Youth Waterfowl Hunt

[myzee13]

here's the skinny'
after sniveling about the ywh for how many years now, i find myself in a catch-22.
my son is going to start hunting this fall but my hunting buddies don't want to be any where near while this occurs. i can't blame them. hunting with a young rookie might get a little hairy. it's not that he's reckless with a gun, but he is young.
it now occurs to me that getting him out when there's not many hunters out, like ywd, may be a good start. i'm not a big fan of the youth hunt, but find myself rethinking it's purpose. am i being hipocritical if i take him?
let me hear your advice or point of view!

[Hossienda]

Sounds like you are just going thru change like everybody else does. Being a duck hunter without a child or a very young one, the youth hunt might not be all that important. But now when you want to take your son out, you have achieved a new appreciation for the day. Besides, who would you rather hunt with?

[Bryce]

I think you need to find new hunting buddies.

[knucklehead]

you definitely need new hunting buddies. seems to me that they have lost sight of the fact they were young once and had to learn too. it's not hippocritical to utilize the youth hunts. thats what they are there for. there are lots of hunting opportunities out there for a dad and son to enjoy the day with or without your buddies. If you have the time one of the guide services in the Rochester area does a youth hunt to teach the kids the basic aspects of goose hunting, calling and decoy set ups. just another idea. Have fun with your son and be safe.

[Flipnripem]

I am also waiting for my girls to get old enough to hunt with me. I have been taking some of my friends kids every year on the youth day and it has began a love for the sport for these boys. On some of those really nasty cold days they are always willing to go along on a hunt, when my buddies want to stay home. I like the chance to just watch the kids hunt themselves. Flip

[MNice]

Hunt with better people, problem solved.

[Guest]

Personally..I think the youth waterfowl hunt should be a whole weekend, not just 1 day.
As for your hunting buddies-maybe you should check your priorities.

[Mr. Nailz]

I agree with everyone here. One thing to keep in mind is to not let the hunting and fun end after that early September day. Take him later in the year to. If your buddys don't want to be around then go without them. Think about it this way. That young kid is going to be your hunting buddy for life.

[knucklehead]

do you have an email address where i can send you more info on the youth hunts in our area?

[Dr. Bob]

And your kid is only going to be a kid once. In a few short years he will probably be up and gone and you may not have many more opportunities to go hunting with him until has the time to come back and go hunting with the old man.

Grab the chance while you can. If your friends do not understand then they are not very good friends.

In my book my kids come first.

Enjoy

[honker23]

I think the youth day can be bad because it gets abused by older hunters. I also agreed with everyone here when they say get new buddies. Is hunting about "killing your limit" or is it about the fellowship and appreciating nature and the birds. I started hunting with both my parents on opening day, and I haven't missed one since.
The DNR thinks this will get more kids involved, but I believe the numbers would be exactly the same if they were only able to begin on the real opener.

[myzee13]

thanks for everyone's advice!
i didn't intend to make my hunting buddies seem like selfish *****s, theyr'e just a little concerned. both of them are in their mid thirties, and were basically introduced to the sport by me. i think they got a bad taste of a youngster hunting a few years back(i won't go too much into details), but it involved a gun going off unintentionally.
after hearing a few of your responses, i confronted them again, and i think they see the light, although, i probably will construct a separate blind for the 2 of us away from them(we hunt on shore on some private land----for many years).
again, thanks for the great response...keep it coming!

[myzee13]

honker,
this was basically the attitude i had before my little "dillemma"

[myzee13]

knucklehead,
email, [email protected]

[joneshat11]

myzee,

Take your kid out for the first time to the youth waterfowl hunt. Therefore, you can proporly show your kid how its done. It will allow for a proper father and son experience. I took out my God-son out last year and it was a blast. Every duck in the book landed in our decoys and gave him many opportunities to take his first duck. Otherwise think about trying to get your kids first duck with your buddies all shooting at the same duck! Once you get that first one all after that is just bonus!

Just my thoughts!

[DinnerPail]

myzee,

Take him to the youth hunt! I missed the first youth hunt due to a family wedding, so my buddy took my son and we haven't been duck hunting without him ever since. His first youth hunt he bagged his limit of ducks and a goose. Stills talks about it to this day. Memories are great to have and share. Hope he enjoys himself, as thats what it is all about.

[Zarkohl]

How old does a child need to be before they can go hunting? My son will be nine this summer and I just bought a used 870 youth shotgun. I would like to take him out on the Youth Waterfowl Hunt this fall, but cannot find any reg and/or requirements on how old you must be before you can go hunting, with parental supervision of course.

[Guest]

It doesn't matter how old they are for the youth hunt. I'd say as long as they can handle a gun safely they're good to go!

[GooseSlayer]

My 12 year old is my hunting buddy,been that way since he was 5 years old.The rest of the guys I hunt with can come along if they wish.Thats how real hunters are made!Nothing better than see'ing your kid drop his(or hers)first bird!Then race the dog to it!Thats what great memories are made of.

[GooseSlayer]

My 12 year old is my hunting buddy,been that way since he was 5 years old.The rest of the guys I hunt with can come along if they wish.Thats how real hunters are made!Nothing better than see'ing your kid drop his(or hers)first bird!Then race the dog to it!Thats what great memories are made of.

[kelly-p]

mazee13,
Take your boy hunting and tell your friends that if they are nervous they can just stand behind him and wait until he is done shooting. Besides on Youth Waterfowl Day they cann't be shooting anyway and if it is during regular season they should not have any problem letting the boy shoot first.
Last fall I had a father bring his son up to go hunting in our rice paddies. The son had been dealt a tough hand in life and could not walk unless it was on a level and hard floor and also could not hold a shotgun but the father wanted to take him hunting. There was another group of hunters in that same system of rice paddies that day that were very good hunters with a great spread of decoys who had driven about 300 miles to hunt there. When they found out about the father and son they moved the father and son over to their spread of decoys and let the father and son hunt there while the group walked around to the far side of that paddie. That father and son came back 2 more times and the son always had the greatest smile you'll ever see!

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Waskish Minnow Station
218-647-8652

[Zarkohl]

Kelly P. I assume that you a talking about me and my son, Mitchell. Your right, he and/or we had a fantastic time and are looking forward to this fall. I did manage to find a used 870 youth shot gun for him. With some practice and patience, I am sure that he will be able to manage it. While I appriciate that it can be very trying to hunt with kids, it can also be very rewarding. I would strongly encourage any parent, grand parent, Aunt, Uncle and/or family friend to take a kid hunting or fishing.

Kelly, thanks again for your hospitality. Jim & Mitchell

[kelly-p]

That was you guys. Tell Mitchell that his picture is on the HSOforum.

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Waskish Minnow Station
218-647-8652