I posted at the Black Bear Blog today about a bill that has made it throught the general assembly of Wisconsin to allow 8 year olds to go hunting. http://mainehuntingtoday.com/bbb/?p=10 Basically the bill works this way. The parent hunts with the kid or names an adult mentor. The kid must be within arms length of the mentor/parent at all times. Only one gun to be shared by both. When the kid turns 12, he must take a hunter safety course to continue hunting. The bill passed overwhelmingly. Those opposed seem to be the ones who just can't let parents be parents - even when mistakes are made. What are your thoughts on this bill? Personally, I like it. I think in the long run, hunting will be safer, the kid will learn at an early age about handling guns, etc.
New Hampshire works the same way. Youths don't get a license until they are 15 or 16 but can hunt with an adult with a license and get 1 gun between the two of them. I think that Maine's 10yr junior license isn't bad though. My dad was taking me out with him when I was 7 or 8. I didn't care too much about not being "hunting" just liked being out there doing what dad was doing.
I am thinking about taking the boy bear trapping this fall. He baits with me all August and love to help out with my bear hunters. Since he is only 6 he can't hunt. But kids can trap at any age. So I think I am going to let him trap a bear provided he does all the work.
I think this is a great law and every state should take the same stand or one similiar. We as hunters/gatherers are becoming a lost breed. We need the younger generation to continue on with this sport. Saw an article awhile back where the male population of hunters is declining but the females have increased. John
What I find interesting is the states that allow kids to hunt earlier or have no laws prohibiting young kids from hunting have a higher rate at which young kids continue to hunt as they get older. Also, there are less accidents and fatalities in those states, than the states which prohibit children from hunting and requiring a class to enter into the field with a firearm...
How ironic are those stats? Teach a kid early in life and let them participate and they will most likely continue through out life. Like a kid that is always last to be picked for a pick up game of baseball, you think in high school he will try out for the team? I would bet not!!!! Teach a kid early in life about gun safety and they will always remember the golden rules. Kids brains are developing at an early age so they retain the information better then us old dawgs.. John
You nailed it right there John. The problem we face today is if something bad happens then the tactic isn't educate but confiscate. We are taking aducation about guns and hunting away from the children. We also have to remember that you have a much greater chance dying in a car accident than being shot in the woods by a stray bullet. Accidents happen and that is a part of life, but how we deal with these problems is key. Continue to take this stuff away from our kids and watch everything slowly decline.
Rem, You are correct with todays mentality of confiscate not educate. This why us older hunters and even the young need to promote hunting as a valuable means of population control and also disease control. If one was to use a search engine online you would see all the non profitable organizations geared towards todays kids and getting them in the outdoors. This is what we need to be promoting. Heck, yes we can sit behind a screen and bang keyboards all day discussing this matter--when in all realitity we need to be out in the real world promoting this subject. John
Just for the record hunting is safer than ping-pong based on the number of injuries requiring a trips to the hospital.
BIzzare isn't it! When the truth is told, those opposed to hunting and guns aren't concerned about safety, they just don't want anybody to do it. And they use the best tactic going. It's used by our media and everyone on this planet actually. Scare tactic. Play on emotions. Use the right words that sound nice yet say something else. IT"S ALSO CALLED BRAINWASHING!!
