blake
Life Member
From the Iowa DNR :
Safety Stresses During Shotgun Deer Seasons
DES MOINES - As Iowa's largest group hunting season approaches hunters are encouraged to brush up on their safety and to bring a new hunter along to share the hunt and help keep the great Iowa tradition alive. Being a mentor has never been so important to the future of hunting.
As the shotgun deer seasons quickly approach, Megan Wisecup, recreational safety programs supervisor for the DNR, wants to remind hunters to be safe and aware of their surroundings as they head out to the field this weekend.
"The number one cause of deer hunting related incidents in Iowa is shooting at running deer. Hunters become fixated on their target and forget to identify a safe backstop and what is beyond their target," Wisecup said.
<u>Wisecup said hunters should keep the following safety items in mind: </u>
1. Blaze Orange. Make sure to at least have the minimum required amount of blaze orange on at all times. Hunters are to often mistaken for game when the appropriate clothing items are not worn. Brown jackets, hats, and pants are often mistaken by hunters for a deer. Remember, you want to be seen from all sides.
2. Plan your hunt, hunt your plan. Know where all members of your hunting party are at, at all times. Be especially careful when hunting in heavily wooded areas or uneven terrains. It is easy for another hunter to be out of sight.
3. As cold weather settles in and hunters spend more time in their vehicles, remember to keep the gun unloaded and cased at all times. It is easy for hunters to forget this important safety issue when moving from one location to another or simply sitting in the vehicle to warm up. The trigger of the firearm could easily get caught on an item in the vehicle causing it to discharge creating damage to the vehicle or injuring a person. One of the most common citations issued during deer season is having a loaded firearm or uncased firearm in the vehicle.
4. With the recent snowfall and dropping temperatures hunters need to remember to exercise caution when traversing the icy terrain from one hunting spot to another or when retrieving game. Not only are hunters at risk for falling and discharging their firearm but it is also possible for hunters to fall and get an obstruction in their barrel. Keep the muzzle pointed in a safe direction and keep the safety on until ready to shoot. If at all possible unload the firearm when moving to a different location or while retrieving game.
Looking back over the 2007 hunting season, the self inflicted injury and property damage incidents were fundamental mistakes and most were, as always, preventable. As the 2008 hunting season draws to a close, take a moment to remember the fundamentals and keep hunting the safe activity it has become.
TURN IN POACHERS!
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