Here are the dangers you really face:

Commissioner Erin M. Crotty has announced that 2003 was the safest year ever recorded for the nearly 700,000 sportsmen and sportswomen who hunt in New York State. The number of hunting-related injuries reported to DEC last year was 32; the previous low was 43 in 2000.
"New York has a long history of promoting safety in the field, with our state being the first in the nation to implement requirements for hunter safety courses for minors in 1949 and all hunters since 1960," Commissioner Crotty said. "DEC will continue to support the ongoing efforts of New York's Sportsman Education Program to promote responsible and safe hunting in our communities, because even one injury is too many."

Injuries Decline With Time


Hunter-orange clothing also has contributed to the reduction in hunting accidents.
The state's Sportsman Education Program is credited with leading to a 65 percent decline in the hunting injury rate over the past four decades, due in large part to the dedication of more than 3,300 volunteer instructors. The average number of hunting injuries has fallen from 137 per year in the 1960s to 48 per year so far this decade. This safety record emphasizes the fact that hunting has one of the lowest injury rates of any recreational activity.
Tragically, two of the injuries reported in 2003 resulted in fatalities. Twenty of the 32 incidents, including both fatalities, involved deer hunting. Seven of these incidents, including one of the fatalities, were self-inflicted.

Nine of the 2003 injuries occurred during springtime wild turkey hunting. All of these were visibility related, either because hunters failed to notice other hunters in their line of fire, or mistook them for game because of vegetation. Four of five hunters now wear at least some hunter orange safety clothing. This practice has reduced the number of injuries related to poor visibility.
Hunting-related shooting incidents are thoroughly investigated by the state's environmental conservation officers and investigators, usually in conjunction with the New York State Police, county sheriffs or local authorities. The lessons learned from these incidents are used to update and improve hunter safety courses to reduce hunting injuries each year.
Not a single one of the 20,000 junior license holders, aged 12 to 15, caused an injury in the 2003 season. Junior license holders can hunt small game under adult supervision.




700,000 total hunters - 20,000 junior hunters = 680,000 Adult Hunters
32 total hunting injuries - 12 non-deer hunting = 20 deer hunting
20 deer hunting injuries - 7 self inflicted = 13 injuries to other hunters

680,000 Adult Hunters / 13 injuries to other hunters =52,308:1 chances of being injured by another hunterand 680,000:1 chances of being killed by another hunter.