Hunting with young kids

[DannyO]

Hi all,

Being a relatively new father and being obsessed with hunting this topic is one of great interest to me. I’d like to hear folks experiences on hunting with their young children.

my own experience is I have taken my 18 month old daughter on several mountain hikes, trail cam & scouting trips. It sure is different when taking her along but equally enjoyable.


hope to hear from you guys!

Danny O

[Blacktail1]

Kids just want to be with you , if you think it’s fun they think it’s fun . Keep in mind your success isn’t going to be a priority. When my kids were small we did lots of road hunting stopping to throw rocks in the water look at this and that snd tryed my best to stop snd roast a hotdog to break things up. I absolutely love hunting with my kids it’s the best thing you could ask for.

[Surrey Boy]

I did some small game bowhunting outings with my daughter. She helped turn grouse and rabbits into meat.

As she gets older (3) she demands more action and less silence, so this may be my last year hunting for a time, and since we live 400 yards from the ocean, we'll stick to fishing.

[john.b]

I’m interested in this as well. I have my first coming in a few months and want to get him out hunting at a young age

[DannyO]

Kids just want to be with you , if you think it’s fun they think it’s fun . Keep in mind your success isn’t going to be a priority. When my kids were small we did lots of road hunting stopping to throw rocks in the water look at this and that snd tryed my best to stop snd roast a hotdog to break things up. I absolutely love hunting with my kids it’s the best thing you could ask for.

ive heard this from many people and I think its a great mindset, thanks for sharing.

[firebird]

Take them when they are little so they’ll take you when your old. They’ll slow you down now and you’ll be frustrated but when your old you’ll slow them down and they’ll be frustrated. But you’ll be hunting together for your lifetime

[cmac]

Bring lots of snacks, I found my daughters were little Thier interest level dropped when the snacks ran out. Keep it fun and they will want to keep coming.

[westcoaster]

Bring them along!

People I knew were wringing their hands all worried the kids would be scarred for life at seeing blood when a big game animal was shot....

They were more curious than anything...

If you or someone you are with is all shrill at the sight of blood, so will your kids because they don't know any better "monkey see, monkey do..."

If you take the time and show them, they will learn and be far better for the grounded knowledge....

Edit:
The kids are now grown into young adults and still have an interest in hunting....

[longrifle]

Adding to what others have already mentioned, I found that you have to adjust your hunting 'strategy' to account for shorter attention spans when the kids are younger. We have had both my son and daughter out with us since they were infants and when they each turned five I started taking them into calling sets for moose etc...At that point in their lives I could get approximately 45 minutes of sitting quietly waiting for our quarry to appear (with one snack!!) out of them, after that the fidgeting began! lol

At around eight they both got interested in taking longer hikes and calling/sitting and glassing etc for longer periods of time...Again, snacks are key. At the age of ten my son was into climbing mountains chasing moose! My son is going to be thirteen this fall and my daughter is now ten, and completed the CORE exam earlier this spring. She can't wait for this fall, which is an awesome thing! Snacks have now turned into full meals, kids eat like wolves, I guess I did too!

This journey with them has been one of the greatest that I have ever been on. I lost my hunting partner back in 2015 when my dad wandered on to the happy hunting grounds. I officially gained a new partner in 2018 when my boy got his first license and this fall I will have two hunting partners, ya can't beat that!


'rifle

[HarryToolips]

Kids just want to be with you , if you think it’s fun they think it’s fun . Keep in mind your success isn’t going to be a priority. When my kids were small we did lots of road hunting stopping to throw rocks in the water look at this and that snd tryed my best to stop snd roast a hotdog to break things up. I absolutely love hunting with my kids it’s the best thing you could ask for.
Yup, any day hunting with kids where you can just keep them entertained most of the day is a success...

[Steeleco]

All good advice. I'll add mine too. Both my kids started as young as THEY decided they wanted to come. Get them involved. Teach them how to spot game, don't have to shoot anything just spotting,especially the hard to see ones, is a game, they love it. When they're of age to take game GO SLOW, if they are not ready to take the shot teach them that it's OK to NOT kill something all the time. The more you let them decide, the more they will decide to be by your side. I love hunting almost to a fault, but not as much as when my kids are with me. My sig line below hasn't been edited in MANY years!

[quadrakid]

my six year old grandson spotted the deer his dad arrowed before dad spotted it. He considers himself a deer hunter. Great memories.

[chris]

My boys are 6 and 10. Since they were babies I would bring them out hunting and fishing with me. The number 1 key to success is to make sure they are having fun. Sure we all want to shoot big bucks but the kids don't care as much when they are little. I always bring lots of their favorite snacks to keep them happy. We do fun things like looking for the biggest pine cone or coolest rock. What matters is that they have fun. My kids beg me to take them hunting because in their eyes we are going on a great adventure into the wild. If you see them starting to fade or get bored then pick up on that que and shift to something with high success for a bit like looking for lava rocks. When I go out with my kids I accept the fact that it will likely be unsuccessful, but that's ok because we are going to have a good time either way. It's a perfect opportunity for the kids to open up and talk to you like a friend and a great opportunity for you to treat them like a friend . Bit of a long ramble but that's my take on it.

[pappy]

I helped my boys aim their little 410 at every grouse we got a chance at, they were so proud to have helped get dinner. I think that started around when they where 3 to 4 years old. Both of the older ones can load and shoot on their own now. They know gun safety and my youngest one is ready to start learning. They shoot small game while driving to our spots. I will have them hiking with me but we don't see much as they can be a little loud, so if we get any big game then we are lucky. I brought them hunting from when they were very little, always making sure they had ear muffs in case I was going to shoot my gun. The hiking part is fun exploring for them, they get to learn what animal tracks and signs are all about. Snacks are a good thing to bring as mentioned earlier. Lots of fresh air for my boys makes for a good sleep and a good appetite.

[wolfpack]

My son just turned 10 and shot his first black bear this spring… amazing experience for both of us!! We shot our first whitetail together when he was 6 months old and we’ve shot one together every year since. He’s been with me for sheep, moose, bear and elk. This year is his turn!! He just loves it… can’t get enough. It’s a true privilege to have him along. It’s the only way we will keep the hunting tradition alive!

[walker1985]

It's so nice to hear about everyone's experiences and is very inspiring. I can't wait to take my 6 yr old boy and 8 yr old daughter out to create fun life long memories that we can reminisce when we're older