At What Age

My boy is 5 this year and I was thinking of taking him on a few hunts this year. I know there is a 50% chance he gets bored and wants to leave early. I am ok with that. At what age did you start letting your kid tag along on hunts?

5 for me as well. Bring lots of snacks, electronics, headphones and battery chargers. Pee bottle helps if possible. Mine are 12-12-10-7 now and still love to go. Good luck!

My wife and I got married, and her son was 3 years old at the time. You have to pick and choose wisely, between what they can do, and what Mom will let you do. He started going with me the next year, and hasn't missed a year since and he's 47 now. My second son never wanted to go until he killed his first elk at 12 years old?? Didn't go again for 8 more years, and killed another bull. Every kid is different!!

My oldest is 6 and I am waiting until he can sit without the need for electronics, etc. Probably next year.

My daughters all started at 5. Lil' Hudbone turned 5 and he will be the 1st grandkid to go.

Brought mine oldest when she was still in a infant child seat. Just rolled up windows, and stepped out of the truck and shot.

I brought both my daughters to blind starting at 3. Always, bring snack, and iPad with head phones, plus electric noise canceling head phones. I alway hunted stand that I could drive some and check corned roads also if she got to bored.

My daughter also at 6 opened the window and bugled at 22” wide 8 pt my wife was about to shoot. Just like Dad practicing at home

Thats sad...............I was 50 before I needed electronics

And people say I’m kind of a big deal…

They didn’t make electronics until you where 35..

Chit man............I was the first kid on the block with pong and then colecovision. GD trendsetter.

I think y'all have answered my question. I will pack lots of snacks and fluids. He is wanting to go but I have been hesitant because I don't want it to be too boring and him get uninterested. My kid doesn't care about electronics. He is always on the go which doesn't bother me. He is happy finding sticks to throw and kicking dirt clods. I probably will hold him out from opening weekend if we have a decent crowd for safety precautions.

If the kid is with you, make it about him. And call the hunt over when he starts getting antsy. It's only about you and him. Nothing else matters. I didn't take my kids until they were a little older. As stated above, each kid is different. There were no electronics when I took mine, and it's the parents' call now with the grandkids. Whatever makes it fun for your boy.

Think mine made it when weather was good round about the time they started talking and understanding.

Good on ya Ders..............My Dad took me to the Dilly Aluminum Plant Hunting camp for 3 years before I got to shoot at 8...........Was in the stands and learned the rules of men before I was allowed to kill.

They get antsy..........give em a beer

Totally depends on the kid. I have a 4 year old that spent a freezing spring morning on a boat for 5 hours, straightlining for sandbass and pulling fish off of our hooks. He was happy as a clam and didn't complain once. He'll sit and watch me fix fence or do some random project, just observing and trying to figure out how things work. He'll be in the stand with me some this year.

I also have a 6 year old that is very easily bored and always needs to be doing something. She wouldn't do well in the stand.

My oldest has been going to the stand since she was around 2, my youngest since he was 10 months old. I keep it light, don't mind I they talk and leave when they get bored. Don't make it a chore

Personally, I'd rather give mine a beer than an ipad.

My man..........your kind can sit on the porch with me and shoot something

One point that hasn’t been brought up, when my kids were small I would take them to Alsups or the closest convenience store and let them pick out any snacks they wanted…. They still talk about that today….

How long did it take you to clean the truck up?

My grandsons were 5 and 7 when they really started sitting with me. They were some what still and quite, but they couldn’t sit for hours on end. Their first Turkey hunts lasted a few minutes, so things worked out great. Last year they both shot pigs and we hunted for a few hours. We were in a box blind, so they Didn’t have to be super quite.

At 5, I wouldn’t expect him to be super still or quite for a long period of time. That said, take him out as often as you can and make it fun.

Prob about 3 was his first hunt. Make sure it’s comfortable for them. If they get too cold they will be miserable. Let them bring some toys to keep them occupied until the deer show up.

Started taking my son to my land and hunting with me when he was 3 1/2. Mostly just filling feeders, checking cameras, and occasional hog killing at first. Started deer hunting from the stand with me when he was 4, always took an iPad and plenty of snacks. Killed our first deer together within 30 minutes of getting into the stand the first time. Been downhill ever since....he loves it.

Just be aware that when a 4-5 year old is there, it's not as much hunting as it is trying to keep them entertained, warm, and well fed. Lol.

Guess my son was about 5 or 6 has always enjoyed the lease. Oldest grandson went when he was about 4 I think. He went along so much that when the time came for him to do other things, I missed him not being there.

This is my oldest when she was 3. This was in the lull before sunset, then she spotted the hog and I then shot the hog. she high fives me for “great team work”. Electronics arent the devil, just a tool to get us to the time game comes out.

She killed her first deer at 7 and has killed every year since. She made me take her over Christmas and we hunted 7 hard days for a mature buck. She finally had one come in last night and was shaking to bad to shoot. Pretty sure that made her even more fired up. She wants to hunt African lions for High school graduation present after going to DSC. She hasn’t missed a season at the lease ever. As far as hunting in a blind she been with me since 3. She has hunted with me since 11 months via truck.

My son started going real young. Taking a little one is not a go ahead on hunting trip but I never told that to my son. He was happy to be doing what dad was doing and I was happy to have him along. Always brought plenty to eat and drink. His own binoculars. Thermos full of coffee for me. Thermos full of hot chocolate for him. No phones or electronic gadgets. We were learning about the plants and the animals and the weather and how to hunt. He boogered animals every way possible and we had a ball. I followed his lead and when he was ready to go we left. I took a good video recorder and captured a lot of great memories. At 7 he was ready and I let him shoot his first deer. He also did most of the work gutting and skinning. He made a mess of the first ones but I kept it to myself and let him knife on them. By the time he was 10 he did his and mine. He is a young adult now and a skilled outdoorsman and still my favorite hunting buddy. Enjoy the journey, they grow up way to fast.

Pics, because they make me smile....











[img]https://texashuntingforum.com/forum/pics/userpics/2022/08/full-24569-358781-img_6107.jpg[/img]

Some are just born w it

My girl-About 12
My boy-About 10

Up to that time, they didn't care or want to

Since then, the girl has since quit on me at 16...

Which is fine, she can always say she took game and I know she CAN do it now if she ever had to again

No two kids are the same; Dad started me at age 5 in mid 70s, pillow, blanket and sleeping bag to layout in bottom of box blind waiting for sun up or in the event I got too tuckered out during morning hunt. In those days, there were no personal video games, IPADs or cellphones to occupy a kid's time or attention. That said, I thoroughly enjoyed serving as Dad's additional set of eyes scanning South Texas senderos and cactus pastures for Muy Grande to pop out, at least until I started sitting on my own around 9 years old. Nowadays, I'd start any kid off by going to the rifle range out of season to teach them the importance of being sighted in and how you generally go about doing that. Also to get them used to the "bang" sound. Many young kids get scared with that and it can turn off some to hunting if not used to it. Beyond that, I'd make sure you keep any young kid warm with layered clothing and blankets. Also, let them take that personal video game or Iphone, IPAD in the event the attention starts to wane any. A fussy kid makes for a miserable hunt I'd think..

Keep them occupied till the animals show up

Don’t take them somewhere that sucks, make sure there are animals

Get some ear protection and extra binocs

I’ve changed diapers in the blind with both kids. I spray foamed mine. They could bounce off the walls and didn’t matter. My daughter shot a pig and a 10 point buck at 8. Son shot a aoudad at 6 and has asked to shoot everything that moved since.

Very true. I learned early to let my son carry his own backpack and let him put all sorts of stuff in it....snacks, iPad, cheap binos, stuffed animals, toys, whatever it takes to help them enjoy it.

And hunting with a suppressor and making him wear ear muffs makes him less nervous about the shooting. My little guy also loves to scan with my thermal spotter, it may be his favorite thing to do along with chopping limbs off trees. Lol.

Yelp and Electric earmuff with volume turned up helps with them being loud. Helps them hear you better and most importantly hear themselves

My first hunts were night time predator calling, dove and walking squirrel hunts. I'm glad I wasn't stuck in a deer stand at that age.

Took my son scouting for geese at 3. I would get a bunch of snacks and books for him. Once we got on the dirt roads, I'd let him "drive" the truck for me. He thought it was big time! We had good times. I took him on his first hunt at 4, and he loves it now. He helps put out the goose spread and pick it up. Usually he takes a nap at some point ,but we also set up cans for BB gun practice or I let him shoot the decoys. Late late season I helped him shoot my 20 ga, and he keeps those hulls in his nightstand drawer now. He is 6 now, and I think he'll be making plenty of hunts this year.

Took my boy when he was 2 and he couldn't get enough of it. Never got bored with it at all.
In fact, I'd be ready to go back to camp in the mornings to make breakfast and he'd ask if we could stay longer. lmao

My boy absolutely loved it and started shooting a .22mag cricket when he was 4.5. at about 5 1/2 years he was shooting 223 and killed his first 3 deer that season just as he turned 6.

This is probably the best thread on the THF.

Took my son on his first deer hunt when he was 4. He was loud and made lot of noise but had a great time. The next year at 5 he was whispering telling me to be quiet. He is now grown and I am taking grandkids. Take him so what if they are loud or y’all have to leave early. The memories you make will last a lifetime.

My grandson, now 25, killed a pig on our property at 6 or 7. He used Grandma’s 222.

Next year he got a forked horn buck. He grabbed my phone and called Grandma to come see it. Next calls were to parents. I took lots of cell phone pics that we had printed. Problem is that he took the pics to school to show his friends. That got him a trip to the principal. Next call was to me. I headed for the school and talked to the principal who turned out to be an avid hunter. He explained how several teachers had gotten wound up over a pic of a damn dead deer. He sent the boy home with me for the day. Next day, everything was back to normal. But, he got his first taste of liberals