Tips on Hunting with Kids?

[BizCT]

My # 1 tip would be to make sure he's warm. The thing i hated about hunting as a kid was wearing clothes that didn't fit and being cold

[Daveboone]

Remember that it is the kids trip...not yours. Practice ahead of the time squirrel hunting...particularly good practice sitting still and watching for critters. My recommendations....absolutely no electronics....just keep them distracted and entertained on your own, snacks, birdwatching, stories, etc. Make a big deal about big tasty breakfast, set them up with thier own little day bag with age appropriate out door goodies. 

[Elmo]

Deer is a tough one to start out on.

I took my 6 year old and he couldn't sit still or stay silent for more than 2 minutes.  All I heard was "wheels on the bus go round and round...."..."this is boring"..."where's the deer?"...."can we go now"...."heads, shoulders, knees, and toes...".  I gave him binoculars.  That didn't shut off the power generators that was his mouth.  "Oh look, the branch looks like a dragon"..."look at that rock!".  I seriously wanted to turn around and yell "Shut up!  Just shut up!".

I recommend something with more action like small game where his/her noise making won't easily scare off.

[Elmo]

BTW, great to hear from you and congratulations with the children.  Can't believe it's already been that long.

[Moho81]

Plenty of fantastic advice already given, I started taking my daughter when she was 5 because she was really curious and wanted to go. This year she is 10 and has been counting down the days until the deer season.  Here where some of my tricks to keep her happy and like others have said just remember when you have your child with you it's not all about the hunt it's more about spending time together and when they want to go back in it's time to go back in. 

Plenty of snacks (heck we now have lucky skittles we keep for when we need the deer to show up) 

Books to read or color 

Electronics with headphones. Weather its a game or a show or music 

Thermos filled with hot chocolate 

Sleeping bag to keep them warm. Don't forget those little bodies get colder a lot faster than we do

I will also pull the @crappyice trick of saying "hey did you hear that over there" just to reinvigorate there enthusiasm

During Bow season I will let her handle the range finder and tell me the distances to certain objects gives her a sense of importance

Point out interesting things in the woods and talk about them

Sometimes while hunting we will talk about where we want to stop for a treat on the way home as well. Its usually as simple as a Bag of chips and a pop from the local store, hot chocolate and a doughnut, two years ago I mentioned stopping for dinner at McDonalds and I kid you not that child was so excited she made up a song about McDonalds and sang it in a whisper for a good hour and a half. She had me laughing so much there was no way we where going to see a deer that day. 

Enjoy your time with him in the woods! 

 

 

[cynthiafu]

Wish my kids wanted to hunt  nope. All of them animal  lovers lololol. My daughter was 7 and we were fishing for Northern pike . Well she was catching the perch . As soon as she figured out we were using them as bait . She started taking  them off the hook herself and putting the back in the lake . It was so funny anyway enjoy your kids .

Edited September 29, 2020 by cynthiafu

[josephmrtn]

5 minutes ago, cynthiafu said:

Wish my kids wanted to hunt  nope. All of them animal  lovers lololol. My daughter was 7 and we were fishing for Northern pike . Well she was catching the perch . As soon as she figured out we were using them as bait . She started taking  them off the hook herself and putting the back in the lake . It was so funny anyway enjoy your kids .

He already LOVES fishing and has caught bigger fish than me lol

[Hock3y24]

A 4 year old will not want to sit long, I’d limit your site to like 2 hours. Snacks distract them for long enough. My kid hunted in pa last year at 7 and he had a riot, he was shaking too much to shoot though. 

[steve863]

42 minutes ago, Elmo said:

Deer is a tough one to start out on.

I took my 6 year old and he couldn't sit still or stay silent for more than 2 minutes.  All I heard was "wheels on the bus go round and round...."..."this is boring"..."where's the deer?"...."can we go now"...."heads, shoulders, knees, and toes...".  I gave him binoculars.  That didn't shut off the power generators that was his mouth.  "Oh look, the branch looks like a dragon"..."look at that rock!".  I seriously wanted to turn around and yell "Shut up!  Just shut up!".

I recommend something with more action like small game where his/her noise making won't easily scare off.

I honestly couldn't imagine taking them when they were 4, 5 or 6 years old.  No way would they have sat for more than 30 minutes.  You are talking Pre-K to 1st grade ages here and it is not in them to sit still for very long.  

[Zag]

2 hours ago, Lawdwaz said:

What, a child of your own?

Who are you and what did you do with the “Joe” from 6-8 years ago??

Lol, nice to see you around Joe, ALL the best to you and your boy this fall. 

Haha, time flies. Joe and I joined the forum the same month, heck that doesn’t seem so long ago but I guess it is!! Joe was a frequent contributor to the forum and its good to hear from ya

[Moho81]

31 minutes ago, steve863 said:

I honestly couldn't imagine taking them when they were 4, 5 or 6 years old.  No way would they have sat for more than 30 minutes.  You are talking Pre-K to 1st grade ages here and it is not in them to sit still for very long.  

They don't sit for long that's for sure. I think my first sit with my daughter at 5 years old may have been 45 min before she had enough but she was super curious about hunting and really wanted to come with me one time and how could I possibly deny her that! 

It took me 5 years before I was able to get a deer when she was with me. I missed one with the bow and never had one in front of us with the gun until last year but she kept wanting to come out. 

[SportsmanNH]

18 minutes ago, Moho81 said:

They don't sit for long that's for sure. I think my first sit with my daughter at 5 years old may have been 45 min before she had enough but she was super curious about hunting and really wanted to come with me one time and how could I possibly deny her that! 

It took me 5 years before I was able to get a deer when she was with me. I missed one with the bow and never had one in front of us with the gun until last year but she kept wanting to come out. 

Precious memories Moho  ! The only thing better than you getting a deer with your daughter there is her getting a deer with you there. 

[coonhuntredbones]

I have shot several deer with my kids with me. A few years ago I got a 11 point with 3 of my kids. I still hunt with them and just plop down on a fallen tree when they need a rest. I let them pick which way we walk and we talk most of the time. If the weather is crappy I don't take them. I go out with the mindset that I most likely will not see much but as long as they are having fun its time well spent.

Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk

[Zag]

Joe, some have suggested doing other hunts and so on. You know your kid best, I took my kid out around 4 or 5 as well. Many short frustrating hunts. Today he’s 12 and will be bow hunting opening day. He’s always had interest from the beginning. 

[dbHunterNY]

they get cold really quick and you'll want to set up in a spot where they'll see a lot, even if it doesn't set you up well for a shot.