I was wondering the ages of your children when you start teaching them how to shoot?I had my niece and nephew out teaching them safetey when before i knew it i had the neighborhood over my neph is 11 and niece is 9 yrs old they lived in chicago with there dad and never been around firearms before.So i brought them out and the 2 girls across road and there mother come over and want to shoot also they are 5 and 7 and then my other nieghbors come over with dad and his girls wanted to shoot ages 4,6 and son 12 I was taught gun safety at age 3 and so with the rest of my family with the same single shot stevens rifle.Don't throw those little 22's out!!!so how old were you or your children??

I plan on getting my nephew a red rider, Christmas Story is his favorite movie. He's 5, you have to be 12 in NY to even touch a firearm of any type.

Well taurus bill that is great you want to get your nephew a bb gun.But i would really like to know your source for having to be 12 yrs old in NY to touch a gun???? I teach hunter safety and according to New York State Department Of Conservation there is no specified age on private property and talking to law enforcement officers of state and county sherrifs they say the same.Finally i want to say thanx for serving in the military i have respect and honor for those that serve i come from a MARINE CORP family myself

Thanks TBear for the kind words. I'm in a unit that holds a year round peacetime mission and will probably not ever get to the sand or anywhere else of serious trouble. My friends and I all truly appreciate it when people approach us with thanks and well wishes. There's a lot of men and women who are much more worthy of our praise and I pass it on to those I know who are in the direct line of fire. They are the ones who are in harm's way doing an incredibly difficult job, and doing it incredibly well.

I too teach hunter's safety, here in region 4. As I'm sure you know, kids 11 and up are permitted to take the course, but you must be 12 with a signed permission slip to shoot a .22 or shotgun. Eleven year olds are relegated to an air rifle. Our regional coordinator put it out to us that this was due to state law. When this subject comes up at my club, it's generally understood that 12 was the magic number. I will have to check in to this, thanks for stirring me up a bit.

Well i'm trying not to cause trouble but i think i got off track a little as to do formal shooting they do have to be 12 but at private property a parent can teach there kids firearm safety this was what i was getting at we used to do a youth gun group with a group of parents and kids shooting 22's and this subject came up and was determinded that it was all private and there for no problem.And hopefully you don't go to the sand as i already got friends there that i want back home in safety

Its good to start them young but some of these kids now a days are just plain dumb, no common sense what so ever. I've help out in a couple Hunter safety courses and to me you have to scare the shit out of some of the kids so they realize what kind of damage the guns can do, to me use your best judgement if the kid is ready to use a gun.

It's not just some kids that are DUMB, it's the old boys at our club, that we never turn our back on.

I make a living out of hunting /Shooting . My stepson is now 11yrs .He came from the 6th biggest city in Aus to living out bush on a Farm 10,000 acres &All the kids came from a non shooting back ground.the young bloke was about 9yrs when I started him with a Old remington 'Boys .22'(Ah for the days before Political correctness).These days the little BARSTARD out shoots me at western action & even worse he uses my L/H Fieldman .22 with deadly acuracy. I also have two step daughters 14&8 who are coming through the ranks .Showing range/field SAFTEY, SENSE & COURTISY that I have come to expect from shooters but have sometimes found sadly lacking!!

I remember when growing up in Western Colorado in the 60s it was a duty to deer hunt for the family. Therefore I was instructed early about the resposibility with firearms and shot the old 30/30 when I was 9. Because of liberal movies showing everyone killing someone with firarms and parents with very little concern about thier kids, many walk around with pellet guns shooting out lights and windows. It goes on from there to firearms with the same thinking. I think if you own firearms you had better make your kids understand all about them and thier saftey as soon as possible. The UN is pushing to de arm America through the school kids. They will be taught that anyone that owns a firearm is wrong and needs to be delt with. Helicopters full of UN people have already practice this in Texas where they land by schools and ask the children who owns firearms. If we want to keep our firearms we had better get serious and teach kids the real truth of why we are able to have them and way we must keep them. I have quit hunting clubs because I wasn't comfortable with a 11 year old swinging a 30/06 around and pointing it at people. I took one away from one person on a youth hunt to the dislike of the father. But I don't want anyone pointing a rifle at me even by mistake. Teach them young and teach them right!

I remember first shooting dad's semi ato .22 rifle at around age 3. Not really caring to hit anything. Borther and i got our air rifles at age 8-9 and .22's around age 11. In this day ange the sooner you get them hooked on shooting/ hunting the better. Too many kids are being lured away by play station etc.

7mm. guy

It depends on the kid's maturity and his location IMO. I started shooting a .22 on my gramdparent's ranch at about age 3. I started my 3 childres at about age 6, give or take a year, BUT we live out in the country and can shoot off the back deck. That's not a big deal, but kids in rural areas are used to seeing that guns are used for killing as well as fun. Stressing that guns are fun but deadly is critical. Mine all know that the can handle and shoot anything I've got (within recoil limits, of course) but MUST ask permission before touching any firearm. In the city, many kids don't know squat about guns and the appeal of the unknown can get them and yours into trouble. "Aw gee, Billy, just let me look at it, your Dad will never know" kind of thing.

Among the points I stress to both mine and visting children that come hunting on my ranch that we can NEVER call back a bullet, so we MUST know where it is going, both aiming point and background.

I've been fortunate enough to have several kids kill their first deer on my place (often with a TC Contender in .223 with a stock cut way back that I set up for my son when he was 8......don't think for one second that a .223 with Power Points won't kill a deer, I have 6 or 7 one shot kills, with no lost or wounded deer, to disprove your thinking) and it is a pleasure to watch their reactions. At all times......Muzzle control, muzzle control, muzzle control.

You must check a gun for condition (loaded or not) when you pick it up and when you put it down. Pick it up 5 minutes later, check it again.

i just gave my sister my old red rider. she is 8. she is an awsome shot. she can hit a clay pigon at about 15 feet with it and she has only had it about 6 weeks. I tought her gun saftey and bought her some safty glasss and watch her ever time she shoots it. i think she is a beter shot then me with the bb gun.lol

Last winter Brandon (age 7) and Emily (age 10)started shooting the IZH 46 in the basement and this summer we moved to the backyard shootin air silhouette targets. chickens @ 10 yds
Pigs @ 12.5 yds
turkeys @ 15 yds
rams @ 18 yds

[url="http://www.hunt101.com/?p=484573&c=500&z=1"] [/url]

[url="http://www.hunt101.com/?p=516530&c=500&z=1"] [/url]

as soon as they show any interest.

My nephew was four, maybe five, and I got him a bearcat. He was in hog heaven, and already knew the rules...and understood why. Took a 12 gauge and a big fat watermelon, cut him a piece and let him eat it...and then had him stand there and watch me blow it up. I did that and then I told him "...we could have had watermelon later on this afternoon. Somebody shot it, and now we can't...".

That sort of lesson stays with a young person.

Rich
DRSS

My daughter started coming along on rabbit hunts at 4. Pestered me for her "own gun just like dads" until I got an older Savage 24 in 22lr/410 for her. Trimmed the stock and BBLs until it fit her.
The deal is, she gets 5 22's each time we go out. She plinks at paper (with her Grandfather and myself watching like hawks) until they are gone.
Then we all go for a trip around the paddock to bag some rabbits.
She got her first rabbit a few months back, and hasn't stopped grinning yet.
I'm the first to admit 5 is a bit young. But she is so keen, and I carry the ammo, she carries the gun. She loads only when she is ready to shoot.
It seems to work.

The bonus is, it pisses off the mother-in-law something fierce.

Bottom line? I guess go with what is comfortable for you. If your child is not happy about it, let it go until they are. If your uncomfortable with it, leave it for a bit.
Do they still have those NRA junior programs running?

i can remember my first shot with a rifle. it was a 22LR. not sure how old i was but i remember dad having to hold the rifle for me because i couldnt quite do it myself. must've been young!

I was told I shot my first 22 at 18 months, sitting in my dads lap.

I remember shooting quite a bit from 4-6 years old and have been hunting on my own with a 22 since the age of 6 and centerfire rifles since the age of 8.

I don't think a person is ever too young to start shooting. Just make sure there is plenty of guidance, praise and make sure they understand the rules.

I like the watermelon senario. My dad used a full Water jug! I still remember seeing that thing explode and then he told me this could be a person. Has stuck with me ever since.

I started at three years old.

Keith

quote:

Originally posted by HL:

I like the watermelon senario. My dad used a full Water jug! I still remember seeing that thing explode and then he told me this could be a person. Has stuck with me ever since.

I like the watermelon idea too.

Grandpas idea of impressing on me how dangerous firearms could be when misused was to get me to punch an empty old 10 lb powder tin.
I hit it as hard as I could (hey, 6 yrs ), he yells at me to really try. So I punch it again, give it everything, lost some skin, hurt like hell.
He then filled it up with water, a shot it with a410. Blew it to bits, completely shredded it.
Turned and said, "You hit that thing as hard as you could? Didn't even dent it. Now look at it..."

That lesson has stayed with me for nearly 40 years.

Mind you, I don't think I'll get my daughter to break her hand on a tin can. Maybe a plastic milk jug...

quote:

Originally posted by HL:
I like the watermelon senario. My dad used a full Water jug! I still remember seeing that thing explode and then he told me this could be a person. Has stuck with me ever since.

Did it with my younger brothers. They never forgot.

quote:

Originally posted by Sambar 9.3:
My daughter started coming along on rabbit hunts at 4. Pestered me for her "own gun just like dads" until I got an older Savage 24 in 22lr/410 for her. Trimmed the stock and BBLs until it fit her.
The deal is, she gets 5 22's each time we go out. She plinks at paper (with her Grandfather and myself watching like hawks) until they are gone.
Then we all go for a trip around the paddock to bag some rabbits.
She got her first rabbit a few months back, and hasn't stopped grinning yet.
I'm the first to admit 5 is a bit young. But she is so keen, and I carry the ammo, she carries the gun. She loads only when she is ready to shoot.
It seems to work.

The bonus is, it pisses off the mother-in-law something fierce.

Bottom line? I guess go with what is comfortable for you. If your child is not happy about it, let it go until they are. If your uncomfortable with it, leave it for a bit.
Do they still have those NRA junior programs running?

Mine started with airsoft at 4, airguns at 5, rimfire rifle at 6, rimfire handguns at 7, centerfire (32 ACP)at 8, 9x19 at 9, SMGs at 10

I started shooting at about 5 or 6. My oldest daughter was shooting my 1917 S&W at age 6. Both daughters were shooting up to 45 auto by the time they reached their 7th birthday. They had gradutated to 44 mag at around the age of 10-11. My oldest was shooting, on a limited basis, my 416 Rigby when she was about 15.
I think that as soon as they show interest and can safely hold a gun, they are the right age to start shooting WITH STRICT SUPERVISION.

I would also say it would depend more on the individual kid than their age. I'm 26, and got my first bbgun, .410, and .22 when i was 5 (almost 6). but i didnt' have free reign with any of them, i was supervised closely and taught safety and respect. i lived in a neighborhood in a small town, and when the neighborhood boys got older we would bird hunt in the woods nearby with our bb guns, probably starting around age 9 or 10. i started squirrel hunting with Dad at age 5, when i first got the .410, and deer hunting with my .243 at age 10. I am very fortunate to have a Dad that wanted to teach me as much as i wanted to learn and hunt/shoot wtih him. so if the kid can handle it young, go for it...just make sure they respect the weapons.

My dad started working with me at age 3 shooting a 22 under his supervision. We would spend a couple Saturday's each month practicing - focusing on safety, respect for the enviroment, game animals, and accuracy. By the time I was 5 I was ready to hunt with dad. Shot my first rabbit at age 5 - one shot kill. Graduated to a 410 shotgun when I was 8 and I bagged my first squirrel. Didn't get a BB gun until I was 7 years old. Dad had to be present for me to use the 22 or 410 until I was 10 when I began hunting on my own.

I have 8 children and I started them as early as they were ready physically and emotionally. My oldest son began shooting at 3 years old. My youngest son does not have a desire to use firearms at all and he is respected for his decision among family members. In my family, firearms are tools to be used for food acquisition, sport, and defense. They are respected as such. We treat them with the same reverence that we would a chainsaw, power saw, welder, or any oter serious tool. Most of my adult children own and carry firearms frequently.

I have started my grandchildren as early in their respect for God, family, service to others, and of course guns. Good shooting!

I started my first son at age 4 with a .22 bolt cut down to a 16.5 inch barrel and stock cut to his length of pull, and iron sights. Nonetheless, there is only so much a kid that age can learn. He continued shooting periodically and finally went prarie dog hunting (successfully) at age 6 with a different cut-down .22 with scope. Now at age 7 he shoots an AR-15 in .223 with an A1 buttstock with great accuracy as long as he has something to rest the forearm on.

quote:

Originally posted by 700vlssth:
Its good to start them young but some of these kids now a days are just plain dumb, no common sense what so ever. I've help out in a couple Hunter safety courses and to me you have to scare the shit out of some of the kids so they realize what kind of damage the guns can do, to me use your best judgement if the kid is ready to use a gun.

You can't blame Dumb or No common sense on a 4 to 12 year old kid That is 99.9% lack of Parenting

As a matter of fact I am starting my 4 (almost 5) year old daughter with a .22 this weekend.

I have been wanting to get my 4y.o. nephew out for a while now to go shooting.

wow this thread still going over 3 yrs later great i think it's good for the youngsters to be taught safety young i'm thinking of starting a shoot club for kids like my dad did many many moons ago working with younger kids is great i'm gonna have to buy a few more 22 single shot's before i start this venture and talk to locals see if they would bring there kids.

Her Christmas present was one of those CZ 'Scout' youth .22LR. Neat little rifle, and just on the legal limit for length. Came with a single shot adapter, and 1 x 5 shot magazine.

She loves it...

I started shooting a Red Rider BB gun when I was 6 or 7 (and no, I didn't shoot my eye out). I bought my grandson a Red Rider when he was 7. He could only shoot it with my supervision. We talked gun safety from the get go. He took his hunters safety course last year (he was 9). We also started shooting 22s and then the .243 this past year. This past season he killed his first deer (a 10 point whitetail from a ground blind I had built for us and had installed a gun rest to help with accuracy). We stepped it off--it was 74 yds and it fell in its tracks. Wish I'd had a camera filming us--we both jumped up and began hugging one another and jumping up and down. It was as exciting for me as it was for him. I have him shooting the bow now.

Someone has to take time with these kids to pass on the hunting legacy that is ours if we want to keep it alive for future generations.

I know the experience has been good for him, but I must say it has been extremely rewarding to me.

At what age to teach a young'un how to shoot? As soon as he can dress himself...

The younger the better. and make sure the know every gun is loaded! And don't run with sissors

I got my first .22 lr when I was 5 and started hunting squirrels and rabbits with my dad. I was given a .250 Savage by a family friend that same year and started shooting it when I was 6. I killed my first deer when I was 7. I say.....teach them as early as safely possible.

My three year old and I go "bird and squirrel huntin'" a couple of times a week. I have held a .22 and let him shoot it several times, but for our regular huntin' he just takes his cap guns. He uses the rifle for long shots, and pistol for close work. He never misses, and I get to teach him muzzle control in the middle of a neighborhood. Works quite well.

Other than this is another one of the dredge-ups from a while back, it is a good subject.

I have no children, sometimes I am Thankful that I was kept out of the gene pool, sometimes I regret it.

I think children should be schooled in firearms handling and safety at around 4 years old, with actual shooting at 5 or 6 depending on the maturity level of the child.

That is something many folks don't addres is how mature the child is, in understanding what is going on.

Just my opinion, but I really do not think children should be killing stuff until around 8 years old.

Again this depends on the maturity level of the child in question, but getting younger kids to fully understand the proces of death and causing that death, may be beyond their chronilogical age.

Some young kids can handle it and understand the process, while older kids can't.

On thing that I feel is required, is letting the kid proceed at their own speed and not forcing them. JMO.

quote:

Originally posted by The Specialist:
It's not just some kids that are DUMB, it's the old boys at our club, that we never turn our back on.

I hear that. Have to keep close watch on some of the mossbacks at the gun club I frequent.

Kids are not all the same and I don't think there is a specific age when the responsibility switch goes on. I've seen 4 yr. olds that I was very comfortable around and 10 yr olds I wouldn't trust with handling a gun let alone shooting it.

I was 7 or 8 when I first shot a gun because my parents only had a 30-06 and a pocket revolver. Then one summer while visiting an Uncle's ranch the family .22 (Rem. 510) was passed on to my dad. Being from a big family (13 kids) it took that long to make the rounds before it was my family's turn with the old Remington. That gun currently resides with my sister and her 2 kids were the last to learn to shoot with it. My granddaughter is almost 5 and I think she'll be ready to learn soon.

quote:

Originally posted by Crazyhorseconsulting:
Other than this is another one of the dredge-ups from a while back, it is a good subject.

I have no children, sometimes I am Thankful that I was kept out of the gene pool, sometimes I regret it.

I think children should be schooled in firearms handling and safety at around 4 years old, with actual shooting at 5 or 6 depending on the maturity level of the child.

That is something many folks don't addres is how mature the child is, in understanding what is going on.

Just my opinion, but I really do not think children should be killing stuff until around 8 years old.

Again this depends on the maturity level of the child in question, but getting younger kids to fully understand the proces of death and causing that death, may be beyond their chronilogical age.

Some young kids can handle it and understand the process, while older kids can't.

On thing that I feel is required, is letting the kid proceed at their own speed and not forcing them. JMO.

If that was meant for me, please note that my son's "huntin'" is done with a cap gun. He has accompanied me on a hog hunt, where he had the privilege to see a blond coon and no hogs, but he hasn't seen or made any kills. I agree that the death and killing issues should wait.

I'd also like to comment on the lack of gun safety in older folks. Though I'm thinking about adults of any age who have never handled a gun before and are invited on a hunt for business or social purposes. I was next to a yuppie in a duck blind once who swept me so many times I lost count. He was ten years or so older than me, but I finally told him if he passed that loaded 12 gauge muzzle across me one more time I would return fire.

I help my two children start shooting at around 3 they got bb guns at 6yoa 22s at 12yoa gave the each a 38 and 9mm when they turned 18.

When they are young make it short and fun Help then blow up a couple of full soda cans ect. then on to something else. By the time they are 8 they well want to use up all your ammo.

One time my son and his cousin were shooting 22s they were shooting at the time bulk rem hp I brought for $7.88 for 525. They burnt those up. Around two cartons.

OH but look whats on the shelve they got into my RWS sub sonic match at $3.25 a box that was a expensive pinking sesson.

I did not yell I said now that you shot all your ammo up I gave you you can replace my ammo you shot up they leaned a valveable lesson in the price of things.