Deer Hunters?

[Hoot Crawford]

Any deer Hunters on here? I do not hunt, but having grown up in Southern Ohio, it is very common. Somehow, on FB I am now getting posts from a local "Conservation Club", showing pictures of kids with their first "harvest". So far, the youngest has been 4 years old. He is in the photo. Would you let your 4 year old pull the trigger on a rifle?

 

[Marie Miller]

You modify stock and load and coach safety and respect for the animal and the environment over and over and over. You are joined at the hip with them.

 

[Connie Bennett]

A friend just sent me a foto of her five year old grandson in the exact same pose as above on the OH/PA border.

The Dad actually pulled the trigger. They are several generations of hunters, so they play by all the safety rules.

That said, CWD is a becoming a big issue in Middle Tennessee. The TWRA is asking folks to have their deer harvest tested for it. While they say CWD won’t affect a human, they are also saying to NOT eat the meat of an infected deer.

 

[Beth Gallagher]

I grew up in a family of hunters, and most of my rural relatives (including our middle son) are avid hunters. I had my own rifle at age 12, though I never had the slightest interest in hunting I did like to shoot at cans on the fence. It's not strange to have young ones handling guns (with strict supervision), driving farm trucks when they can reach the pedals, or operating farm equipment in rural areas. Age four does seem pretty young but as with anything else, it depends on the child and I'm pretty certain the child was not sent alone into the woods.

Kind of like this old photo of my dad and my oldest son. Any fisherman can see that the "catch" was arranged by grandpa.

 

[Shirley Martin]

My youngest son used to belong to a hunting club. They went dove hunting during dove hunting season and deer hunting during the deer hunting season. He quit deer hunting because he said they would shoot at anything moving through the woods. Sooner or later one of them would shoot another hunter. Some of my family still deer hunt but they do still hunting rather than hunting with dogs. Deer that have been chased by dogs get a rank taste and deer still hunted don't.

 

[Tony Nathanson]

Four is too young for handling a deadly weapon or killing anything. A four year old doesn't understand the concept of death. There will be time to learn about that later.
While working in firearms instruction, I've seen many fathers who want to "Make a man out of their child" by encouraging him to shoot a powerful firearm. And some "Fathers" who want to "Make an adult" out of their 7-year-old daughter: (Note the lack of hearing or eye protection. And note how close the .40 caliber gun comes to the girl's head). Such morons don't care about their child's safety; they just care about showing how "special" their kids are. And they're willing to risk their child's eyesight & hearing:

 

[Connie Bennett]

Four is too young for handling a deadly weapon or killing anything. A four year old doesn't understand the concept of death. There will be time to learn about that later.
While working in firearms instruction, I've seen many fathers who want to "Make a man out of their child" by encouraging him to shoot a powerful firearm. And some "Fathers" who want to "Make an adult" out of their 7-year-old daughter: (Note the lack of hearing or eye protection. And note how close the .40 caliber gun comes to the girl's head). Such morons don't care about their child's safety; they just care about showing how "special" their kids are. And they're willing to risk their child's eyesight & hearing:

I don’t care what the venue, there are dumb’s in every single one of them……..

 

[Marie Miller]

My youngest son used to belong to a hunting club. They went dove hunting during dove hunting season and deer hunting during the deer hunting season. He quit deer hunting because he said they would shoot at anything moving through the woods. Sooner or later one of them would shoot another hunter. Some of my family still deer hunt but they do still hunting rather than hunting with dogs. Deer that have been chased by dogs get a rank taste and deer still hunted don't.

Strange hunting club.
Adrenaline from the chase can have an impact. It is up to the cook to work on that.

 

[Marie Miller]

Four is too young for handling a deadly weapon or killing anything. A four year old doesn't understand the concept of death. There will be time to learn about that later.
While working in firearms instruction, I've seen many fathers who want to "Make a man out of their child" by encouraging him to shoot a powerful firearm. And some "Fathers" who want to "Make an adult" out of their 7-year-old daughter: (Note the lack of hearing or eye protection. And note how close the .40 caliber gun comes to the girl's head). Such morons don't care about their child's safety; they just care about showing how "special" their kids are. And they're willing to risk their child's eyesight & hearing:

There are plenty of morons in our circle apparently. Who said kids do not get necessary safety equipment? Have you looked at SASS?

 

[Beth Gallagher]

Those of us who were raised on farms were familiar with death very early on. (Reference the Memory thread and the discussion of hog-slaughtering time). As a kid I saw animals slaughtered, dogs run over by cars, my grandma wringing chicken necks, my father shooting a rabid dog, and plenty of other stuff. Hunting was the least of it.

My father taught us how to handle guns and to respect wildlife. If we shot a living thing, we were expected to eat it. My brother learned this lesson when he shot a robin.

 

[Connie Bennett]

Those of us who were raised on farms were familiar with death very early on. (Reference the Memory thread and the discussion of hog-slaughtering time). As a kid I saw animals slaughtered, dogs run over by cars, my grandma wringing chicken necks, my father shooting a rabid dog, and plenty of other stuff. Hunting was the least of it.

My father taught us how to handle guns and to respect wildlife. If we shot a living thing, we were expected to eat it. My brother learned this lesson when he shot a robin.

Ditto all of that.

I had a pistol in my hands when I was 14. I learned to shoot at the local dump on Sunday’s. Rats make for an excellent moving target, and I got pretty good hitting them in the head. As a young adult, I also had a Ben Pearson. I could pull 40# and was pretty accurate on a target. I was never a hunter, however. I preferred to sit on a big log with a Super 8 and film whatever wild life went past.

We had a smokehouse. That’s where a cow went when it stopped giving milk. Pigs were also often hung in there and you can’t beat that lard for pie crusts. Dad marveled his mom could wring a chicken”s neck in a blink, while he had to axe it .

I was driving the farm tractor down the hay field in creeper when I was five, while dad picked up the squares and stacked them on the wagon. Mom was not a happy person, but we couldn’t afford hired help. He would not let me run the equipment to make the hay, even though I always asked.

Dad had a wrench in my hand before mom could get a frying pan it — worked for me but I still had to mop floors. Being taught to turn wrenches saved me a boatload of money thru the years.

And here I am - 79 and still in one piece. I know many feel differently, but I wouldn’t change any of my growing up years.. As a young adult, my life with horses was what got me in trouble. Mostly because I went after the rankest of horses to reschool them and find them good homes with trail riders, but I wouldn’t change that either. I had my sweet /gentle Keepers, but I never could resist rehabbing one that had been ruined by some idiot human.

Both sides of my family were dairy farmers going back at least, into 1800’s. Knowing how to live minimally, while being safe and using common sense was all part of life.

I was one lucky kid to have been raised like I was; I never once experienced some of atrocities others on here speak about. Poor as we were, I loved my life and it’s why I chose to buy 25 acres of bare land and build my own farmette for retirement. My city slicker husband was fine with that. It is becoming more difficult to care for it, but my hope is to keep managing until my end time and my brother will scatter my ashes in my designated area….