Kids and Hunting

[Mayfly]

So I pick my daughter up from day care last week and it was brought to my attention that she had organized a horse/deer hunt. Apparently they got two new toys that day that were horses. Anyways, my daughter wanting to be like dad walks around snort wheezing and grunting all day talking about shooting deer and turkeys and whatever else. She picks up on everything and watched me for a the last year produce a hunting show so she has learned a ton. So they have these horses at day care and she is pretending they are deer and is getting all the other kids involved providing them with pretend guns and bow and arrows made from other toys. When I picked her up the day care lady was telling me about it and said it was kind of weird as the other kids don't have any experience with hunting or guns. So.. I felt like she wanted me to maybe end that type of behavior but she didn't say that.

I guess I wonder what all you fellow hunters think about it. A girl that grows up with guns and bows and hunting and fishing, its just a part of life. Others who don't have a completely different view. Is it bad that my daughter is pretending that the horses are deer and that she is getting other kids involved?

[MTCOMMER]

I say KUDOS TO YOU.  It is not often fathers (or parents) introduce hunting to their little girls, since they are not commonly associated by society.  I think its great that your daughter is into that kind of stuff as well, but it sounds too bad that the daycare lady looks down upon it, but I bet the other kids went home and talked to their parents about that when they ask "What did you do today at daycare".
Its getting other kids involved and that is the best thing we can do for the sport.  Introduce them to the outdoors.  I THINK ITS GREAT! 
Of course people that dont understand outdoorsmen(women) think its weird, but that is their loss!
There are only a few females that I know that truely enjoy hunting and fishing, my girlfriend wasnt into all that stuff, but now she makes an effort to get into that stuff and she likes it.  She came out hunting with me this year and really enjoyed that, she doesnt like the shooting animals portion, but she likes the outdoors and seeing all the willdlife.  Also, she was never really into fishing, but now she has bought a license and we go out in the winter and summer.
At heart there are alot of girls that like the outdoors, they just didnt get that dose of it when they were younger!

THAT WAS A VERY LONG REPLY, BUT IN A NUT SHELL, I AGREE WITH WHAT YOU ARE DOING AND I THINK YOU SHOULD KEEP IT UP! 

[HD]

  I got a good chuckle out of reading that!

I had very similar experiences with my 2 daughters when they went to daycare. But, the lady and her husband are good firends of ours, and they both hunt and fish as well. Every time I would pick them up, they would tell me how they hunted frogs today, or hunted grasshoppers....the best one was when they hunted the neighbors cat!  (don't worry no animals were harmed) But, they were raised within a family of outdoors people. And, both my daughters truely love to be outdoors instead of being infront of a tv, or playing video games. Course...we live out in the "sticks" and the wildlife is all around us 24/7

Your daycare maybe different, but I see no harm in doing what she is doing. As long as she don't bring your bow or gun along to daycare..... 

[The General]

I agree with HD and mtc.  I say nice job of parenting

[dakids]

My 12 year old daughter still wears camo to school and is the only girl in the hunt club at school.  Her 8 year old sister wants nothing to do with hunting right now(she looks and acts just like ma).

MNO keep doing what your doing.  She will grow up very fast.  This reminds me of that country song "Ive been watching you".  Don't remember the singer but it's a good one.

[Randy Kaar]

My 9 year old grand daughter cant wait to hit the woods, I may take her to the deer stand this
year. I been letting take the pellet gun with us when in the woods. I think she likes guns!

randy

[beeker]

I taught my daughters too shoot and hunt... one likes it.. the other not so much. but I never made them do any of the "forced marches" or play "bird dog" like my older brothers did to me when they would take me with. I hope the guys they end up with have thick skin as some guys can't handle getting out shot by a girl.. and my girls are good shots for their age

[jkjkoda]

My 11 year old Daughter had lots of problems with the girls in her class because of her love of fishing and Hunting. She too would rather be fishing or boww hunting with dad than anything else. She really good at fishing you know the t-shirt that sayss my dads fish mine !!!!Hers are always bigger most the time. I think she had some define help at forestlake Icefishing contest she won 4x4 500 polaris sportsman.  kids in school didn't believe her untill she brougght in the Leader board results And pics.  the guys thought it was way cool some of the girls even asked her if they could go with us next year.

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[deadeye]

That's way too cool. Congrats on the 4 wheeler win.

[Mayfly]

I hope I didn't paint my daughters daycare provider in a bad light. She actually enjoys the fact that my daughter is like that. Only concerns is that she talks about guns and shooting things and the other kids don't fully understand it....which makes sense. If you come from a family that doesnt hunt and with no guns it is pretty foreign for other kids. Can be a sensitive subject but I think thet explain it well to them.

Here is a couple pics of the little outdoors girl:



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[dakids]

Thanks MNO  I love the last one.  Priceless

[Go Big Red!]

As a parent of two and as much as I enjoy hunting, fishing, etc., I hope my kids will get into as much or more than me. 

My son, almost 5 now, enjoys checking out my gear, decoys, asks when he can go hunting, etc.  In fact, when I am packing up my gear or getting ready to go out, he jumps in to help.  Two years ago, we threw a few decoys out into the pond behind the house and he starts ramming on the duck calls.  More like a rhino bellowing but nonetheless, three mallards drop in.  He couldn't believe it and still to this day, he always asks to play the the calls.

My little 2 year old girl, is not into yet, but she still helps out especially when fixing up the decoys.  She'll bring me the extra line, weights, and loves the duck butts. 

To make a long story short, I think it's important to introduce and expose kids to the outdoors.  My kids sure as hell are not going to sit in front of a TV or play video games.  Whether they hunt, fish, chase butterflies, look for animal tracks in the snow, teaching them the outdoors is wonderful.  Something no classroom or TV will ever replace.

[stevejedlenski]

i am looking forward to my first child a little girl on sept 18th 2010. my wife grew up not allowed to own any type of toy gun and squirt guns were only shot at the ground never at a person. she was terrified of guns even to be around one in a room. last year she took her first shot with a .22 a few times then with a .30-30 win. she shot from 20 yrds and all 4 shots were overlapping. needless to say she now is ready to go hunt so i need to get her out this year. shes hooked and wants to shoot a MOOSE. that is her new goal is to be the first to shoot a big moose. i hear it every time we go to gander mountain. i hope our little daughter will follow in her mothers footsteps.

[Realtree]

MNO keep doing what your doing.  She will grow up very fast.  This reminds me of that country song "Ive been watching you".  Don't remember the singer but it's a good one.

Rodney Atkins "I've been watching you" ...I love that song dakids !! :-)

MNO, i think what you are doing is what more parents SHOULD be doing and I believe we wouldn't have alot of the problems with "society" today that we do have and have to deal with. Any kid that is hunting and fishing doesn't have time to cheat, steal or vandalize. Keep up the great parenting my friend!

We had a note come home from I believe it was my son's 1st grade teacher that Tyler had shared with his class about going to the woods with Dad to get ready for deer camp and how he found rubs, scrapes, SCAT piles and then went on to elaborate to his classmates and his stunned teacher about "the rut" and how bucks are competing to breed the Does. Needless to say, I was the proudest Dad in the world at that moment.

Thanks for sharing your story with us MNO. 

[mahmoodmahi]

It is a good thing, though I worked at a preschool that didn't allow playing with pretend guns (it was in a bad neighborhood, which may have something to do with it). hopefully she becomes a hunter. unfortunatley, seems most girls stop hunting and fishing some time before highschool. On the other hand, I would hate to be married to an outdoorswoman, I mean can you imagine being nagged to put up the deer stands, or being reminded for months about how you told your friend about a good fishing spot before her 

[grouse dude]

My daughter has been hunting and fishing with since she could walk.She is 16 now and is trying to get into a school for forest management.She loves the outdoors and gets lots of crap from other girls in her class.Better yet she out shoots all the boys on her sporting clays league.I taught all I could about hunting and survival in the outdoors.She can survive where most kids would be lost and hungry.I think all kids should be required to at least take a class on guns and general survival.
                            safe hunting to all
                                   grouse dude

[FireRanger]

I couldn't agree with you more!! I have been blessed with two little girls of my own. I believe that the outdoors should be introduced to all. I grew up going grouse hunting with my father and my two sister as well. They may not have enjoyed it enough to stay involved but my father gave them the chance! My daughters are still very young (3 and 5) but they have already caught their first fish both ice fishing and from the boat, and they have also sat in the canoe with me for four hours while goose hunting, twice for the 3 year old. I would love for either of these little girls to grow up and be daddy's little hunting partners. I believe that if I didn't give them the opportunity to experience this that I would be robbing them of a truly unique chance at enjoying one of our greatest resources that we have been given. The point, in my opinion, is not the success of the hunt/trip, it is in the simple act of being in nature and teaching respect for our environment and how to be responsible stewards of the land. 

[Go Big Red!]

Well said FireRanger, well said.  And maybe some day, our kids can take us old guys out one more time...

[GRIZ]

I see no problem. If there was a real problem, I'd think your daycare would have done something.

[steiny]

My 10yr old daughter has been after me to get out deer hunting.  She's been seeing my wife and I go out nearly every night since opener.  So tonights the night!  I'll call it Family Night in the Double Bull.
I set it up after work last night in the driveway and Cali practiced being quiet for about 15mins.  We where hunting our Guinea Hens and Chickens that roam freely around the yard.
After supper I went out in the rain and set it up on the south end of our food plot and brushed in it.
I sure hope we see something.  I will have my wife shoot a doe if we see one.  Just so she gets her first deer and Cali can be part of it.
Cali has CP and is wheel chair bound.  Makes it difficult to get around the woods.  But tonight I will carry her in and she will sit on my lap as we watch Mom air out her first deer.
Wish us luck!

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[deadeye]

Good luck tonight.  It would be great for her to be a part of your wifes first bow kill.

[ovation62]

 
She is SO cute. I hope she has a good time. Its gold and damp bundle her up good.
Good luck

[steiny]

Well I picked Cali up from school on Friday, got her home and fed her while we waiting for my wife to get home from work.  We headed out to the Double Bull at 5:15 and arrived at 5:30.  First deer showed up in the food plot not five minutes later.
Two fawns.  They knew we were there - they just couldn't figure it out.  They hung out for an hour.  Cali was so excited - she kept telling mom to "shoot"!  To awesome. 
6:30 a buck pered his head out of the pines.  I saw him.  The girls did not.  Not until he walk out like nobodies business.  I turned an looke at Missy's (eyes like saucers) and told her "if you want him, take him". 
She pulled back.  I told her "25" and whap!  Direct hit.  Complete pass thru.
Pretty sure the double bull won't see that much excitement again for a while.  This is the only pic I got on my phone.  The rest are still on the SD card with the camera at home.
I was a pretty happy man, proud husband and thrilled dad!


So I went and killed a bear on Saturday night!  It was a great weekend.  Except the Vikings won

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[JECAMERON]

Congrats! Good work.

[deadeye]

Nothing like finding a bloody arrow.  We will be waiting for the pictures.  Deer and Bear.

[ShakestheClown]

I took my then six year old daughter, Dorothy, out deer hunting last year. I chose a nice warm afternoon to bring her and she did have fun, especially when we heard any noise. She's looking forward to coming out again this year, and my youngest daughter, Grace, wants to come too.

My wife and I firmly believe in having our children experience the outdoors. They have both been grouse and pheasant hunting with us, and they both LOVE to fish. On our family BWCA trip, Dorothy outfished both my wife and I. If you expose your children to outdoor activities at an early age, most likely you are going to have a fishing/hunting buddy for life.

[deadeye]

Great looking kid there.  I'm always glad to see kids enjoying what so many of us older folks enjoy.

[MN RACK ATTACK]

How can these fine young people bring grown men to blubbering idiots upon the taking of there first deer? One of the proudest days of my life was my daughter taking her first. Its unbievable how much fun hunting with a kid can be, I hope more people take the time to take a kid out.
 

[Go Big Red!]

How can these fine young people bring grown men to blubbering idiots upon the taking of there first deer? One of the proudest days of my life was my daughter taking her first. Its unbievable how much fun hunting with a kid can be, I hope more people take the time to take a kid out.
 

Because we were once those same kids that caused our fathers to become blubbering idiots....  Nothing better than seeing my kids smile...