| |  How old should your children be before shooting or learning gun safety? | |
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Gun Safety
You should begin instructing your children on the proper handling and dangers of firearms as soon as you feel that they will understand. The learning cannot begin too young or too often. You may be a responsible parent and keep your firearms unloaded, locked and away from ammunition, but what about your children’s friends parents. How will your son or daughter know enough to leave the situation if a firearm is being used/held by a friend? They won’t unless you tell them, so start telling them at a young age and often.
Shooting
Once your children are strong enough to hold a firearm, even rested on sand bags, and are old enough to listen to directions and focus on the task at hand, they are old enough to start shooting. Children were once relied upon to bring home game for the table at a young age, in today’s society we know longer place this responsibility on our children. That does not mean that today’s children are any less responsible than those of past generations, it just means they are not given the opportunity to be.
Once children are educated to the risks of using firearms and allowed to participate in the shooting sports, the allure of the firearm as something to be investigated is removed and in its place is a respect for the safe handling and responsible use of firearms.
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