Tips/advice on taking a 7 year old on first turkey hunt

[compton30]

I love this thread. It takes me back to being a kid. I wanted to go to camp and hunt so bad but wasn't allowed to until 12. Your kid is gonna be a problem for turkeys.

1. Red dot on the gun eliminates a lot of the issues. Get one.
2. Snacks and candy. My old man used chocolate milk and little Debbie's to coerce me into everything. I look back fondly on this tactic.
3. You're in treacherous territory. Your kid is about to become your best buddy, in their eyes and yours. The wife isn't going to like being the disciplinarian!!!

[cbillet22]

Thanks for all the input! Love hearing all the stories! I appreciate all of it! Love spending every little bit of time I can with my kids! Makes it even better when it's a hobby we both enjoy doing! I'll be sure to update everybody on how our hunts go. Can't wait for spring! Good luck to everybody else!


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[bobk]

This post brings back  great memories. I started my twin daughter and son and then my two grand sons turkey hunting. It was a great experience.

A few tips:

Get them familiar with light recoiling guns.
Give them  a few callers to  hunt.
Make sure that they have comfortable boots and clothes.
The hunt is to be a their terms, this is their hunt.
Don't push, they need to enjoy the hunt.
Snacks and chocolate milk are key.

Have fun and enjoy. I now have a great bunch of hunting buddies.

[Phattkopp]

Pop up blinds are deadly, but one doesn't get the "full" experience. Those fence/stake type blinds work really well. If junior is seated in your lap or on ground in front of you set up blind where only his nose and eyes are over the top of the blind.
Lots, and lots, and LOTS of snacks.
Make it fun.
Keep a gobble count going as to how many you've heard.
Do some scouting with them. Let junior see the woods in broad daylight before sneaking in before dawn.
Fitted/warm clothing and shoes.
I'd highly recommend AGAINST shooting high powered shells at the range. All of us know the feeling of never feeling recoil when turkey is there and that's how it will be for junior. Shoot super low recoil shells out of gun for practice. Make practice a game too.

Good luck and post up photos of "successful" (bird or no bird) hunt!!!

Phattboy

[WV Flopper]

 Get yourself a collapsible half blind. I am not sure proper name but it is multiple stakes with netting, about 20" tall. Will give your hunting partner a little wiggle room and cover up some potential movement. Worked great for me and my 7-8 year old.

[Zobo]

I can share a couple of mistakes I made when my son (now 18) was about your son's age.

Warm clothing and boots that fit him, especially for early season.  He will get cold faster than you will.  Especially if he isn't accustomed to the fact that being cold is sometimes part of the deal.  If he gets cold, his "fun factor" could run out pretty quick.

And I found he enjoyed shorter hunts rather than longer ones.  2-3 hours was about his limit when he was starting out.  As he got older, he could stay out longer.

Good luck!

This last paragraph is the most important thing. Two hours for us is an eternity to a 7 year old. Keep it short and sweet.

[Bowguy]

Brother I've got a phone full of pics of kids. My pic here shows my kids, I've done this for a long time w kids a newbies. Do not allow the child to shoot any high brass. That's insane.
You pattern the gun, without the child and set it up with sights if needed. Do NOT use anything super tight. A forgivable usable pattern will benefit you more than have one you can reach out with but a laser beam up close. Most shots will be closer.
If you use a blind, some sort of sticks or shoot support are a good idea. Practice moving and resetting. Imagine a bird changing direction, explain how you want the child to move and what to expect. 
When the kid does shoot, hopefully he's acclimated already to .22s but when he first shoots a shotgun it needs to be as light a shell as possible. Don't scare the kid, that's all he's gonna shoot anyhow. The day of the hunt you give real shells. Adrenaline will overload his sensitivity to it and he doesn't need to know you're switching.
As he shoot, double hearing protectors. Inner foam plugs and outer muffs. It lessens sound and thus imagined recoil.
Here's a big one, you're responsible in every way. Think about the gun you use. A semi may not be the best option as it reloads. It might be too as it absorbs recoil but you need to keep your wits and make sure the gun gets instantly safe after a shot. Too many guys kids shoot their first bird, they start high fiveing  and hugging with a loaded gun off safe.
Have him practice shooting and everytime the safety goes on. After the shot that day, safety on, gun unloaded and opened. Than checked again than placed in a safe position and than the biggest celebration of your life starts.

[Bowguy]

Another thing I should add is hunt  only to the kids pace. If he's had enough it's enough. On that front I don't take any kid without roosting birds. They need to be in the game in the morning. We don't want things always impossibly easy but they need a chance and may be limited time wise especially at 7. Nothing is cooler fir the kid than hearing a bird hammer 70 yards away first light.

[Kyle_Ott]

Looking for any tips or advice from my fellow dads out there. I plan on taking my 7 year old out on his first turkey hunt this spring on youth day here in PA. I just picked up a youth 20 gauge Mossberg Maverick 88. Plan on having him practice with some high brass and target loads to get him comfortable with the firearm. I also have a single leg shooting stick to help him hold it in place. We will be hunting state forest so it will be run and gun. I know the area well and have harvested many turkeys there over the years but I feel like a blind will be out of the question with limiting mobility to get on a bird. Any tips or advice you have are all greatly appreciated! Plan on making it a whole extended weekend of camping, hiking, scouting, and hunting. And some trout fishing since PA only allows you to hunt until noon that way it should be fun whether we have success hunting or not.

My 5 year old was fortunate to harvest 2 gobblers with me last spring and I've been privileged to be a part of a lot of kids kills over the past 15 years.

The easiest thing for a parent and child to work on prior to the hunt is manipulating the gun.  Whether your child is going to be sitting between your legs and you're going to prop the gun or you're going to set up a tripod, the kid needs to practice extensively from this position. 

Manipulating the gun, moving the gun to get on a target, and DRY FIRING the gun are probably the most important elements for success.  As a guide, I cannot tell you the number of times I've heard a kid tell their dad, "Daddy, it's moving too much and I can't get on it."

You wouldn't throw a kid into a basketball game and tell them to play if they've never played basketball.  Dont put your kid into a hunt without extensively teaching them the most basic skills they will need to be successful.  Shooting a few low brass rounds here and there isn't sufficient.  They need to be comfortable with moving the gun to the target gun and dry firing at it.  My son and I would practice in my trophy room on various mounts and random objects I would move around.  I'd point the gun 4-10' off the object he was going to dry fire at and tell him, "Move the gun to the turkey/deer/bottle/teddy bear and kill it when you're ready."  I would watch the tip of the barrel to ensure he wasn't jerking the trigger or flinching.  We did this 2-3 nights per week for the month leading up to turkey season. 

I saw the merits of this practice when his turkeys came charging in to the decoys and were jumping all over them.  He needed to move the gun back and forth to stay on the birds and I never once had to tell him to do so.

We had practiced for the scenarios he encountered and he was prepared to execute.  In my opinion, don't put your kid in a game theyre not prepared to play.

In terms of the hunt itself and managing kids, I believe it's critical to have turkeys roosted.  That way, you're not walking the kid all over the place wearing them out.  If you've roosted the tom, you can get in there early before daylight, get set up and the show starts quickly. 

Quick hunts are best for those with short attention spans and kids only have so much bandwidth before they're over it. 

One last thing, make the investment in the right gear.  Cold weather gear, warm weather gear, a buddy heater, etc.  You can't predict what weather conditions you'll encounter on youth day/opening day/etc but their comfort is the highest priority.  Make sure the gun is set up for your child's length of pull; recoil will ruin a kid fast.   Have the stock cut down and the trigger lightened to accommodate little hands and weak hand strength. 

I wish you both the happiest of hunts and the highest success. 

[Howie g]

Bring there favorite snacks / don't over gun them / let them get involved in the hunt , let them call some /
Ps . All kids are different, my youngest son got his lst gobbler last spring at age 7, but my older son wasn't " ready " until he was 9 .  If you bring him and he shows he isn't ready ? Don't force it . Try again next year .
Good luck ?

[blake_08]

It's been said already but I want to stress it again. Ditch the monopod before yall start practicing and get at least a bipod. A nervous kid on a monopod is a wreck and it's not much better than having nothing at all. My kids shoot off of a telescopic Bog Pod bipod and it's great. It straps to their gun with a rubber bungee and the legs telescope out in 3 different sections. It'll get short enough for them to shoot sitting down and it'll get tall enough for them to shoot standing up (oldest one is 10).  I paid around 50 dollars each for them and it was the best piece of gear I bought for taking my kids hunting. Between my 2 hunting age boys they've killed about 10 deer combined off of these sticks and my oldest killed his 1st turkey off of one last year.

[Big Jeremy]

Lots of really good advice given already. A few things that I would reiterate from my personal experience with my oldest daughter who is 9...

Nothing more than the lightest bird shot until the moment of truth in the woods. My daughter shoots a Mossberg 500 youth 20 ga, and even those light bird loads kick more than you'd think with such a light weight gun. She's a tall, strong, athletic framed youngin, closer in size to most 11 year olds, but recoil must be considered seriously.

Have them sit between your legs facing about 2 o'clock to where you expect birds to come from. I have my daughter in front of me with the gun on a trigger stick where I can reach the trigger stick to help hold it steady with my left hand, and my right hand rested against the butt stock to help absorb a little bit of recoil, even if it's the tiniest amount.

Bring about 5x as many snacks as you think you need.

I wouldn't take a kid hunting without a red dot sight. Just too much to keep in mind if you have a bird in front of you.

Create games/competitions out of the experience...who can find the most turtles/turtle shells, who hears the first/most gobbles, who can eat the most snacks, who can find the first turkey track, etc. My daughter loves this, and it keeps her engaged even if the hunting is slow.

Finally, be perfectly ok with them not shooting if they aren't comfortable. My daughter has had a few really good opportunities to shoot a bird, but just couldn't calm down and take a good shot. I celebrated those experiences with her for making a great decision on holding off rather than taking a poor shot. Praise your child in these situations rather than making them feel bad for "blowing a good chance".

[cpreeves]

Lots of good advice in this thread. I can't speak from experience as my little guy is only 15 months old. As far as a blind goes, Primos makes a simple stake blind that is easy to set up and pick up that would hide a good bit of movement. Can't wait to be able to carry my son with me in the woods like my dad did with me

[born2hunt]

This thread brings back a lot of memories...and some really nerve racking hunts !!

I can't stress enough the bipod. And also a open shooting gun. My daughter killed her first at 7 with a 2 3/4 high brass and factory full choke so don't get to caught up in the tight shooting rigs and keep your setups close when possible.

I know it cost them birds but we never used blinds or decoys. And when they spooked a bird I explained to them why....nicely but very honestly. I feel it taught discipline that shows in how they hunt today. That's just a personal preference and not really a tip to improve success !!

I always sat beside my kids, I just felt I could reach over and help control or adjust the gun easier. If I knew the bird was closing I would hold the barrel and the bipod together in my hand and could gently ease it to one side or the other if needed.

One thing I haven't seen mentioned is to Always take a look at the setup from their point of view. When hunting public land and setting up quickly on a bird, I have on multiple occasions over looked the fact that their little eyes were a good 12 inches lower than mine. Quite a few gobblers have lived to see another day because I neglected to think about the low vegetation, log or slight rise in front of us that they couldn't see beyond....but the bird and I could. Your saying shoot him... and they can't see squat. A turkey chair will help give them a bit of height and aid in comfort too.

Good luck and have fun and please don't forget Safety and Ethics. To many people running the woods these days that were never taught either one.

[bigriverbum]

Good luck and have fun and please don't forget Safety and Ethics. To many people running the woods these days that were never taught either one.

this. this. this.

success is important to foster future enthusiasm, but that success should never ever be at the sacrifice of either one of these