Question about guns in your house and kids

1. If you had a gun in your house, do you tell other people its there? Tell other parents whos kids will be in your home?

2. Are you a parent who ASKS if guns are in the homeyou are visiting?

would it change your mind about being in that home, or having your kids in the home?

I thought about this. I want to buy a gun to go skeet shooting. If I did I would take classes (me and DH) for proper handeling, storage, safety etc. Including where to keep ammo. If people came to my house, or were to have their children, I think I would be forthcoming and say "we have a gun, its tripple locked up and never ever taken out unless we are leaving for the range which will not be while your child is here. We check the lock once a day to make sure its locked properly". (or something like that.

Question about guns in your house and kids

we dont own a gun currently and I never even thought to ask or that someone might ask me or that I shld devolge such info.
but then I do come from a place where most ppl are in the army and its understood that most would have their service rifle in the house.
hmm good question

Re: Question about guns in your house and kids

We have weapons in our house, but they are locked up. If someone asks us if we have them in the house, we will tell them yes, but locked up. I have no problem if a parent still feels uncomfortable to have their child in my house, because I know that I will be asking other parents the same thing and will make my decisions of whether to leave my kids there based upon their answers.

I don't ask people who I am visiting with my kids bc I'm supervising my children, they are not left alone in rooms that I am not in.

Message edited 4/10/2013 4:59:08 PM.

Question about guns in your house and kids

We have a gun in the house we dont tell anyone. Its for saftey purposes thats all. Our nephew has been here with the gun in the house. He doesnt know we have it or where it is. When wehave children they will be taught at the approprate age what it is. They will neverknow where it is lockedup.

Question about guns in your house and kids

I don't have guns In the house. I have friends and family that do. All parties have the safe and secure locked away. My parents have a hidden room that is fingerprint locked to get in. I have no concerns about my ds being at any of their houses.

Re: Question about guns in your house and kids

My DH is a cop so we have no choice in the matter.
His gun is locked up in a safe that is hidden from site and in a spot in our home that nobody would access anyway.
I do not tell anyone about it who comes over.
That gun is never out in public.
Anyone who comes over our home knows his profession and knows that there is a gun here obviously
Nobody has ever made an issue of it

Message edited 4/10/2013 5:28:42 PM.

Re: Question about guns in your house and kids

Re: Question about guns in your house and kids

My DD is still very young, so if I am in a friend's house with her I am always right there with her.

In the future I do plan on asking if people have firearms in their houses and, honestly, I don't think I would feel comfortable with my kid playing there. Completely aside from any personal feelings I have about guns, it is just a risk I don't want to take.

Re: Question about guns in your house and kids

Message edited 4/10/2013 5:42:00 PM.

Re: Question about guns in your house and kids

Question about guns in your house and kids

We have guns. DH is a cop and a hunter. We have them secured away from children and adults. We never broadcast we have them or where they are. My kids are to little for proper sleep overs but when they are old enough I will ask. Things happen and I don't care if there are guns as long as they are secured and out of reach.

Re: Question about guns in your house and kids

We don't have guns in our house but I don't think it ever occurred to me to ask others if they have guns in their.

Re: Question about guns in your house and kids

Re: Question about guns in your house and kids

We do not and will not ever have guns. I don't think I'd ask if someone else did, but if I knew they did I would absolutely ask about how it was kept safe and if my gut was for whatever reason making me feel iffy about the response my children would not be in that person's home without me.

Re: Question about guns in your house and kids

i don't have any in our home, and I ALWAYS ask before a playdate if there are guns in the home. They are not allowed to play at someones home where there are guns, I don't care how secure someone says they are, you just never know. The exception is a police officer, they are allowed over there to play.

Message edited 4/10/2013 6:41:14 PM.

Question about guns in your house and kids

I don't have a gun in the house. I don't ask anyone if they do, but if I know they have one and its not properly locked up, my kids would never be in that house.

Re: Question about guns in your house and kids

It's never occurred to me before, but last night when I saw on the news that a 4 year old shot and killed his 6 year old friend in New Jersey I think I may start.

Re: Question about guns in your house and kids

Question about guns in your house and kids

We have shotguns for skeet shooting and for duck hunting. The guns are kept separately from any ammo. We have a gun safe. I was not comfortable with them when I first got married, but they are part of our lives now. DH is super reponsible about them.

Re: Question about guns in your house and kids

My father was in law enforcement (as was most of my family) and we were not allowed to tell people about the firearm. In fact, I grew up telling people my father was an accountant. (He worked for the government, so he was in a suit, not a uniform.)

The firearm was never left in direct sight, he immediately put a trigger lock on it and the only time I ever saw it was when he was cleaning it (which was when I was much older and even then, it wasn't something I witnessed all that often.) My sister and I were forbidden to touch it (even if there was a home invasion) and I have to say, we never did. My father would speak to us about guns and how they weren't a toy and what could potentially happen if we did. It worked.


In regards to asking parents if they have firearms...I'm more inclined to base it on whether I think they're responsible parents in general. Just because someone is in LE doesn't mean they take appropriate safety measures with their firearm just as I know many hunters who are extremely safety conscious about their firearms and the like. I had family members in LE that would come home from work and just place their service weapon on their kitchen counter, my father would have never done that.

And like my father, some people don't wish to make it public that they have firearms. From my father's standpoint, his fear was that our friends would want to look for the gun to see it, so he tried to decrease that risk by having us keep mum about it. And it wasn't kept somewhere that was accessible or likely to be discovered by children, like a nightstand or a closet.

And I could ask a parent, but how would I know they're being honest with me??? The only thing I can do is make it a point that my children understand not to play with guns and to tell an adult if their friend(s) happen to get a hold of one.

Re: Question about guns in your house and kids

My father was in law enforcement. No one ever asked if there were weapons in our home. They may have assumed and would have been correct. I am not sure when my child goes to someones home without me if I would ask...I will wait closer to that day, which I dont plan on being a few more years of her being without me in a home of a person whose background I dont know much about.

Question about guns in your house and kids

We do not have guns in our house. The only people I know with Guns are my IL's and after living under the same roof as them for 6 years, I never saw a single one. They're locked up in a place that not even DH knows about. I'm confident that should I have kids, they'd be safe. But, I know that lots of LI'ers have guns and should I have kids, I think I'd ask the parents if they had guns in the house before I'd allow my child to go there.

Re: Question about guns in your house and kids

Message edited 4/11/2013 7:08:48 AM.

Re: Question about guns in your house and kids

Message edited 4/11/2013 8:41:00 AM.

Re: Question about guns in your house and kids

My FH is a Police Officer so it's quite obvious we have weapons in the house.

The guns are ALWAYS locked in our safe and only my FH and I know where the key is.

Everyone knows my FH is an Officer but if a parent ever questioned me about where the guns were I would be open and honest and let them know the above.

On the "flip" side there happen to be alot of Officers in my neighborhood and my children are constantly over their houses playing. I do not ask where their weapons are because I would think they all have the same way of thinking (which in most instances is true)

My FH went out of his way to teach my boys about the guns, show it to them so their curiousity wouldn't be there . They know the dangers of a gun are really not interested in it at all at this point.