I've had something somewhat similar happen with my godson. Tiny bit of history, Loch got to be my godson because I was the only person that stood by his Mother when she was gestating. Everyone else was pro-abortion. (I told her "You have 3 options. It isn't my place to tell you what to do, but regardless of your choice I'll do whatever I can to help." Mostly she just needed a ride to and from her prenatals and some cheering up on a couple occasions.)
Anyhow, Loch's parents were never together, it was a "friends with benefits and breeding privledges" situation that didn't last through the gestation period, much less the first couple years of the kid's life. Fortunately, however, both parents want to be part of his life. And both are pretty much idiots. (Of the no-common sense kind, not the low-IQ kind.)
Now this is in Alaska. Everybody has guns up here. Except the mother, who moved up from Chicago. She realized that Loch was going to need to know firearm safety; when he was with his dad, there were guns in the house, and no gunsafes or locking cases.
She did not trust the father to teach him firearms safety, and she couldn't do it herself. So she gave me her blessing.
He had a blast, followed every directive flawlessly, and can quote the 4 laws backwards and forwards, as well as making judgements on various scenarios as to if they comply with the laws or not. He's 7.
Unfortunately between the mother giving me her blessing and me actually taking Loch out, Daddy got into her head and started chanting the "guns are evil!" line. And she always was a daddy's girl. So fastforward to the most recent custody hearing. . .
". . . took him out to the gun range, and even gave him his own REAL gun! Here's a photo!"
"Looks like he's wearing eye protection, I assume he had hearing protection as well?"
"Yes sir."
"Sounds like it was done right. I approve."
Gotta love Alaskan judges.