Took my son hunting for the first time

[3RRL]

This is a great thread Tororider.
I had all my boys out that way. Wow, 4 years old is a great time, as long as you bring along enough stuff to keep him occupied. I believe hunting with your kids is one of the best things you can ever do. It's a win-win for everybody.
Like Eddie's son, Wes got his first BB/pellet gun at 8. His first encounter was with a 4' rattlesnake that he dispatched with about 3 shots. He was a changed person after he killed that rattler that could have bitten him. When he was 10 he popped his first turkey with a .22 in the Spring season.
I'll bet this thread you started will get a lot of replies.

 

[Tororider]

Rob,
Thanks, those are great pictures. I figured if he wanted to do it as long as I kept it fun for him, and like you said kept him occupied, it wouldn't be too early. Like I said he is already asking to go again so I must have done something right.

Doing anything with children I think has a special place for all us dads, it is nice to be able to share the experiences.

 

[dooleysm]

I have a group of 4 buddies that have been close since college. The first guy to have a child had a son. The other 4 of us chipped in and bought a child sized .410/.22 combo to give him. I was the second to have a child, and our first was a boy, so he got the same thing from the other 4. The third guy just had his first, and it's a girl, so we're thinking doll house.

Anyway, I haven't had that .410/.22 out yet, as I think 2 is still a bit young. I do have my old Daisy BB gun still, I may get that out next summer and start teaching him about guns with it. I've got all my guns in a hanging cabinet in the basement. It's got a big glass door that is hinged on the bottom. It's not anything that will stop a theft, but I think it'll suffice to keep the kids out of it until they are old enough to respect guns. I do worry from time to time though, about them getting into the guns when they are older. I may have to come up with a better storage solution in the future.

 

[czechsonofagun]

Jacob asked about shooting my bow before we went out hunting. At four he is too young for a real bow, but I am going to try to find a childs bow that isn't a toy. If anyone knows where I can find one I would appreciate it.

My Jakob shoots Little Brave from Cabelas. I upgraded the arrow rest with one of my old from compound bow and every Christmas he gets new set of aluminum deer stalker arrows from Dick's to keep him shooting.

The bow is not made from wood and it does not get damaged when left in the woods for a day or two. He shoots for few years now and getting pretty good.

 

[EddieWalker]

Here's a few pics of the kids over the last couple of years with some of the animals we've taken on our land. We try to include them when we can, but don't push it. Sometimes they want to come along, other times, they don't. When we shoot something, they ALWAYS want to come see it and pose for pictures.

The first picture is of our son when he was six years old. It's my wifes second hog and he was there for the entire hunt. We were out walking our trails and Steph spotted this hog in the bottom of what is now Lake Marabou, our large pond. We hung back while she crept into a good shooting position and watched the hog while it fed. At the shot, the hog droped dead.

Eddie

 

[MossRoad]

My 8 year old got his first gun last week. It was his birthday and he is now the proud owner of a Daisy BB gun. He's been out target practicing with it, and he just might end up as good a shot as his mom.

What's realy impressive is that he knows wher it belongs and he hasn't come close to trying to touch it or play with it. The BB's are in a seperate room and up as high as I can reach.

Eddie

WHAT? You are teaching a kid respect? Oh my goodness!!!

Sorry, couldn't resist.

Funny how that works, trusting your parents and parents trusting their kids. Our oldest daughter (soon to be 16) is seeing a few of her friends breach the trust with their folks and suffering the consequences. We tell her she can pretty much write her own ticket as long as she never gives us reason to not trust her. So far, we think she "gets" it.

 

[firefighter9208]

I have a group of 4 buddies that have been close since college. The first guy to have a child had a son. The other 4 of us chipped in and bought a child sized .410/.22 combo to give him. I was the second to have a child, and our first was a boy, so he got the same thing from the other 4. The third guy just had his first, and it's a girl, so we're thinking doll house.

Anyway, I haven't had that .410/.22 out yet, as I think 2 is still a bit young. I do have my old Daisy BB gun still, I may get that out next summer and start teaching him about guns with it. I've got all my guns in a hanging cabinet in the basement. It's got a big glass door that is hinged on the bottom. It's not anything that will stop a theft, but I think it'll suffice to keep the kids out of it until they are old enough to respect guns. I do worry from time to time though, about them getting into the guns when they are older. I may have to come up with a better storage solution in the future.

Why break tradition. Buy that girl a .410/.22. My 5 year old daughter (soon to be 6) got a daisy bb gun for Christmas last year. She can hit a 12" target with it from 15-20' away. She loves to sit in the shooting house with her "nana" and blow on a deer call. I've already told her when she turns eight I will buy her a .410/.22. BTW you can buy a lot of youth guns in pink. CrickettRifle, Crickett.com, Keystone Sporting Arms, Inc. Davey Crickett, My first rifle, New with safety lock, .22 rifle, Davey Crickett kids club, rifles, accessories, scopes Keystone Sporting Arms, Inc., Davey Crickett, My first rifle, New with sa

I keep all my guns in a Cannon 21 gun safe. Her BB Gun is in there right beside my 30/06. She knows if she wants to shoot it that I have to get it out and help her.

My grandfather (81) gave my son (16 months) his old Browning double barrel 20 ga. shortly after Garret was born. It's in the gun safe for when Garret gets old enough.

I don't think kids are ever to young to start teaching them gun safety and respect.

Chris

 

[N80]

This is my 14yo daughter. She got this gobbler this spring. I called it up for her.

She missed one a few years ago and was really glad to redeem herself. My son got his first turkey at age 9, first deer at age 10. And even though both of them like to hunt, they are not as crazy about it as I was when I was that age.

 

[Tororider]

Here are a few pictures from our hunting expedition.

My grandfather just gave me his dad's remington .22. It is over 100 years old. I am the only one of the grandkids who hunts so I got it. I don't think I will ever shoot it, but may put it out to show when I build my new house in the man cave.

 

[PBinWA]

Now I feel I have go buy that pink Daisy BB Gun for my 5 year old girl!