How to start hunting?

[Soybean]

I have never shot a living thing in my life. I'm a 22 year old female living in Richmond, Va and I think hunting could help me. We have a lot of critters that eat a raw diet. We'd love to get our cats and dog on a 100% raw diet but for now they eat what the ferrets don't.

So how do you go about learning to hunt? How do the licenses work? What are tags?

 

[Beekissed]

I guess that would depend on what method you wish to use...bow or gun. If gun, the first thing you would need to do is pass a hunter's safety course and it wouldn't go amiss to get some practical lessons on your preferred weapon~ a licensed instructor at a rifle range. A mentor comes in real handy in any kind of hunting.

With using a bow, I'm not aware of any courses one can take but you may inquire at your local sporting goods shop and they may be able to stear you in the right direction.

Good luck!

 

[Soybean]

Probably a gun, so where would I find gun safety course? Definitely need some lessons too. I mean, I've played hunting games before but I've never shot a real gun before.

 

[Beekissed]

Contact your local DNR office...they only give those courses at certain times of the year. They may even be able to point you towards a great hunting mentor and will give you all the regulations in your area.

Licensing and tags are bought at any game checking station, but some states require the safety course before you can have a license.

Field tags are for tagging your animal in the field, as it is illegal to transport the animal, whole or packaged, without this tag. Some landowners wait until they get it home, but if you are not on your own property, it's a good idea to tag after you bag....

 

[Soybean]

I just looked online and there is a Basic Hunting Course about 50 miles from me. Its in March.

 

[FarmerChick]

basic hunting course would be perfect to learn.

 

[2dream]

Do you have a gun yet? If not you need to decided what kind of gun you want. You can ask around. Maybe a couple of friends with several kinds of guns will let you shoot theirs. You will get all kinds of advice and opinions on which gun is best. But until you shoot several you won't know what is going to work for you.

Edited to add: My personal opinion for a first time gun is an over and under. I have a 20 ga./30.30. Its a great all around gun. I can deer hunt and rabbit or squirrel hunt all at the same time.

 

[SKR8PN]

Consider your weapon a tool. Make sure you get the proper tool for the job and you are proficient at using it. Here in Ohio it is illegal to hunt deer with a rifle, but you can use one for varmints. Bow, crossbow, handgun(larger than a .38) shotgun with a slug barrel or a muzzle loader are all permitted. I use a compound bow during bow season and my gun of choice is my muzzle loader. You only get one shot, so you HAVE to make it count. Every deer I have shot with my muzzle loader has dropped on the spot. No tracking involved. I can't say that when I was using my shotgun/slug combination. Bow hunting almost always involves tracking the animal. The shortest track was about 50 yards, the longest was approx 2000 yards. Bow hunting takes lots and LOTS of practice to be able to judge the animals size which effects judging the distance, which is CRITICAL in bow hunting. A misjudgment of 5 yards can mean the difference between a clean kill and a wounded animal.

 

[Beekissed]

I agree about the bowhunting. It requires much more skill and proficiency, so if just procuring meat is the desired aim here, gun hunting may be what you are looking for.

 

[me&thegals]

I don't mean to be a wet blanket, but if you want to hunt to save $, you need to consider the up-front costs of getting set up for hunting. Some of these things you may find cheap or used, but you still need them:

1. Weapon.
2. Ammunition.
3. Hunting clothes, at least blaze orange, possibly very warm boots and clothing if it gets that cold in VA.
4. License.
5. Good gutting and skinning knife.
6. Possibly a vehicle for accommodating larger game.
7. Freezer bags/paper for processing. Possibly a meat grinder. If you are not doing the processing yourself, then processing fees.