How young is too young to shoot?

[fw501]

I have several handguns at home and I am a responsible owner. I always know where my guns are and they secure. My 2 kids, 10 and 11, always express interest when they see them. I want them to learn PROPER
GUN SAFETY from ME! I want that in the event I mistakenly leave one out or they come in contact with one somewhere else at a friends house they know what to do and what not to do. They know that they do not touch them, and they are to leave them alone and leave the friends house. They also know to notify me so that I can talk with the owner and give him some. I took my 11 year old to the range with me and went through all the safety issues and handling. I also let her shoot so that she would know exactly what happens when the trigger is "pulled". I was a hero to her for doing that. My father, a retired police officer, gave me a real hard time for exposing her to that and letting her shoot. He told me that was one of the dumbest things I've ever done. I told him I disagree for the reasons I stated. Am I wrong???

 

[K_W]

I'd say as soon as, #1 The child learns the safety rules of handling guns and is responsible enough to follow them, #2 The child can understand what death is and that guns can cause it if not handled properly, and #3 is strong enough to handle the recoil of the chosen firearm, then the child is ready to start shooting.

But even then I'd start with air powered guns before moving to real firearms.

This is how my Grandfather handled my introduction to firearms and it worked very well. I was 6 when I first started shooting BB guns with him in his backyard, and that christmas (6 1/2) I got a Daisy BB gun of my own. Then at age 7 I moved on to shooting .22 rifles with him at a family friend's farm.

 

[SMERGLE]

not in my opinion my two has been shooting since the were hold enough to hold a firearm I think the younger they learn the better

 

[Que]

I have been wondering about the same thing. My daughter is not all that interested in guns, but I would like for her to understand gun safety and operation. I like the air gun suggestion a lot.

 

[fw501]

I'd say as soon as, #1 The child learns the safety rules of handling guns and is responsible enough to follow them, #2 The child can understand what death is and that guns can cause it if not handled properly, and #3 is strong enough to handle the recoil of the chosen firearm, then the child is ready to start shooting.

But even then I'd start with air powered guns before moving to real firearms.

This is how my Grandfather handled my introduction to firearms and it worked very well. I was 6 when I first started shooting BB guns with him in his backyard, and that christmas (6 1/2) I got a Daisy BB gun of my own. Then at age 7 I moved on to shooting .22 rifles with him at a family friend's farm.

I forgot to say that the both have pellet guns and have been shooting them for 2 years now.

 

[IndyMonkey]

I'm in the process of teaching my boys gun control and saftey with red ryders. They are 4 and 6. Exposing them to guns eary and often will cut down on any bs later in life.

 

[hps]

not in my opinion my two has been shooting since the were hold enough to hold a firearm I think the younger they learn the better

take the curiousity outta the picture. Introduce them at a young age teach them how to handle a weapon. My son has been shooting with me for 5yrs now and he's 8. He's around guns ALOT and knows what to do.
He made me so proud just the other day, he was playing at the kids house down the street, he comes home doesn't say a word just walks in the house, you can tell somethings wrong. wife ask him "whats going on"? he says he needs to talk to me, so she comes and gets me. I ask him "whats going on"? he said the kid down the street brought out a BB gun and he wasn't being safe, so he just left. I told him i was more proud of him than anything that he's ever done. He asked me why, I told him because now i know he's been listening to me. remember the old saying "Curiousity killed the cat" take that factor outta the picture.

 

[WhitleyStu]

Dad bought me a .22 single shot youth rifle when I was 5 and a .22 semi-auto pistol when I was 6. He taught me the safety rules. I have been shooting now for 51 years and had no ND or AD and had a abundant amount of enjoyment over the years. My feelings are the younger the better, but each child has to be evaluated if they are willing to be a "good student".

 

[sonovasailor]

My 5 year old grandson has shot a FLYING clay pidgeon with his .410 snake charmer! He can shoot a pop can at 20ft with his BB gun.

 

[JohnP82]

fw501 I say job well done Every child is different so I dont really think there is a set age. Obviously you would never put your children in danger and I say you did the right thing. I have seen children younger than that learning to shoot at the range I go to. I cant wait for the day my son is ready for his first range trip! I think introducing children into guns the proper way is very important for many reasons. One they know how to safely handle them, they learn to respect them, they learn and understand what they are capable of and their power and realize they are not toys. I also think one of the best things is that it kills the curiousity factor for them so hopefully if they ever are at a friends house and unfortunately a gun is available to them your child will be smart enough to not handle it and leave and tell an adult. Without prior experience they may want to handle it like the rest of the kids. Keep up the good work!

 

[jnicol6600]

I would say you did nothing wrong. Every child would be different IMHO. Only the parents would know when the time was right. It is better for them to know proper gun safety from you if they happen to run across one unsupervised than to not have a clue.

 

[Mr. Habib]

My oldest daughter first shot a handgun when she was 12. My youngest girl got her own .22 rifle for Christmas about month before she turned 5. Got to shoot it that day at Grandma and Grandpa's house that day. IMHO the maturity of the child is the most important issue. Some kids are ready at 4-5 and some adults will never be mature enough. You know your kids better then anyone else. Don't let someone else tell you what your kids are old enough to do.

 

[Benjamin]

I started shooting when I was 5 years old and got my first rifle for Christmas when I turned 6 years old. Age doesn't really matter as much as GUN SAFETY and being responsible.

 

[Joe Williams]

My 10 y/o boy got his first .22, and we took him out to shoot it, a couple months before his fifth birthday. A few weeks ago, he shot his first match. I may be biased, but I think he handled that 1911 like a champ, and with excellent safety.

 

[kboom524]

take the curiousity outta the picture. Introduce them at a young age teach them how to handle a weapon. My son has been shooting with me for 5yrs now and he's 8. He's around guns ALOT and knows what to do.
He made me so proud just the other day, he was playing at the kids house down the street, he comes home doesn't say a word just walks in the house, you can tell somethings wrong. wife ask him "whats going on"? he says he needs to talk to me, so she comes and gets me. I ask him "whats going on"? he said the kid down the street brought out a BB gun and he wasn't being safe, so he just left. I told him i was more proud of him than anything that he's ever done. He asked me why, I told him because now i know he's been listening to me. remember the old saying "Curiousity killed the cat" take that factor outta the picture.

I couldn't have said it better. Take curiousity out of the picture. I don't even know how old my sons were when I started them shooting. Started them with 22 rifles on a bench rest. Then when they were old enough the started shooting 22 pistols and eventualy moved to centerfires. I have had guns in my house from before they were born. Guns were always locked up, ammo locked in a seperate cabinet You can control the guns in your house but you can,t always control the guns at a friends house they might be playing at. My main goal was to teach them gun safety and to take the curiousity out it for them.Now my sons are 22 and 20 yrs old and are both good shots and always practice good gun safety.
HPS you have a very good reason to be proud of your son and one of these days he should be proud of his dad for a job well done.

 

[baldmax]

Took my 8 yr old son out for the first time about 2 weeks ago. Nothing wrong with what you did. Your father may have issues from what he has seen in the past. Just remember, you are the parent, not him.

 

[gglass]

I have four kids aged 25, 20, 19 & 6... They are all gun owners. I have never had an age requirement for learning about firearms, but rather a level of maturity.

My 35-year old son is a firearms enthusiast and has a collection larger than my own.

My 20-year old son has a few firearms of his own, but is currently borrowing rifles and pistols from the Marines... He was one of only five Marines that could shoot expert in both rifles and pistols, out of 102 Marines in his graduating MOS.

My 19-year old daughter has never been a gun enthusiast, but she does have her LTCH and carries a hangun... Just in case.

My youngest got her first Cricket .22 rifle when she was 5-years old, because she is exceptionally bright and mature for her age. She has been taught firearms safety and knows the rules of the range when we take her shooting. This past week I took her shooting a Midwest Gun & Range where to police detectives were giving us both kudos for her gun handling and shooting skills, and my judgement in starting her early.

My youngest shooting her Cricket rifle on her 5th birthday:

If you never teach your children safe gun handling and shooting skills, they will be unprepared when they do come in contact with firearms. We have all read about terrible situations where kids get a hold of dad's SECRET gun that was stashed in a drawer, or kids that play around with a gun at a friend's house. These terrible situations can be minimized or eliminated with firearms education and training at the earliest age.


P.S. I never allow toy guns in the house. I don't ever want kids to get the wrong idea about the seriousness of firearms.

 

[THard6]

When my Dad turned 11 his mother give him a single shot .22 because thats how old Davy Crocket was when he got his first firearm. Kinda a silly reason but Dad carried on and I recieved my first bolt action .22 when I turned 11. That birthday I learned the safety and some know how. Now 19 I am still learning and will continue to learn. I was at an old friends house today lets just say big law enforcement background and I can spend hours sitting in his back room talking and always learn something new. To teach his 2 granddaughters really to scare them he had old gallon metal cans and filled them with water and shot them. When they walked up and saw the devastation he told them this is what happens if your shot in the stomach. Right then they caught on fast and had the upmost respect for any and every firearm.

 

[GregD]

You have gotten a lot of good answers to the "how old" question.
I agree with 'hps' on the curiousity factor. I had a deal with my son that whenever he want to see one of my guns all he had to do was ask and we would go see it. That also gave me a chance to continue teaching safe gun handling.

 

[fw501]

Thanks to all! I always felt it was the right thing to do. I like the idea of the .22's for them. My son and I looked at a Ruger 10/22. I hinted about one for his July Birthday.