5 yearold to young ???

[jplittlebuck]

my sister inlaw asked if i would take out her son turkey hunting one day this season, 5 years old, i dont know,
seems a little young, i have had a few 7 and 8 year olds sit along side of me before, and the fidjitting was pretty intence, i'm just not sure if he could handle it,
this little guy lives in Camo's, and seems very interested in the sport, i gave him a slate last month, it really made an impression, i'm just curious what ya'll think???
last year my buddy and i had his 7 year old out, this guy is a state champion caller, and he a the kid were sitting side by side, to his dads right, dad was the shooter, i was 10 yards behind, doing the calling,
now my bud had yet to kill last year, we had a big adult gobbler comming in on a rope, gobbling like 40 to 50 times in about 15 minutes, when the Tom becomes visable, at 60+ yards, Jake yells out, he's right there dad, Shoot, as the bird takes to wing, and i'm rolling on the ground laughing,
now my buddy had gone over this with the kid for years prior,
now i'm not concerned about him spooking a bird, but i am a little worried especially with one eye down the barrel, and i know i'll have to keep an eye on him,
really should have had him out before the season started, and called up a bird, but i am very curious as to what ya'll think?

[DaveHawk]

Jp, I've know allot of guys to have taken their 5 year old out, Not to pull the trigger but to spent time with and begin teaching them. Can't get any better than that. With out having children JP , maybe this is your calling to help raise this young boy, Your just the man to give him good solid dirrection. It is a great responability to take a little one under your wing, and from what I have seen you are well quilified to him it on.

[hatracked]

5 year olds got no business in the turkey woods unless your not trying to kill turkey . Unless of course you put them in a blind which aint real turkey hunting to me anyhow.

[ncboman]

too young for anything but sparrows and a bb gun.

I remember standing on the back porch crying when dad and his friend left me to go quail hunting. I think that's what set me on fire to hunt when I got old enough.

I made the mistake of taking my boys everywhere with me when they were young. I think if I'd said no, wait till you're old enough, they'd have more interest now.

[DaveHawk]

As Hat said , unless you not tring to kill a bird.

[hatracked]

I just want to elaborate on this a bit.

This has been my experience with young hunters. If they are successful , rarely do they have the capacity or the maturity to truely apprieciate the happenings during a hunt. I almost feel that putting them onto a successful hunt at that age will lessen the overall imensity of the event . In other words short and simple they wont apprieciate it and that will affect them in later years as far as attitude and reason for hunting is concerned.

I recall a couple years ago a mom and pop team that wanted thier son to be the youngest hunter to ever achieve a slam asked for help on the NWTF forum. I got banned over that thread cause i was appalled that as parents they werd teaching their kid that the only glory was in successful hunts and titles that come with them.. At six years old they took him and did it. I have no doubt that the child had no idea how immense the task he just completed was and hence no where near the apprieciation the hunt or task deserved.

Bottom line , I never like to see anyone take a turkey out of the woods that doesnt truely apprieciate it. I just dont feel a five year old can muster it.

However, JP youve got a great situation with a noon cut off time. Take the boy out scouting . Make him learn turkey sign. Teach him how to roost birds. Show him how to move in the woods. Make him realize this isnt a GIMMEE and a true privilage that is only a quality event if worked for.

When the boy comes to you as my son did and says "dad I roosted a tom tonight I think I know how to kill him and Im going after him in the am " You will know your sending an apprieciative hunter to the field. Thats the message we as hunters need to pass on in my opinion. Not that dead turkeys are the only cure.

I earned my spot as a top notch turkey hunter by spending years fine tuning my woods skills. I only see it as right to make the youngins grow into as well.

[ncboman]

Good post hat.

[DaveHawk]

I DI-DO that NC

[scdave449]

All the outdoor experience I got came from father to son at that age. Long before; I used sticks for guns, and began to learn how to use camo, and background to hide(from lots of stuff). Of-course, as I got older the BB gun, a 22 rifle, 410 shotgun, progressively filled my hands,safety always a point of issue!!!!!! I wasn't forced into it, I was lead into it and begged to a part of. Ethics and the appreciation came only with time and experience. LOTS of woods-time!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!scdave

[jplittlebuck]

i knew you fellas would have good input, and i sure feel the same as ya'll, just a little to much happening in the woods this time of year,
i have had this youngster out a few times on walks and what not, this kids Dad my ex brother inlaw is the ultimate woodsman, a P.A. mountain deer slayer, with 5 brothers that have quite the rep in the area of St.mary's P.A. so it's not like the kid hasen't been exposed to hunting, i feel he may actually be a little spoiled when it comes to Quads and dirt bikes they give him acsess to, his grandfather before he died last fall, bought him a 50cc honda dirt bike, with training wheels, with all the moto cross gear, he was 4 at the time, and i thought that was Way over board,

at this point, theres no backing out, kids got his hopes up, and i agreed to it, before giving it some thought,
but what i can do, is exactly what John said, take him out after the 12 pm shut off, theres a place back behind my house, with about 4 active dust bowls, scatching everywere, and i walked up on 2 nest's yesterday, with 11+ eggs in each one, that should give him a good idea of what turkey are about, i wish he was with me yesterday, one of the clutches, had 1 egg rolled out away from the rest, and was no longer hidden, so i picked it up, and put it with the rest of the clutch, looking at the egg, the bottom laying on the ground was cracked, with only a clear film over it, the egg was actually moving inside, i think it may have rolled away on it's own, that egg was ready to hatch,
so i set it down and walked away, just as i walked away about 100 yards, i hear a hen yelping very loud, way down into the woods, would have been nice if he was with me, and i dont want to disturb to much of whats going on there right now, theres two pretty big rope beards hanging around the perimater, and i'm not even hunting them for the time being, ole Hawksford took a crack at one of them, had a clean miss, so that was fine, they seem to be pretty settled down right now, very little gobbling from what i hear from the house, but every so offten i hear a good thunder gobble from back there,
i have quite a few other locations to hunt right now,
but gobbling has slowed down at just about all of them,
my taxidermist and i went out this morning about 2 miles from my house, i had roosted 2 last night, but knew it was going to be a tough hunt because of the location, and deep cut reviene, and no way to get to the other side in the dark, almost a straight vertical climb in the dark, so i tryed to get one of them to pitch out to our side, they stayed on the other side, and once it got light enough for us to cross over, they had an army of hens, and they were moving straight away from us, hunt over no time, we both had to get to work!!!

[scdave449]

Wow!!!! I even wish I would have been there. Hye, no joke about the kid observing and participating in nature! It was good for us all to be integrated into this wonderful world, rather than be thrust into it with the wrong perspective. I believe in this process, and greatful to my father and my mother's father for their part in it all. A true legacy handed down through the generations of my roots; thank God I can still participate to this day. And in ALL TIMES a center to be able to reflect upon the greatness of His wonder. Thanks to all who still carry this legacy and wonder in the face of times as ours amy seem.......scdave

[DaveHawk]

JP, the kid has had much influince into the hunting world, and we know it all depends on what the kid can handle. His responability. The boy I meet was full of life and had a look in his eye of a much older kid but his size said young.