Kids with Autism & Guns

All,

I thought I would reach out to the hunting community to see if I could get some help with trying to find some resources on any information about Kids with Autism and guns/gun safety, hunting, etc. My oldest son is 7, and has high functioning Autism (social spectrum) and he loves coming hunting with me, and is really getting into it. My wife is super paranoid about him with guns, as he does have some impulse control at times, and it is a worry I share as well, but not to the same degree. Has anyone seen any research or any papers out there, or know anyone that could be a resource for me on the topic? I am looking for anything on how to introduce gun safety with him, any pros/cons of autism and guns, etc. Any help you guys can give would be greatly appreciated, as it is something that has weighed heavily on my mind for a long time.

Thanks

PonoHunt

I think t could happen under some very controlled situations, be cautious

Pono,

You have a very good question and concern.

My 2nd son has Aspergers, which is very similar to HFA. Our worry with the kid is lack of empathy and choice and consequence disconnect.

For us, gun safety is primary. The kid has a short fuse and often over-reacts to very small issues. Keep guns locked up always. Keep ammo locked up seperately.

He thrives in the outdoors. Even when it's tough to get him out there, once he's there he loves it. Make it happen.

When the kid is carrying a shotgun or rifle in the field, I am always within arms length of the kid.

This last October we had a fine day when he tagged his first elk.

Best of luck. Trust your instincts.

Agreed. That is why I am out looking for research now. It won't happen until I am fully confident he can handle it, and am looking for information or a resource I can talk now, so that I can start working on what I need to by the time he is ready.

Thanks

Do you have a close friend or family member who can spend some time with you and your son,whose opinion you can trust. No offense meant but you and your wife may not be objective enough to make an unbiased decision.
It would be completely understandable for your wife to be overly protective of your son and for you to push a little to hard to assimilate him.

If you are scared of the gun use why not get him into bowhunting?

Dinkshooter said:

If you are scared of the gun use why not get him into bowhunting?

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Dink comes thru with a coherent thought Good job buddy.

I have a friend with a 13 year old son who I would say is "borderline" autistic. He went thru some special schools his first few years and has adjust into a normal roll but I would say he is still a little awkward socially. Anyways, he bought a bow for him and that's all he wants to do now. His dad has never hunted and knows nothing about bows or guns but they have learned because of his son. It has taught the boy patience and concentration and he has excelled. They have started shooting guns as well. I haven't been there for shooting so I can only assume they are safe.

A wrist rocket aka sling shot is a great way to work hold, aim and have fun - safer fun!
Dink makes a fabulous point too - shoot a bow, just don't shoot straight up!
And, I will pray for your family and your son to have an awesome outcome!

post mark me with some contact info my sister writes programs for children with autism i could set u up with her for some pointers and ideas.

I am of no help but I wanted to say I hope you are able to find a way to safely make this happen for him. Also get him out fishing asap.

PonoHunt
First off, let me tell you I am glad you are not trying to limit what you son can do. My oldest boy Josh(18 y/o), was 3 he was diagnosed in the Autism Spectrum, we were told he would never go to a normal school, he would never function outside of our home, best case scenario would be him living in a group home. Luckily my wife and I are both hard headed and believe in God and hard work. We've needed them both over the years.

The best advice I can honestly give you is that nobody knows your son better than you and your wife. Nobody who gives you advice (family, friends, health professionals, me, web forums members ) knows what is best for your son.

In my family, my wife is very protective, if it were only up to her, Josh would have been wrapped up in bubble wrap and his umbilical cord reattached so he couldn't stray more than 18" from her. But, that is her job I guess. My job was/is to help my son turn into a functioning member of society the best that I can. It did take some time for my wife to warm up to him shooting a gun. It took persistence and a lot of reassurances.

I did the same things most dads do to get their kids into shooting. Started with .22 and kept moving up over the years. 90% of the time we go shooting, I go to land we can shoot on, not to a range. Distractions and Josh are not a good mix. I also don't push anything on him and try to make everything a positive experience. Sometimes we would be lucky to shoot for 5 minutes (after driving 45 minutes one way) Very frustration. I have gotten very good at biting my tongue and smiling at the same time. Josh does really well with routines, so if you teach him something, you have to teach him correctly and show him all of the steps. Once he learns something, it's really hard to change the routine.

I do the same thing when we go hunting. I have 2 sons, I take them both hunting, but I try really hard to only have one of them with me actually hunting at a time. Again, distractions and Josh do not go together well. I have been blessed with a father in law that doesn't hunt, but loves to camp and fish. So he goes on most trips with us, then he takes one boy fishing and I take the other hunting and we just switch off when they want to.

In my home, I don't honestly believe in locking guns away (everyone save the flaming, I don't care) I don't believe that guns should be a mystery. The ammo though, that is locked away. We have never had a problem with this, but a few years back I did have to ban airsoft guns (the wife was right on that one I guess)

So, over the years I have introduced Josh to everything that shoots or goes twang. He is a good shot and loves to hunt and shoot. I always try to push him outside of his comfort zone just a bit and build on it. Most times he does great with it, sometimes I learn to never try that again. We learn together a lot.

Last year was the highlight of years of hunting together. It was his first "all him" antelope hunt. He shot, gut, dragged and deboned his antelope on his own. I was only there for advice and to hold a leg out of the way. Trust me, no father is prouder than myself.

as a special ed teacher i'll chime in. Trust your instincts don't discount your wifes either. Structure is so important, I'll tell you about what we have done with my kiddo.

my daughter has a Cardboard gun because she is interested in them, and still young. i drew it to look like mine and it has all the parts labeled. I lock it up just like mine and we take it out when she wants to see it. She is working on learning all the parts and safety. I suspect my Daughter will be diagnosed HFA or ASP based on some early signs. Guns are not a mystery by any means and should not be however they should not be easily accessible.

set up a routine as far as going shooting when my daughter comes with me, on the way there we talk safety, she doesn't shoot yet she is however in charge of safety, she has the routine down and man if you deviate you're in trouble. Her Opa was a range master in the service, so she hollars "weady on the left, weady on the right!?! Wange is hot you are clear to fiwe" I also joined a private range when I realized that she has some interest in guns and some difficulties with social cues/impulse control. The quiet involved in a private range is priceless. no distractions usually and we can have plenty of space even when people are there. let them set the pace, sometimes we roll up load out, shoot one 5 minute volley then she wants to go home, watch for non verbal cues if your kiddo is in distress/anxiety pack up and talk about it on the way to get an ice cream cone.

If your kid is good with routines then base your whole shooting ritual on a routine, i mean the whole day. if i say we're going shooting tomorrow or she asks to go shooting then she knows we're going to have bacon and eggs and pancakes for breakfast. She knows What time we go and how to load out the truck. everything is choreographed so cut down on the anxiety that can come from disruption. she also knows to get some news papers when we got home and she can play with her puzzles while i clean the guns on the floor.

Get your kiddo out fishing, hiking, shed hunting, anything to ease into the new environment for us there is a unit about 1.5 hours from the house, that is our spot. i put in for it every year and she is starting to know it well. we only go to that unit for over nights for day trips we go to the mountain range outside of town, she knows that area really well since it's so close we go often.

I love my daughter and trust her good nature, she's the sweetest little kid! But with impulse control problems, anxieties and lashing out i don't trust her around guns. when she does start shooting/hunting i'm going to be right there with her, with in arms reach, and for a long long time i'm going to have the ammo in my pocket not in the gun she will carry (savage 7mm-08). Trust your judgment don't second guess your self or push the kiddo to far. It has to be fun for them we are just along to make that happen. Best of luck getting your kid out there!

I want to thank everyone so far for the comments. I really appreciate getting a chance to see what is working for others. I feel like I am not alone here, as there are several comments that hit very close to home, in what I see from my son, and what will need to be done to make sure it is a safe transition. I think working on Mom is going to be the hardest part, as she doesn't want him to be exposed at all at this point, so that will be the hardest sell yet. Thanks again everyone.

PonoHunt said:

I think working on Mom is going to be the hardest part, as she doesn't want him to be exposed at all at this point, so that will be the hardest sell yet.

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That sure was my case. My wife and I have one "argument" that still comes up every few months watching the news. Years ago, I told my wife that I was going to bring Josh ice fishing with me. She nearly had a melt down, either Josh would fall through the hole, or the ice would break and he would drown. As I sat and listened to her, I finally said that sitting in the chair she was in was more dangerous than ice fishing. I said that more people are killed/injured when a random car drives through someones house. Of course, she didn't budge, a few days later on the news someone was killed in their sleep when a drunk driver veered off the road and drove through someones bedroom. Everytime I see one of them on the news I still say casually "ice fishing is still safer". It took me to the end of that winter to finally talk her into letting me take him with me.

I took a lesson from my kids on wearing her down, just keep working on it, but don't hammer it until she gets mad.

Good luck, if you ever need to talk to someone shoot me a PM. I don't claim to know everything, but I understand how frustrating things can be whether it's dealing with the challenges of autism, or dealing with people who just don't understand.

Jorgy

Pono, from your description your son (and wife), the only difference is that my son is 8. I started him at age seven with a bb gun in the back yard. The info Jorgy gave was right on. Routine is the key. Once they get it, they have it forever.......and don't try to deviate. If I so much as move from one parking space to another in the truck and Garrett doesn't have his seat belt on, he lets me have it.

The BB gun has worked great for me and was the foot in the door for my wife to warm up to the idea. He is still using the BB gun as I don't think he is ready yet. The added benefit to this is that we can go right in the back yard to use it. He loves to go fishing with me. After 5 min, he is done fishing and ready to "explore". He relishes the fact that he can go more thank 6" away from me (when mom's not with us). I give him landmarks like, that tree and that rock, and he stays within that boundry.......usually. He also loves to go on scouting trips with me to "conquer mountains".

There are many challenges due to attention span, noise making, etc. However, I do believe that in the future we will have many father/son hunting trips. I also know from experience that, the greater the challenge, the greater the reward. I take much more pleasure from small victory's with Garrett then I did from my adult children.

Hang in there, keep up the good work, enjoy the journey and reap the rewards of the worthwile endevor.

Kids with guns and autism

Hi everyone,

PonoHunt I wanted to know how things worked out for you and your son?
I am actually here for the opposite reason, partially. I have a 12 year old w high functioning autism who I can’t get out of the house. I came from a family of hunters, two brothers, my dad (just passed a month ago) Uncle, cousins, stepson and husband-also father of our son. I do struggle w the gun issue w him esp with mental illness/guns etc. there are times he seems ‘mature and together’ and times I think I do not want to be a parent of a kid who is passed by and later something happens. Now my husband says he’s got this, but as most of you know these kids have their ‘it’ person. My sons is me. The positive with my son is he is a rule follower-and suffers from severe anxiety- that’s not a good thing, believe me that’s worse then the autism. So all I really wanted today was i guess what the other woman said, you know him Best-your wife too, if she’s the ‘it’ person. She’s prob gotten more to see and hear more. Good luck.