When is it time to give up our guns (age)?

Anytime a person presents a hazard to himself or others, action should be taken to prevent serious injury or death.

In his case, be darn sure your right. And be prepared to be written out of the will.

We had to take my wife's fathers guns when he was still relatively young at 62. He was suffering from lewey Body disease which is basically, Alzheimer's, dementia, and Parkinson's all rolled into one whopper of a disease. He became prone to violent outbursts and didn't recognize anyone except for my wife, including his wife of 30yrs.

I would do it again and insist it be done to me...

This is a case where similar arguments apply to guns & cars. It is a tough discussion to have with a parent, and likely turns into a process. You might try telling him your concerns, and suggest a boy's day out where he drives both of you to a range. That will give you an opportunity to evaluate his motor skills and judgment. If he just concedes that he no longer has the hand strength to shoot his .357 (or whatever), the process is started.

Best of luck with this tough time.

I would not see it as giving them up or taking them away.
It is just storing in a safe place.

Although the physical inability to safely handle firearms is probably more appropriate as one ages (and I am moving closer to that age) the "mental" inability to safely handle them can be at any age. I have seen a couple 30 somethings at a range that could/would not safely handle theirs. It will probably be a tough decision for my family some day but I hope I can recognize my inability and make the decision for them, sparing them the turmoil.

There comes a time when the child needs to become the parent. Be it guns, a car or even the cooking stove parents often see their freedoms diminish. Some relinquish things easily and some not so easy. We were fortunate in that both parents weren't a problem when the time came but I know others who were less fortunate in getting mom and dad to give things up.

Ron

We had to take my Mom's car keys away from her and honestly I don't think she should have a gun in her possession either. Mentally its just not there anymore.

That is a tough one. Many older folks remain mentally and physically acute right up to the end, while others battle dementia and degenerative diseases for years. IMO, until a person has lost the mental capacity to make their own decisions they should be able to own whatever they want. Ideally the decision of when that time comes should be made by a family member, and hopefully we never get to a point when a physician or government agency makes the decision for us based on some arbitrary test result.

I have no family who is interested in guns, but as was discussed in another thread, guns are an investment. When passed on to inheritors, they have definite resale value.

I believe the responses to this point are thoughtful and reasonable, and have little to add beyond saying that simple old age ought not disqualify a person from gun ownership, driving, or anything else in the absence of demonstrated physical or mental infirmity.

IIRC, didn't the British government decide on some arbitrary age beyond which gun ownership was no longer allowed? I vaguely remember reading that some WWII veterans in the UK were having their firearms certificates terminated only because of their advancing years . . .

Medical research shows that other factors play a bigger role in memory loss than aging.

Also the elderly are often the highest victims of crime.

Lost my dad a year and a half ago just a week shy of his 90'th birthday. Mentally he was as sharp as ever. He give up driving 4-5 years earlier because he understood his vision was at the point he was a danger to others. Dad gave my brother and I his handful of guns a few years earlier, but was still mentally and physically able to use them. He just knew he was no longer going to hunt. Dad never kept any type of SD weapons anyway.

Getting the keys away from mom was a lot tougher. She was dangerous and didn't believe it.

I do believe there does come a time when that decision needs to be made. Every case is different and some people reach that point much earlier in life.

I am also in the group that does not see age as a factor as to when guns, driving or other privileges should be taken away. I am 64 but have friends that developed dementia in their 50s. My mom went to the grave a few years ago at 92 and was as sharp as could be till the day she died.

As to any disposition of my guns after I check out? Several to my children and the grandchildren. The remainder my wife can sell off for the party following my wake.

Ron

I didn't read the linked article. How old did NBC think you should be when they take your guns away? I'm guessing 18

There isn't a set age, there's a loss of capacity and I hope it comes at a very old age for me. My Dad spent the last two years of his life in Veteran's home and for the last six months he was essentially bedridden. I doubt he had the strength to pull the trigger on a DA revolver toward the end, but I would have had no fear about handing him one should he have asked. Mentally he hadn't lost the capacity to have a gun, even though he probably didn't have the physical capacity to use it.

I have another problem in this same area. Due to arthritis (hands & back) I can no longer shoot like I used to. So I have decided to trim down my gun collection, mostly by large caliber handguns since they hurt my hands to shoot them. I talked to my family and my son wants a couple of them and my wife has picked out her favorites, and I have a few that I will keep because they mean a lot to me. The problem comes with the ammo. I am a reloader, have been since I was a kid so all the ammo that I have (except 22) is stuff that I loaded and worked up favorite loads for those firearms. I also have a lot of components and powder (stocked up when things started to get tight). So if I sell the guns what do I do with the ammo that will then be worthless to me? I know that the old saying is don't shoot any reloads but your own, so do I just trash them? I don't have to sell but I would like to see them in the hands of someone who will used and enjoy them, with out breaking the law. Any help appreciated.

Ideally the decision of when that time comes should be made by a family member, and hopefully we never get to a point when a physician or government agency makes the decision for us based on some arbitrary test result.

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This. Family decides, not some bureaucrat.

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Yup. As said several times here, a great many older folks retain their mental faculties right up to the end. Both of my deceased grand parents were this way. Grandpa was an engineer, died at 86, and it was a very fast decline (like 9 or 10 days) from someone who could sit there and tell you how to build an analog radar system to the man drawing his last breaths with the help of a ventilator. He had guns, and I never worried one bit about him. His wife passed at 87 a few years later, and again, was very sharp until the final days, at which point she was hospital bound due to stroke. Lived on her own right up to the end, never showed any signs of dementia.

My other grandfather, however, is 93 and still kicking, and has basically been nuts for as long as I can remember. I'm not involved in his affairs these days, being that he is rather estranged and lives 2,100 miles away, but I don't think he has any business with a deadly weapon (which he probably does own). The man has never during my lifetime exhibited particularly sound judgement.

larryh1108 said:

Interesting article by NBC News about aging and guns. I know we have a lot of 70+ and 80+ members here so a number is not the right way to draw a line. However, if dad or grandpa is becoming infirm and "forgetful" to a serious degree, is it up to us to take their guns or is it something that can never be taken away?


Article link:

http://www.nbcnews.com/#/health/hea...nds-when-should-grandpa-give-his-guns-n145501

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At what age do you stop being a victim of violent crime?

Did you see that ww2 sniper make a shot on the military chanel at 80+ yrs old that he had received a medal for during WW2, He fired the same gun, "don't quote me on the exact statistics", but I think it was an M1 with a scope, at some ridiculous distance, "for that weapon and setup", and nailed it 2 or 3 times in a row, after not firing his sniper rifle for 60 something years. Just goes to show you that it's not the age, it's the mental and physical condition. If you exercise regularly and eat right, you can shoot into your late 80's.
As long as your parts all still work. I know at 66 I still do about an hour per day of exercise and probably have more wind now than 20 years ago when I smoked.
I can run 5 miles with no problem at all.
If you stop, that's when it hits you. But as long as you stay fit, you should be fine. I look at seniors in the pool and wonder what the heck they are thinking?
They are more concerned about where they are going to eat than the fact that they are 100 lbs overweight, and killing themselves with all the garbage they eat from boredom.
It's a job to try and stay fit after 60. Your body wants to stop and lay down, but if you allow it to, it won't get back up so fast.

First off, I wouldn't pose that question to the individuals personal physician, as that could pose a problem with the physician's own general opinion of firearms. But if an individual is obviously suffering a disease that is clearly impairing their ability to safely and competently handle them, or they demonstrate a clear danger to their selves, or others, then it's time. But I don't think it should be an age based decision, as I know a number of folks who are 80+ that display normal competence in this regard. Forgetting where you left your keys is one thing, but it shouldn't bear weight on firearm competence, IMO.

GS

It must be done on a case by case basis. We did not have that issue cause they all were sharp minding till the end of their lives.

I agree.
I'm 70+, still drive a new 400HP Dodge 4x4 Hemi-Sport pick-up, and haven't even been in a fender bender for 45 years.

Except the time a guy much younger then I hit me in the azz while I was setting at a stoplight three years ago.
Turned out, he had stage 5 dementia, was on his way to his doctors appointment, and he was going the wrong way, three miles in the wrong direction from the Doctors office.
His kids & doctor had apparently failed to recognize it had gotten that bad, until the cop ask him for his name & address after he couldn't produce a drivers license, and he didn't know his address or phone number.

My wife of 49 years is younger then I am, also has dementia, and hasn't known what day it is for the last 4 years.

I 'Lost' her drivers license & car keys a few years ago, and 'loaned' her Dodge Durango to one of our sons last year after walking around it parked in the driveway for three years all that time.

Myself?
When I get to that point, I hope to god the kids recognize it when I start having wrecks, shooting holes in the floor, or don't know what day it is.

And then take my guns, my truck, my lawn mower, the knife collection, the kitchen knives, the table saw & bands saw, the lathe, the welding torch, the bug spray, and anything else in the house I am incapable of using safely.

But I also hope that is a lot more years from now!

And I hope even more the government has nothing at all to say about it!
As long as I am not hurting anyone else, or myself!

PS: Maybe I do forget things more now then when I was younger?
But I can't remember what they are!

rc

Anytime a person presents a hazard to himself or others, action should be taken to prevent serious injury or death.

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Has anyone else noticed the switch in culture from voluntary to involuntary?

This notion has permeated law and is rapidly going sour. Veterans are being denied gun rights, people who domot need it are being forced in hospitals, cops are given discretion to commit people for "evaluation" and so forth.

Frankly, I would much rather take the risk than have all these people with "powers" running around.