BB’s ARE FOR BIG BOYS

By Mike Faulk


A few weeks from now hundreds if not thousands of boys will gleefully unwrap a new BB gun for Christmas. While considering whether Santa really should bring junior a BB gun for Christmas, Dads everywhere will in the coming days inspect these guns on the nearest superstore shelf. Some will thoughtfully review performance statistics like magazine capacity and velocity. Unfortunately, few will read on the shipping box that the BB gun is “Not a toy. Ten years of age and up with adult supervision only.”

That warning - “Not a toy. Ten years of age and up with adult supervision only” - is there for a reason. According to an article published by the Center for Disease Control: “Each year in the United States, approximately 30,000 persons with BB and pellet gun-related injuries are treated in hospital emergency rooms. Most (95%) injuries are BB or pellet gunshot wounds. And most (81%) persons treated for BB and pellet gun shot wounds are children.”

It is estimated that 3.2 million air guns are sold in the United States each year. Four-fifths of these have muzzle velocities greater than 350 feet per second (fps) and half have velocities from 500 fps to 930 fps.

Ammunition from many BB and pellet guns at close range can cause tissue damage similar to that inflicted by powder-charged projectiles fired from low-velocity powder-fired arms. Injuries associated with use of air guns can result in permanent disability or death. Injuries from BBs or pellets projected from air guns involving the eye are particularly severe.

Data from the National Eye Trauma System and the United States Eye Injury Registry -- a system of voluntary reporting by ophthalmologists – shows that projectiles from air guns account for 63% of reported perforating eye injuries that occur in recreational settings.

I suspect the Boy Scouts of America has about as much information as anyone about the developmental characteristics of young boys. Here are some of the developmental characteristics of ten year old boys: increasing body strength, improving coordination, hand dexterity and reaction time, developing special interest in hobbies and collections, daydreaming about future and careers, understanding most concepts, enjoying being in clubs, and demonstrating interest in competitive sports.

Shooting activities and shooting merit badges are not available to the youngest scouts – the tiger cubs. It’s not until a young man reaches the Cub Scout or Webelos level of scouting that boys are introduced to BB guns and then only in a highly structured, adult-supervised setting.

A boy needs the coordination, hand dexterity and reaction time for shooting skills. More importantly he needs the maturity to understand the responsibilities that come with using a firearm – any firearm.

The National Rifle Association has a terrific gun safety program for children. The Eddie Eagle GunSafe® Program teaches elementary school children four important steps to take if they find a gun – any gun. According to the NRA, “the purpose of The Eddie Eagle GunSafe® Program isn't to teach whether guns are good or bad, but rather to promote the protection and safety of children. Eddie Eagle neither offers nor asks for any value judgment concerning firearms. Like swimming pools, electrical outlets, matchbooks and household poison, they're treated simply as a fact of life. With firearms found in about half of all American households, it's a stance that makes sense.”

This program is specifically designed for young children from pre-kindergarten through sixth grade. It was developed through the combined efforts of such qualified professionals as law enforcement personnel, teachers, curriculum specialists, urban housing safety officials, clinical psychologists, and reading specialists. A sixth grader is generally eleven years old.

Attorneys receive reports of newly decided court cases every month. Hardly a month passes when there isn’t a lawsuit filed by the parents of an injured child against other parents who failed to properly supervise their own child using a BB gun.

Frankly, I think it is negligent per se to allow a child under ten to have a BB gun. If you read between the lines, it says so right there on the box. The Boys Scouts say so. Even the NRA says so.

A BB gun is not a toy. Children play with toys. To be sure they also learn from using toys. But toys don’t demand adult supervision. BB guns do. A child can play with and learn from using a BB gun; but both play and learning must come with adult supervision.

Most would agree that a car, when used carelessly, can be a deadly device. Few would argue that a car is less dangerous in the hands of an inexperienced driver; in fact, it’s more dangerous. Our laws reflect these basic truths about the operation of motor vehicles. States have some type of graduated licensing law. Almost all require a year or two of driving with an adult present in the car before getting a regular operator’s license.

If we wouldn’t trust a fourteen year old unsupervised with a car, why would you trust a ten year old with the unsupervised use of a BB gun? Consider how much more supervision a ten year old needs than a fourteen year old. Air gun manufacturers mean it when they say “Ten years old and up only with adult supervision.”

I treasure my Daisy Red Rider BB Gun. My father taught me the bulk of what I know about gun safety using that little gun. I, too, learned first hand many of the emotions associated with hunting – the thrill of stalking, the bitter sweet feeling that comes from harvesting that first animal, and the humbling feeling from knowing you hold in your hand an instrument of awesome power – even if it is just a BB gun. If you’re going to teach a child how to hunt, by all means start with a BB gun. I’m all for giving our sons and daughters BB guns – when they’re developmentally ready and not before.

As a dad, I wanted my son – my own little Mini-me - to be my hunting buddy long before he was ready to handle a BB gun. Thank goodness I had a strong-willed, opinionated wife who put her foot down and said, “no BB gun until he’s old enough.”

There is a world of literature out there, written by authors much smarter than me and better educated than me on the subject of child development that says “Not a toy. Ten and up with adult supervision only.” Listen to them. BBs are for big boys.

- First published December 2002
Tennessee Valley Outdoors