Campfire Discussions

Raise the Minimum Hunting Age to Decrease Accidents?

by Outdoor Hub on November 28, 2011

Raise the Minimum Hunting Age to Decrease Accidents?

Join this week’s Campfire discussion with your opinion: Do you think many hunting accidents could have been prevented by stricter limits on the age requirements for solo hunters? Twenty-four states legally allow hunters to go solo hunting before the age of 12. In Texas, a child at the age of 9 can hunt on his or her own. Does this low cut off enable more hunting accidents?

Consider the boy from Washington who spent a month in jail two years ago for accidentally shooting and killing a hiker he thought was a bear when he was 14 years old. He was hunting with his 16-year-old brother. Could that death have been prevented? No matter what your state’s laws are, is it ultimately up to the parents of the child to decide? What if there is no reliable family structure in place? Let’s strike up a campfire and debate how to best handle this issue.

Photo: Todd Ehler
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  • Greenmountain607

    The age limit will not do it. I have had responsible 10 year old kids in my hunter safety classes and have failed 17 year old kids for unsafe attitudes.( Their test scores also were low).
    I like to use the test if a person does not understand death is permanent they should not be hunting.

    • Johnsgunsetc

      I have been teaching Hunter ED for eighteen years. I too have seen more attitude from 17 to 27 year olds than all my younger ones put to gather. Then lets talk about the yuppies, the ones who think they are better than every one else and you should just give them a card, they shoudn’t have to take the course. From Texas by the way

  • Broadhead Killah

    Well, I think it’s possible that raising the age might prevent some accidents, but there are a lot more reasons to raise the age. The only thing I’ll say about about nine year-olds hunting unsupervised in Texas is that it’s pretty much the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard of and not just for safety reasons. I’m not entirely surprised that other states are headed in the same direction though, because it’s obvious what’s going on; cash-strapped states see a way to make money, and so do the companies that sell youth model guns and bows. Who cares about the emotional and intellectual maturity of these kids, right? Heck, they seen dad drag home a deer every fall and they wanna do it, too! I have a four year-old who can’t stop talking about hunting, but I’m not taking him when he’s six or eight or ten because you know what? There’s more to life than hunting and shooting. And no, I’m not worried that he’ll lose interest if he doesn’t kill a buck by his ninth birthday. I didn’t kill one until I was seventeen.

  • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_TRDLXW2IDLKC7MU6F7PDII6XO4 Ice

    Had my  Baltimore County,Maryland Jr.Hunting License in the 60′s & hunted by myself with no problems. 

  • Waysherdw

    I live in Arizona, and you have to be 14 to hunt big game unless you take a hunter safety program. After graduation you can hunt at 10 yrs of age. I do not believe a 10 or 14 should hunt be them selves. For that matter as men I know we do but if something happens our chances of surviving is higher if there is someone with us to help. Maybe even one of our 10 or 14 yr old kids. Teach them well, I believe we should also let them know that if we ever here of them shooting mail boxes, or any kind of signage they will loose any gun you gave them and the priviledge to hunt with you. It is a tough love, but we need so rules.

    DW

  • reb

    here in mo.six year olds hunt and it is a bad deal, one of my customers said his son a six year old made a bad shot on a160 class buck and the father said they shot a it 18 times till they killed it! the father had to help cause they thought it might get on drurys land ,i think a junior season  early is fine for 12 yearolds but makes for alot of law breakers when toting 6 year olds with a rifle

  • Mtnman2

    I have been a Hunter Education Instructor for almost 29 years.  Because of Federal regulations, we are required to register a student, reguardless of age.  Many parents are in a hurry to make their son/daughter into a hunter and disrequard the maturity of the student.  I personally give a hands on test to all students under 12.  The primary goal is to see if they can even hold a firearm up.  I caution parents at the beginning that if they feel the student can’t pass this simple test, please withdraw the student.  If they insist on the student taking the hands on, and I have to fail them, it is their decision.  I have had students as young as 6 registering for the class, and his/her parent disappointed that the student failed.  I caution parent to let them be kids and then be a hunter.  The responsibility that it puts on a young persons shoulder is tremendous, some can’t or won’t ever be able to, handle it.  Attitude and maturity of each student (reguardless of age) are two of the things that I assess in my classes.  Have I made enemies? YES, but I also have graduated what, I believe, will be safe and ethical hunters

  • Chamberlinjus

    I would highly recommend that regulations be changed to min age to use firearm or bow while hunting be 8 to 10 with parent supervision with maximum caliber size of .22 for rifle .410 for shotgun and a bow draw weight restriction as well. And also hunting should be for small game as well. For those 10 to 12 still parent supervision (and when i say supervision i mean within arms length) but lift caliber restriction and game restriction. Than after four years of hunting experience than on private land only would i feel a child ready to be on their own. Also a note on supervision, a mentor or older sibling with a game license and hunter safety for at least two prior years should be sufficient.

  • Dewetkern

    I am a dedicated hunter in South Africa and have been hunting
    for nearly 42 years. I took my first Kudu at the age of 14years, but strictly
    under the supervision of my father who was a professional hunter. To the
    question of age for SOLO hunting under the age of 21, my answer is a definite
    NO. Young people don’t weigh the repercussions of their actions like an
    adult would. Not their fault, but they just don’t have the responsibility and judgement
    fully embedded in their thinking and we have the big five here and using the wrong caliber would be fatal. Yes, I know there are exceptions, but the
    risk is just too high. In my country one cannot even get a license for a
    firearm if one is not of age and it’s illegal to lend or borrow a fire arm to
    or from any one not having a certificate of competency (issued only by the
    South African Police Services after passing theoretical and practical exams in
    the law and firearm handling & safety) and we still have hunting accidents
    every year, but far less than what the statistics was before these laws were
    implemented.
    Let the young generation practice their hunting at club-level with skilled and licensed
    Pro’s doing the guiding and I agree with Chamberlinjus- limit the calibres. Projectiles
    travel far.

  • whitetailhunter

    Hunting, like anything else in with the potential to harm others should not be taken lightly. Would you give your reckless and irresponsible child a car just because the state says that he or she is old enough to drive? Ultimately this question is up to the parents of the minor, but unfortunately not all parents are as responsible as one might imagine.

  • Aroostookbasser

    Here in Maine we have a liberal laws as far as hunting. But you have to be ten to start and you cannot hunt on your own until you are 15!! Then you have to buy  a regular license and pass a hunter safety certification. Any younger and you are asking for disaster!!!

  • Letschunter

    I would be curious about statistics.  Number of incidents for teenagers versus number of teenagers compared to number of incidents for adults versus number of adult hunters.

  • Dick Jones

    I am truly disappointed at the recent responses on this subject. Apparently many of us fall into the same trap as the well meaning but unthinking anti hunters and anti gun people whom the NRA, the NSSF and almost all other traditional outdoor sports organizations have been struggling against. To outlaw young people hunting because of a published situation of an irresponsible individual is exactly how HCI, Peta, and all the anti gun and anti hunting organizations raise money to try to kill our traditional outdoor sports.
    The assumption that a young hunter is more likely to make mistakes is reasonable and this is why it’s important to educate both youth hunters and their mentors. I recognize that judgment is the most important aspect of hunting and gun safety but I ran a national level rifle team for multiple years and I had 14 year old juniors who were safer and exhibited better judgment than many of my 50 year old senior shooters.
    If good judgment is the factor, perhaps we should not let those who have past speeding tickets and divorces to hunt. After all, there is no bigger judgment call than choosing who you intend to spend the rest of your life with. As to the statement about being 21, I’d hate to tell a young Marine just back from Afghanistan he was too young to pick up a deer rifle and hunt.
    I have a nine year old friend who shot his third deer this year. He used a total of three shots to collect all three deer and I’ll put his shooting skills against half the general hunting population. His dad shot for me when he was 14 years old and I had no qualms about issuing his dad the M14 rifle he used. I am a shooting instructor, I own Lewis Creek Shooting School, I am a Distinguished Rifleman, I hold four Dogs of War Medals, and I quit High Power as a High Master. I have instructed over a thousand people in learning how to shoot and I can assure that many 12 year olds exhibit more accuracy and judgment than many adults.
    It is up to all of us to educate and encourage new hunters young or old. Numbers are already falling and an exclusive policy and legislation to prevent young hunters from starting when they want to is playing right into the hands of the anti hunting agenda.  Setting an age limit to allow new hunters into the sport is a terrible idea and one that’s sure to ultimately reduce the number of hunters in the future. Most hunters and many of you, by your own words began at a young age. Young hunters are much likely to continue hunting and the future in keeping hunting and shooting viable is young people. Don’t take my word for it, ask the National Shooting Sports Foundation who is supporting Families Afield, an organization trying to get minimum hunting ages reduced in states that have them.
    I am also an outdoor writer and I’ve hunted and fished with guides who were as young as 16 years up and I can assure you they were far more accomplished outdoors men than some armchair outdoorsmen who puts poorly thought up responses on sites like this.
    Dick Jones
    Off the Porch Media
    Lewis Creek Shooting School

  • Pat Roberson

    Patrick Gomer Roberson It depends on how much training a child has before they are allowed to hunt solo. I started hunting solo in small wood lots about the age of eight for squirrel rabbit and quail. Deer were not available in our area back in the early 70′s. I taught my son firearm safety very early in life. Starting with a toy pistol on Christmas day as he was about two years old. He pointed it at his uncle and pulled the trigger. He immediately got his hind end busted and a stern lecture about what could be shot and what not to shoot. After being grounded for two weeks he got his pistol back and never pointed it again at a person. At age eight he took his first deer, by age nine he was shooting from both shoulders accurately and took his first buck solo left handed instead from his dominate right hand. He is now twenty years old, and never has had a firearms related accident and all of his 14 deer kills have been one shot except one that ran toward the stand after being shot, the second shot went through the ear, and the deer dropped in about sixty yards from him. This was at age ten.

  • Bill Richards

    Looks like the DNR is looking to lower the minimum age to hunt… As long as a mentor is within arms reach of the weapon. I don’t have a problem with the age, but I have long argued that the child MUST pass a hunter safety course first. Some bad habits can be picked up from a bad mentor.

  • WILDLIFE CONCERNED

    I really could care less what the age is.BUT they should have to qualify with weapon they plan to hunt with as well as pass a wildlife recognition test without help. Age is not a sign of maturity or competence. ANYBODY CAN PULL A TRIGER.

  • Tom Claycomb III

    If kids don’t start hunting young they go on to other things. Let them hunt. I was carrying a deer rifle when I was 9 and I’ve never killed anyone important. It’s up to the parents to properly train them. Accidents can happen at any age.

  • Anonymous

    Well, there is common sense, maturity, emotional stability, fear and the aspects of dangerous adventure to consider.  We first may need to explore each of these when relating to a youngster and sold use of a firearm.   Hunting is not about catch and release.  My experience with kids has been they are more safe than adults if the basic rules and safety are properly explained to them.  They literally NEVER violate the rules.  They correct others who do.  Still, shooting an animal and taking a life from the wilds needs explanation and details for understanding and proper conservation, besides the idea os safety.  So, I think adults are necessary for hunting when younger youth are involved.  In New York, youth 12 and older are required to pass a 50 question test after minimum of 12 hours of classroom and field training.  Doing that, they can now bowhunt for big game at age 14, NYS trying for 12, or firearm hunt big game at 14, but not alone, must be with an adult.  Small game starts at 12, but same as big game, only with an adult and the adult must carry a mentored youth hunter permission form.  Only at 18, can anyone hunt big game alone with a firearm.  Keep in mind, kids in NYS are not legally allowed to shoot a firearm until the ripe old age of 12.  This really makes keeping kids interested in the recreational side of safe target shooting with a firearm difficult to impossible.  I think that first we need to see some data that has not yet presented to answer in more detail. This is an interesting topic, like to hear more.  

  • Tom Claycomb III

    I have some real strong feelings on this topic. I started carrying a shotgun when I was 7. Dad let me put in only 1 shell. Yes, a gaurdian should be with them the first few years to mentor them. I take a lot of kids hunting, fishing & camping. I will agree to raising the legal hunting age when you show me a drug dealer that sets age limits. If we set age limits we’re letting the weirdos of the world have a 4 year head start.