiving rabbit hunt. My son started walking with me rabbit/squirrel hunting when he was 4. Toy guns, lead to BBguns, to an unloaded single shot 20 gauge which led to a loaded gun he was not allowed to cock or shoot at game by about age 8 maybe 9, I think his first license was at 9. If we were training dogs he may get to shoot at a thrown bird that a dog may have caught, in a non hunting very controlled situation. He is 13 know and he sits in the tree stand by himself shooting his bow or gun. He has killed a deer 3 out of the last 4 years and this year he was completely on his own and scored. He shows great restraint and passes up shots that i would not based on distance and direction of fire, he sees more deer that I do when we are bow hunting. he even made the decision to not be involved in winter sports seasons because it would take away from hunting time.
His sister is another story she is 11 and has a little interest but has not been completely bitten by the hunt bug. She likes to help train dogs and enjoys to shoot and has hunted alittle but mostly if she goes is just observing. We will do a hunters safety class this year and try and get her interest up a little. Biggest problem, her brother who hates to share his time with dad.
As others have said its has to be about them, to keep their interest up dont hunt for to long, always have food and stop for breakfast or lunch when your done. My son has hunted with most of my partners and none have said that he was a problem or had any concerns about his safety and he relishes that time being treated like a one of the guys and they certainly don't cut him any slack with the joking about bad shots or if he shoots a small deer.
 
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