Is there anything a parent can do to keep their child safe if there are guns in the home? This is a question that every parent should be asking these days to ensure that not one more child suffers an injury or death from a gun.
And since our gifted children are especially curious and begin to explore their environment very early, all parents need to have some basic information regarding gun safety that can be shared with their children to keep them safe at home or at a friend’s house.
According to Dr. Hansa D. Bhargava, a MD and author of the WebMD article, Gun Safety with Kids in the House, children as young as 3 years old do have the strength to pull a trigger. With this ability, it is essential that anyone with guns in their home follow these basic tips:
1. Always keep guns locked and out of reach of children
2. Store ammunition in a place different from the guns
3. Never leave a gun out and unattended
4. Tell your kids never to touch a gun or gun parts – in your house or anyone else’s.
These tips come from Bill Brassard, the director of Project ChildSafe, a gun-safety education program of the National Shooting Sports Foundation. According to Brassard, “It’s a gun owner’s most important responsibility to keep their firearms from falling into the wrong hands – and that includes children…they are just not mature enough to exercise good judgment around guns.”
One other life-saving tip is this tip offered by Bhargava. With suicide one of the leading cause of deaths among teens, suicide can be 10x more likely for our teens if guns are in the home. So if you have a gifted child suffering from depression, it is recommended that you store guns at another location.
As parents, we all want to keep our children safe. And it’s good to know there is something every parent can do if there are guns in the home to keep all our children, including our often very curious gifted toddlers and determined teens, safe from an accidental or self-inflicted – and often fatal – injuries.