When does your kid start skinning?

[oldfart009]

My $.02: I think every kid is different in the way they view things, react to things, or show the mental maturity to process what they see. I have a 7 yr old son and a 10 yr old daughter. They both shoot with me (pretty well too), and have no problem when Daddy goes to hunt. They both will choose a venison steak over a NY Strip from a cow. However, my daughter is the one that wants to hunt with me. She is the one that pours water over my hands after she watches me field dress bambi. My son wants nothing to do with it. Not an "Anti", but he just gets scared when he sees the 'beast' laying on the ground. He is good with small game hunting, but the bigger animals freak him out a little.

Every kid is different and processes the sight of a successful hunt differently. I haven't brought them out on a many deer hunts, mainly because I view it as "my" time, and fidgety kids don't exactly attract deer. If they want hunt, they'll come to it on their own. I had no ambition to hunt until I was 14.

I wouldn't worry about sheltering your 4 yr old too much. The worst thing I think a Dad can do is expose them too early, and scare them off from hunting by having them see something they weren't ready for.

 

[marksman]

l started my son early,
l dont even remember how young he was but he can do it all now from sharpening the knives to breaking down a beast or bunny and cooking it
l made my daughters clean their first kills but they were not expected to continue if they did not want to

 

[thriller]

Good day all.
This thread is somewhat related to @Elton 's thread as to when does your kid starts hunting or shooting his first buck.
So the question is, when does your kid start skinning and slaughtering a buck?
Is it with before he shoots his first buck, at his first buck shot or after? I guess a lot has to do with the age, as I wouldn't want a 6 year old wielding a sharp knife taking a animal apart. A lot of the replies regarding the hunting age of when a kid shoots his first buck was around 12 years old. So I guess a person could start the discussion from around that age of view to young or older.
What are your experiences?

So I started at around 11 or 12. I found that shrimpers gloves really helped when I first started for grip, anti cut and made it seem less gross.

like these

Gloves - Joy Fish Shrimp Gloves​

 

[Nhoro]

My two boys started around 6- 8 years old. They had a knife and have been whittling sticks since around 5 or 6. Taught them the basics.

Strikes me that if your trust your child to shoot a gun, then surely you can trust them with a knife. Gun accidents do far more damage than a knife.

 

[Daveboone]

I think a lot depends on their already learned knife safety and handling. My son helped cleaning fish, sharpening knives, etc. pretty early on....7 or 8. Nothing gross about it when they learn it is just part of life. (kids think frog hearts, etc. that are still beating after being cut out are real cool!). Helping with skinning holding a leg, a few slices here and there, etc. quickly lead to skinning.