greenboy

Alright this has probably been done before but here we go, If you could change one thing about the hunting industry, or regulations what would it be?

Mine would be that i would standardize the age limits for hunting of all kinds to 12 years old no matter what the gear whether it be small, or large game and with any type of weapon, bow or rifle.

Buckeye Tom

I repectfully disagree. I am thankful that my dad started my hunting experience at the tender age of 8. I was not pulling the trigger or hunting alone but I was part of the hunting experience. Learning about the land, the game, the weather conditions, proper technique for carrying a gun. All of these things set the stage for a lifetime of enjoyment.

By 12 most kids are veggies glued to a tv or ps3 or wii game and lose any interest in the outdoors. Other bad influences can take a strong hold by this time as well, drinking, drugs, sex and hunting and outdoor pursuits can be a tool to help fight the influence of such things. I am not naive enough to think that hunting is the silver bullet to combat the bad things in life, but if my children are in a stand, blind or stomping briars with me they are away from the bad things in life. We need to expose the next generation to the beauty of our hunting heritage or we risk losing it when they become the leaders and voters.

I will readily agree to strict supervision of young hunters under the age of sixteen and a more relaxed supervision of those 16 to 18. Lets not be afraid to pass the torch.

I sometimes get ticked at some of the special seasons designated just for youth but I realize that we must get the kids hooked on our past time. It is just sad that some adults use youth as a front to hunt a season that they otherwise could not.

Just my opinion.

Tom

Vabowman

Greenboy, why??

dukemichaels

The fact that I have to lease land just to hunt a deer. That's a wrong in hunting.[:@]

125py

i was plenty ready when i was 9 to gun hunt.....12 yrs old????? I guess some boys dont mature nearly as quick as others. It should be up to the parents to start kids hunting when they feel they are old enough.

Buckeye Tom

I guess before I started my above sermon I should have followed Vabowman's lead and asked why you feel this way greenboy?

On a different note:
One thing I would change in Ohio is have the gun season start the Saturday after Thanksgiving instead of the Monday after Thanksgiving. Alot of people like me cannot take the day off before or after a holiday. If Ohio has to add an extra weekend to the gun season do it at the beginning not the end. I know I know this is a bowhunting forum but all states squeeze a gun season into the bow season so I might as well wish for a way to take part in the first day of it.

Tom

SevenMag

I've gotta respectfully disagree as well... while I didn't start hunting (real hunting not field plinking with a 22) til i was about 18-19yrs old, my 6.5yr old has already been to the stand with me and is going to be taking a stab at firing a .243 rifle this summer... if he does as well with it as he does with a .22LR he's taking the hunter safety class this year and going out with me for his first rifle buck... in the state of AL where we do most of our hunting only a minimum of 35lbs draw weight is required, he turns 7 in a couple weeks and he's already pulling back 35lbs, I fully expect him to be pulling back 40lbs by the time the season coems around... if he passes the hunter safety course I see absolutely ZERO reason to keep him outta the field... why should someone be limited to 12yr old when they are perfectly capable of taking a deer cleanly when 7-8yr old (under the direct supervision of a parent of course)??? will he bow hunt this year? not likely, but MAYBE... we'll see how he does... at the rate he's going right now, he very well could be in the stand...

Killer_Primate

I have four kids. My youngest son is two. He went deer hunting as well as duck and goose hunting this year. Other kids; boy 11, girl 8 and girl 6. The two oldest hunt with guns. My oldest got his first little 870 20ga. pump when he was nine. Up to that point he had to shoot my sks...

If I had to change one thing... hmmm...

I'd be able to hunt on Sundays. Day light hours the way they are now, I can only hunt weekends, and that leaves one day a week to divide up between four little ones. Not good...

HNI_Christine

I was running some traps and killing small game with my bow when I was 10 years old. No parent needed.

greenboy

The reason i said 12 was because where i live you cannot bowhunt till your 14 and you cannot gunhunt till your 16 and that is with adult supervision. At the age of 12 in New york you can only go small game hunting with an adult. I said 12 because i know theyll never go lower than that in New York and some other states so it seemed like a good idea