i have a 12 year old son that goes hunting with me and he is allowed to hunt by law i think its a good age to start but do you think its too young?
2007-10-07 12:28:43 · 17 answers · asked by Anonymous in Sports ➔ Outdoor Recreation ➔ Hunting
Im 13 now and i was hunting when i was 12.
If you teach him proper gun handiling and all the proper shooting techingues im sure he will be very happy and best of all you can spend some time with him!
2007-10-07 12:55:52 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 4⤊ 0⤋
heres the deal. 12 is not too young to be hunting or shooting guns. i was shooting .357 rounds by the time i was 5, and im twelve years old and i can easily shoot 12 rounds of 30-06 in a row. the thing is, no matter how young you are, you can legally hunt. the catch is, to hunt legally(even if it is on privatley owned property) you MUST have an up to date hunting liscence. to get the liscence, you have to take a hunter safety course, then at the end you must take a test and pass it. there arent age limits for getting a liscence, but most instructors of the classes will not accept young children. the age limit is usually about 14 or 15. even my dad had to pull a few strings to get me into the class. so the answer is yes he is allowed by law to go hunting, he is not too young, but you must have a valid hunting liscence.
p.s. this liscence is about 10 dollars after you pass the test. the 10 dollars will get u just the liscence which allows you to hunt small game(squirrels, rats, etc.) but if you want to hunt anything else( deer,geese,duck,wild boar,etc.) you must get stamps for these animals. stamps can range anywhere from 5 dollars, and i believe boars can be up to 300 dollar stamps, i also believe if you want to hunt elephant(not in usa) stamps cost upwards of 3000 dollars.
2007-10-07 14:56:37 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
It will depend on the emotional maturity of your son. Mine was not ready to hunt until he was 14 even tho he could legally hunt at the age of 12. I didn't push him just gave him the option of going without hunting until he made the decision himself. It worked out better like that and he did enjoy going with me on the hunts. He had already passed all his Hunter Safety requirement so it was just his decision. Too many Dads push their kids into hunting too fast. When a kid is forced to do something it is no fun.
Now my son is 27 and is a Hunter Safety Instructor. He and I have many wonderful days afield hunting and talking and enjoying the wonderful outdoors.
Sarge
2007-10-11 07:32:01 · answer #3 · answered by sargeArmy 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No, he's not too young. That's how old my brother was when he started hunting. I didn't get to start until I was 14, but he started at the same time I did, and he was 12.
2007-10-08 03:54:19 · answer #4 · answered by esugrad97 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
he is too old too old to begin the training LOL just kidding . Kids will dictate at what age. If his interest is peaked and he goes with you as a spectator and not carrying a gun and he loves it, then get him started. get him proficient with the gun you will let him carry. I bought my son a mossberg youth model 20 ga as he was a little smaller than most. he started about 10 and carried it for a couple years. I got him a 12 ga last year and he shoots it very well. he limits out and shoots 18's on the skeet range. just set him up for sucess. if u are going to deer hunt you need to figure out what his emotional state is. it can be overwhelming to kill an animal that large make sure he can handle it
2007-10-08 07:53:00 · answer #5 · answered by brokerman74067 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Definitely not too young to hunt. I was hunting with my grandfather since I was 9. I learned many valuable lessons then. And the things I learned then were easier to understand as a child than as a thick-headed adult. Start em' early and start em' right. Don't cut any corners when it comes to teaching kids. And the day he shoots his 1st buck, you'll reap the rewards. Trust me, I know from experience. Happy hunting and good luck to the 2 of you.
2007-10-08 03:26:12 · answer #6 · answered by fmagellan74 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
It isn't really so much a matter of age, but of safety. If you are confident that your son can handle a weapon safely, follow the rules, and listen closely to your directions then go for it. I have seen plenty of kids quite a bit younger than your son out in the woods. Start out with something easier like squirrel hunting with a .22 and see how he likes it.
2007-10-07 14:22:07 · answer #7 · answered by Tom M 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
If he receives the proper training he is not too young. As long as he knows firearms safety and the local hunting regs, and why those regs exist, then he'll be fine. It sounds like he is already on the right track.
I owned my first shotgun, a single shot .410, when I was 12. I used to hunt for ruffed grouse (partridge) in Quebec. My dad, who didn't hunt, taught me firearms safety with a borrowed .22 long before that.
2007-10-07 12:56:51 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
12 is about right for a lot of kids. I started mine at that age. I myself, after a couple years' small game hunting, killed my first deer at age 8. You're in the best position to judge when yours is ready.
2007-10-07 13:15:04 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
absolutly not too young!!! i was shooting squirels with my grandfather when i was 5 and moved on to deer by 10. now in my state you have youth deer season, my daughter was 7 last fall. it was the second year i had taken her for deer and she shot her first buck. shw has also been shooting and hunting small game with me since she was about 4. i found it easier to teach them young. teach them the right way to hunt and most important.....Safety
2007-10-08 12:22:02 · answer #10 · answered by Orion2506 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋