Home Defense with Kids in House

[HB of CJ]

Point of View ... Subjective ... Upbringing ...

Excellent subject matter and answers folks. A serious and important subject. I am 72 and was raised with gun nut parents. There were LOADED guns under some living room coffee tables, LOADED guns in the rear closet, LOADED guns under mom and dads bedroom pillows and LOADED guns stashed in the cars and garage. Not kidding here either. Yep.

Not just dinky handguns either. Dad worked for the California National Guard as an electronics Tech Sergeant and it showed. The Long Beach CA State Guard later adopted our High School Rifle Club. As a young kid we had USGI M1 Carbines, Garands, Springfields and various .45 pistols and shotguns all over the house. Three kids. Zero problems with the guns.

How did Dad and Mom do it? They showed us three kids all the guns. As a very young kid dad let me load and unload USGI M1 Carbine 30 round mags. Fun. If we wanted to handle the guns and there many to choose from, all we kids had to do is ask Mom and Dad. Sister was not interested. My brother and I were. Close adult supervision. We examined all we wanted.

TODAY I have grandkids sometimes visiting. A strip search of the home must be made. Everything goes into the safe unloaded. All the mags and duty ammo and make up ammo goes in other safes. All locked up tight. We also have a procedure to secure the home when the house cleaner comes over once a week to clean. Yep. All locked up tight. TODAY IS NOT 1958!

I am at that point where some reconsideration is being made about trying to find something other than just a gun to defend my castle. Our local friendly knowledgeable gun shop sells two shot tasers. Expensive. I suppose a dozen of those might work. Might be taken away from me also and used on me and the lady. No matter what you try, is there enough gun security?

Especially around kids today? Or ... can one have too much? Dunno that.

 

[Alexx1401]

My Dad never owned a gun safe, was a gun enthusiast, Range Master and avid reloader. There are three of us kids that never, ever touched his guns without my Dad being present.
I don't know if children have changed, media report on child gun accidents more often, or the anti-gun lobby has gotten to us. Are there more gun related accidents with children than when we grew up (50+ years ago for me)?
I don't advocate leaving guns around for children to find, but it seems to be more of a problem today than in the past. My Dad kept them out of reach and out of sight for small children and when we grew we knew not to touch them.

You are assuming 3 of you never touched them. Your Dad I am sure assumed this too. Unless the other 2 kids were never out of your site you don't know what they did. My Dad never knew we were playing with his gun as the other parents of friends never knew. No doubt there are some who grew up and never broke the rules set by parents. Parents who assume their kids are the kind who never break the rules often only find out they were wrong when something happens.

 

[Joe13]

The only difference between years ago and today is that the news travels instantly and there are more gun owners. The percentage of children accidently shooting siblings etc. of households with guns is the same, so it "feels" like these kind of accidents are on the rise.
If you read that correctly youll see that back then virtually as many accidents happened as today and the culture of trusting all children not to touch didnt work back then either.

There are a lot more suicides now as well, which accounts for most gun related deaths.

Kids can be bullied non stop with social media and it has been sensationalized in the media quite a bit as a way to be heard and your name remembered.

More kids are on big pharma pills that are known to put kids/people at the highest risk for suicide for 6 months after stopping those drugs.

There are a lot of reasons these things happen - lots of people have posted valid options/opinions, but kids are unpredictable. My kid is an adult (I trust her 100%) not interested in guns at all (or my small collection of knives), very responsible, on her way to becoming a Nerologist but I still keep my guns and Ammo behind locked doors (safes). I never want to outlive my child.

I have been called over protective all of her life (she is the only one I have) and she's never been prone to making bad decisions. However, it only takes one bout of depression at that age and a loaded gun and then your one trigger pull away from a permanent bad decision. Not worth the minuet chance too me.

Things are not the way they were when most of us grew up and there is evidence everywhere to substantiate that.

 

[Joe13]

Point of View ... Subjective ... Upbringing ...

Excellent subject matter and answers folks. A serious and important subject. I am 72 and was raised with gun nut parents. There were LOADED guns under some living room coffee tables, LOADED guns in the rear closet, LOADED guns under mom and dads bedroom pillows and LOADED guns stashed in the cars and garage. Not kidding here either. Yep.

Not just dinky handguns either. Dad worked for the California National Guard as an electronics Tech Sergeant and it showed. The Long Beach CA State Guard later adopted our High School Rifle Club. As a young kid we had USGI M1 Carbines, Garands, Springfields and various .45 pistols and shotguns all over the house. Three kids. Zero problems with the guns.

How did Dad and Mom do it? They showed us three kids all the guns. As a very young kid dad let me load and unload USGI M1 Carbine 30 round mags. Fun. If we wanted to handle the guns and there many to choose from, all we kids had to do is ask Mom and Dad. Sister was not interested. My brother and I were. Close adult supervision. We examined all we wanted.

TODAY I have grandkids sometimes visiting. A strip search of the home must be made. Everything goes into the safe unloaded. All the mags and duty ammo and make up ammo goes in other safes. All locked up tight. We also have a procedure to secure the home when the house cleaner comes over once a week to clean. Yep. All locked up tight. TODAY IS NOT 1958!

I am at that point where some reconsideration is being made about trying to find something other than just a gun to defend my castle. Our local friendly knowledgeable gun shop sells two shot tasers. Expensive. I suppose a dozen of those might work. Might be taken away from me also and used on me and the lady. No matter what you try, is there enough gun security?

Especially around kids today? Or ... can one have too much? Dunno that.

Great post!

 

[Pete F]

You are assuming 3 of you never touched them. Your Dad I am sure assumed this too. Unless the other 2 kids were never out of your site you don't know what they did. My Dad never knew we were playing with his gun as the other parents of friends never knew. No doubt there are some who grew up and never broke the rules set by parents. Parents who assume their kids are the kind who never break the rules often only find out they were wrong when something happens.

Let me clarify a little. My sister never had an interest and still doesn't and I have had conversations with my older brother about this subject. He is just as confused as I am about the greater need to lock up guns today vs. when we were growing up. Unless he lied, and since my Dad passed away there is no reason to, he never got into my Dad's gun stuff without my Dad being present. Maybe we were not the norm even then - about kids and guns I mean. I had what would be considered today as an abusive upbringing. Then it was just called strict, with respect. My Dad was great, but strict. He was the Vice Principal in charge of discipline at a large High School in Bremerton. He even had a concealed carry permit - I now posses the gun he carried in school, Walther P38. Two out of three of us grew up normal - lol.

 

[JunkCollector]

I use the gunvault SVB500 have found it to be very reliable and super easy to install and set-up. I also really like the idea of the furniture pieces that hide weapons, but have not purchased one yet.

 

[ZigZagZeke]

Especially this time of year you know the little ones are looking all over the house to see what they got for Christmas just saying lock up your guns if there not in in your sight or on you

@LethalLovebird

 

[shibbershabber]

since I carry daily, I carry at home too until I go to bed.

at that time it goes up on top of a hutch. Out of reach for even my wife.
I do have an AR by the bed at night though. Loaded mag, bolt locked back... Ready to go.

kids were raised from an early age, I've carried their whole lives... Do not touch any gun unless I hand it to them.

they know that anytime they want to see a gun... I'll gladly go to the safe and they can see it.
no taboo, no mystery.
guns are a fact of life in my house. Yet still locked up if not in my immediate control.


my dad kept a cheap cabinet and never let me handle them... So, as any curious boy would, I jimmied the block and checked them out when I was alone...

I never wanted that scenario in my house...

 

[Pete F]

since I carry daily, I carry at home too until I go to bed.

at that time it goes up on top of a hutch. Out of reach for even my wife.
I do have an AR by the bed at night though. Loaded mag, bolt locked back... Ready to go.

kids were raised from an early age, I've carried their whole lives... Do not touch any gun unless I hand it to them.

they know that anytime they want to see a gun... I'll gladly go to the safe and they can see it.
no taboo, no mystery.
guns are a fact of life in my house. Yet still locked up if not in my immediate control.


my dad kept a cheap cabinet and never let me handle them... So, as any curious boy would, I jimmied the block and checked them out when I was alone...

I never wanted that scenario in my house...

I wonder sometimes if taking the mystery out of guns results in less unwanted curiosity and concomitant gun accidents . Teaching them at a young age to respect firearms and setting rules. It worked in my parents house.

I also wonder if the villainousation (?) of guns by schools, media and the government has made children more curious about guns. It was not unusual for students to have rifles in their pickup gunracks - in my high school parking lot. Today, kids get kicked out of school for having squirt guns or gun and ammo reading materials, or even drawing pictures of guns.

I think that it is similar to porn magazines when we were kids. The more they tried to keep them away from us, the more we were determined to get them.

 

[EPS]

I wonder sometimes if taking the mystery out of guns results in less unwanted curiosity and concomitant gun accidents . Teaching them at a young age to respect firearms and setting rules. It worked in my parents house.

I also wonder if the villainousation (?) of guns by schools, media and the government has made children more curious about guns. It was not unusual for students to have rifles in their pickup gunracks - in my high school parking lot. Today, kids get kicked out of school for having squirt guns or gun and ammo reading materials, or even drawing pictures of guns.

I think that it is similar to porn magazines when we were kids. The more they tried to keep them away from us, the more we were determined to get them.

I agree I have said it before when I was in high school I and some of my friends would take are shotguns to school leave them in the truck of course and go Dove hunting after school we all where raised with guns in are home from a young age so obviously when I went to friends house and saw a gun in the corner I thought nothing of it .my good friends dad was California hwy PATROL he had a gun on top of refrigerator one in his recliner one behind the front door one in every car in the garage and one on him at all times never had a problem he told all of us kids when we first met him NEVER TOUCH THE GUNS or we will never be able to come over any more

 

[EPS]

If they would teach young kids about guns from a young age I believe there would be less accidents but instead they make the bad and just say never touch guess what that don't work .as soon as you say never do this or don't do that guess what the kids are going to do it

 

[EPS]

Lol mom's demand action and those other anti gun groups that say they are for common sense gun control and safety don't do anything to educate kid's or grown ups about guns

 

[EPS]

This discussion reminded me last Christmas I got my newphew a shot gun and when we went to shoot it me and my brother in law and another guy took 5 boys with us two had never shot a gun before had the long talk and started shooting some Clay's well the one kid that had never shot a gun before turned out to be the best shot of the group

 

[kmk1012]

My reason for posting this is I know what I did as a kid. In my houses (divorced parents) guns were for adults only. So, every chance I could get, I'd go and play with them and was NEVER caught. No harm came from it but, I consider myself smarter than average. I have a much larger collection of guns than either parent did, as well as more kids. I'm merely not wanting to take ANY chances. My kids get to go shooting plenty, and they know how to clean their guns. I just don't want to stand on a soap box and say that my kids know better because I "taught them".

 

[Pete F]

My reason for posting this is I know what I did as a kid. In my houses (divorced parents) guns were for adults only. So, every chance I could get, I'd go and play with them and was NEVER caught. No harm came from it but, I consider myself smarter than average. I have a much larger collection of guns than either parent did, as well as more kids. I'm merely not wanting to take ANY chances. My kids get to go shooting plenty, and they know how to clean their guns. I just don't want to stand on a soap box and say that my kids know better because I "taught them".

I think that they are better off than most. Common sense also plays an important part of kids and guns.

 

[I594 Sucks]

just wondering about what others are using to lock up their guns at night while maintaining a quick access bedside. A keyed lock box is cheap but, I may forget a key "somewhere". I've considered a digital input safe as well as a biometric safe but they seem to have negative reviews. As of now, they are locked in my large capacity safe well out of reach for home defense.

I've used a cheap Walmart gun safe ($80) ever since our boys were toddlers (nearly 30 years) and never had an issue. The key has been on my key ring, since the day I installed the safe and my wife keeps the spare in her locked fire safe.

 

[Oathkeeper1775]

I figure this thread is really for parents; here is my grand dad's perspective anyway...

Open carry one in the pipe; inside the house, outside, and out in the woodlot.

Things in the world have changed since our kids were in the house; much more dangerous eh?

Predators of all kinds are my adversaries; and they will fail.

Now we have grandchildren climbing curtains.... and I'm on duty "24/7" while they are here. I did it for the best and worst of the USA often enough; why not for my flesh and blood?

I can catch up on my sleep some other time.

Anything unattended is locked or above their reach.

 

[DizzyJ]

My ShotLock Solo Vault has never failed to open. You can set the buttons (mechanical) for a code of 2 to 5 numbers and change it at will! I use a three number code. They make them for a wide variety of weapons.
View attachment 413999

Cost?

 

[TM-Salem]

I bought the cloak dock for my Alien Gear holster and have it screwed to the back of my night stand with my 1911 holster. At night when I go to bed I put my carry gun into the safe and take out the 1911 and put it into the docked holster (I have a lot of mags for the 1911 so its the one for night time defense) When I wake up and get dressed I put the 1911 back into the safe and get out my carry gun (Shield 45)

During the day if the grand kids are awake the safe is locked or my door is locked so they have no access to my room or the safe. Im more worried about the little critters getting into my medicines so now I have to keep them locked up in the safe as well. It sucks to have to unlock it every few hours to take my meds.... but its for their safety so I dont mind, I love my grandbabies!!!

 

[ARS99654]

I have this speedvault attached to my nightstand next to the bed. It's pretty handy.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B006OGNLK...nt=&hvlocphy=9033936&hvtargid=pla-83845031846