Game farm, shooting preserve safety is top priority

Madison – Hunting at Wisconsin’s licensed game farms and
shooting preserves is getting more popular, increasing the
potential for shooting incidents that has the state’s hunter
education administrator reminding all about safe firearm
practices.

“When hunting with firearms, safety should always be first and
foremost – no matter where you are hunting,” said Tim Lawhern,
conservation warden and hunting safety administrator with the
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.

Lawhern says the social situations on licensed game farms or
preserves, where people pay a fee to hunt and may hunt at any time
of the year without a Wisconsin hunting license, may
unintentionally foster lax attitudes about safety.

“When pheasant hunting, one of the things that happens is
hunters know there are birds on the ground and they are eager to
get them. That’s why people like to go to game farms. Hunters often
bring along friends and, in some cases, bring along novice
hunters,” he said. “Ensuring that hunting partners are practicing
the four basic rules of firearm safety is just as important at game
farms and preserves as anywhere.”

The rules are:

• Treat your firearm as if it is loaded – even if you know it is
  not.
• Always point the muzzle in a safe direction. “Pay special
  attention to both the older and younger hunters,” Lawhern said.
  “The older hunters may become lax due to familiarity and the
  younger hunters have not had a lot of experience.
• Be certain of your target and what is beyond it. “In the case
  of pheasant hunting, it is what is beyond it that can get a hunter
  into a bad situation,” he said. “Always know where your hunting
  buddies are and don’t shoot in their direction. Period.”
• Keep your finger outside the trigger guard until ready to
  shoot. “There will be plenty of time to get your finger inside the
  trigger guard when it is time to shoot,” he said. “Keep your
  firearm’s safety engaged in the on-safe position until you are
  ready to shoot.”