Just Curious.....

[dianalv]

What disabilities do you have and what strategies do you use to continue hunting and shooting?

[Txquadhunter]

I'm a C5-6 quad. I still use same stragies i did before my accident. I also have a hunting paartner some where near in case i need help. Just now trying to keep my power wheel chair and adaptive rifle rest quiet as well. I get dropped off as close as i can to my blind/hunting spot as i can earlier. thats because some uneven ground in my chair can be a PITA totravel over.

[dianalv]

What does C5-6 quad mean?

[Big ugly]

I busted my back and knees pretty bad falling through a roof several years ago. I used to love getting to those hard to reach rocks a crevasses during a hunt, Like clibing up a small clif face to get above a game trail or the like. Noe I am not so agile and I have to take it easier on myself. I try to keep to easier terrain now. I had an incedent where I twisted wrong and spent 17 hours trying to make a 1.5 mile trip back to the truck after I twisted my back wrong and threw it out. I had no cell phone on my and very little survival gear and I was stuck in the apalachain mountains in early feburary. It was not a good trip for me. I learned a few good lessons that day. One was to keep the phone on me and make shure the batteries are charged on the GPS. Also learned that a small survival pack is a good thing to have on you at all times no matter how far you get away from your vehicle. Also its a good Idea to let some one know where you are goin to be. Which I did not do.

[Txquadhunter]

Originally Posted by dianalv

What does C5-6 quad mean?

C5-6 Quad = Quadriplegic I crushed my C4, 5 and 6th Vertibras in my neck. But my injury falls at the C5-6 levels. I'm paralyzed from my mid shoulders down, with limited movement in my arms.

[dianalv]

Wow. I'm impressed you're still hunting!

Big Ugly, I learned years ago, through lessons hard won, that it pays to carry a pack with you at all times. I have a small day pack that goes with me everywhere and is always stocked and in my truck ready to go. I take a larger one with when I am hunting. I also carry a knife, emergency whistle and a striker and flint stick with a pitchwood handle attached to my person in case I get separated from my pack. I use it regularly to start fires in camp for the practice.

I've taken four professional survival classes and teach it on occasion. Survival is a state of mind and begins with the imagination and anticipation. Letting people know when and where you are, with an ETA and an ETR, is essential.

[Lotsdragon]

Years ago when I was younger and not so handsome I got caught in a blasting area and lost part of my hearing, now I use one of those amplifiers in one ear.

[dianalv]

Do you raise llamas? Ever thought of camels for hunting/packing? I've kinda been investigating the idea of a Bactrian camel. They are large enough to pack me and a whole lot of dead critter, will kneel down to be loaded or to mount up, much better on the enviromment then a horse, don't require as much in the way of water or food on trips, and are less skittish than horses, making them safer to ride for people who can't sustain another head injury. Perfect for Northern Nevada and Washington state (the dry side) as they tolerate a wide range of temperatures. And their hair is very useful. Like cashmere. Females can be milked and their milk is more nutritional and (supposedly) better tasting than cow milk.

Downsides are they are expensive, rare in this country, have personalities like mules, it's hard to find camel trainers, or vets familiar with camels, and they require more attention than llamas or horses. Kinda like a dog. They need bonding and companionship. Also horses don't like them at first sight, so they can be disruptive to horseback riders if you meet them on the trail. And they are very large fully grown and tend to be dangerously playful if you don't train it out of them.

[rentalguy1]

I have spinal stenosis at L3-4, L4-5, and L5-S1. It has led to a incomplete foot drop on the right side and a numb lower right leg. On top of that, I have a torn meniscus and stretched PCL in the right knee. I haven't hunted in years, and I never was into big game. I used to hunt squirrels and run coon hounds when I was a teen, before going in the army and getting injured. There will be no more running hounds, as far as I can see, but I could still go squirrel hunting. I have to be real safety concious with everything I do now, as it is easy for me to get myself in a position that I can't physically get out of, and I have yet to learn my own limitations. This has led to me almost always having someone with me. This is especially true when I go to the shooting range. Honestly, that's the best bet for anyone; disabled or not.

[williamd]

Several after-market parts in my body and arthirtis limit movement and speed. So, I hunt slower (and better!), am careful about the terrain I go into, use a walking stick (actually an ice ax with a small head), keep cognizant of how I might have to get an animal to a trail or 4x4 road (no more high mountain muleys but Whitetail in the bottoms are more fun anyway, and no moose or elk unless I am with a lot of help). Gave away my big Kelty packs a few years ago. Hearing about gone ... but eyes good! After trying many hearing aids I got the ones from Cabela's, had them put into custom moulds and they beat any ... at about the same price as those from a audiologist. Carry a cellular that uses satellites and a small Garmin to backtrack though I have never had a problem with sense of direction ... well, there was that night in N Arkansas chasing fcoon hounds! Oh, that night in south TX chasing coon hounds. And, every time I go to Santa Fe! Otherwise, I know up is North.

20g bird guns and light weight rifles.

Recognize limits and hunt as I can. Probably has made me abetter hunter.

[dianalv]

That's another thing I have problems with. I used to have perfect orientation. Could find my way on the blackest night with no landmarks and still wind up where I needed to be. Now I get totally lost and turned around. My sense of direction got knocked out of me or scrambled.

What satellite phone do you use? How expensive is it? I've been looking at those tracking units you can wear that send out a signal so you can be found.

[Tom Militano]

rentalguy1, I also have drop foot on my right leg and have to wear a brace that's built into my shoe and I walk with forearm crutches, I can still get around enough to bust a squirrel or two. I use a sling to carry my rifle and a canvas shooting stool to sit on. You adapt and keep going.

[Txquadhunter]

More Disabled hunters and shooters here than I thought.


Tom Militano said it best. You adapt and keep going!

[ninjatoth]

I have OCD and depression.I have had these mental contitions since I was about 12 years old.I love to shoot and to hunt,but it took alot of battling the depression and getting healthy mentally before I could even think about owning firearms.I have been doing great lately,I take medication for the OCD,and I just this year got a few rifles and handguns,and just 2 weeks ago I completed hunters ed so I can go hunting whitetail alone.Mental issues are very well hidden,but sometimes are more destructive to a person than physical ones,so if you have mental illnesses,don't give up,you can be treated and re gain a normal lifestyle.

[ilovenxstage]

I have kidney failure and some eye impairment, but with corrective lenses, I can still shoot fairly well. My main issue as far as my disabilities and shooting goes, is my very low disability pay, which is barely enough to live on, let alone buy guns, ammo, accessories, etc. But, I make do with what I have.

[Mark Cline]

what kind of vehicles do you guys use when you are hunting? Either to get there, or while you are out on the move thru the terrain.

[Rogo]

Lets see:

1. I am diabetic
2. Need glasses to see anything more than 50 feet away
3. 70% hearing loss in both ears, can't afford hearing aids
4. Have had my Aorta replaced from bottom of heart to groin
5. Have survived Cancer on both Kidneys, so far. Surgery to remove it twice
6. Vascular disease in left leg, can't walk more than 50 feet without pain

Not allowed by family to go hunting without someone close by to holler to and must carry cell phone just in case.

I am only 70 and refuse to give up hunting and shooting as long as I can move.

[hunterfisher]

I'm a disabled vet. Had a major stroke due to multible trauma. Degenerative bone desease, one lung, and deepvain thrombosis. Deaf in one ear. Other than that,...I'm fine. I still hunt and fish on my own. It's still,'' A Good Life.''
I thank the, Good Lord, everyday that I'm still here.
God Bless.

[Lapua Kid]

I'm just a para T10 complete .I have 4 x4 Van and a good cell phone. I hunt by myself alot . I love groundhog hunting and Dove shooting. I shoot alot out in field and on range. I try not to allow my disabilities hender my enjoyment

[permafrost]

Three fused discs in my neck. Five ruptured discs in my back. Do all my getting around with a four wheeler. No long distance treks any more. No big recoil,either. I'm almost ashamed to post anything, compared to some of the damage and courage reported here. i actually feel lucky. Good on you guy's!

[pulltabbob]

Wow, I am almost ashamed to say what I have wrong with me compared to most of you.

I have five herniated disc's in my lower back and one in my neck, I have had 42 colestiatoma's tumors removed from my head which has cost me my hearing, balance, and what not. I have mineires disease (Big balance problem), type II diabetic, Epileptic (without the seizures), Both knees are gone, I hear through a device called a BAHA (It is a bone anchored hearing aid. They drilled a hole in my skull and mounted a titanium stud behind my left ear. Mounted on it is a pick-up that vibrates through my skull). Use a Cain to keep me from hitting the ground ten times a day. I have 5 chemo shots in my skull every other Friday. I also have severe colitis. This causes about 20 trips to the restroom during the day. When I travel, it is hard to pass a restroom up. On a good day I take 61 pills a day and on a bad day, add another 20 or so.

I still thank my lucky stars that I can do as much as I do as there are many others that are worse off than me. I have no room to complain.

[RedHawk]

My only disability is my government and its getting harder to deal with!

[steve666]

I have Wegner's Granulomatosis - an autoimmune disorder in which the body essentially attacks itself. As a result I have approximately 25-30% lung capacity. Since I don't breath too well, have to carry around an oxygen tank and havve to stop 2 or 3 times when I walk a block my hunting days are over. I still love to go to the range and shoot; though unless go to the indoor range at PopGuns, I have to go with a friend who will take care of the targets.

[carver]

First, I want to congratulate you all on your diehard attitudes! As we get older we all start having physical problems, and I have my share too. My problems aren't as great as some of you have, but are still hard to deal with. I was in a motorcycle accident when I was young, and spent a year, and 15 days in a cast. The leg finally healed, but it is crocked. Never got complete use of it afterwards. The other leg I tore up playing sports in high school prior to the motorcycle accident, and again later in the U.S.A.F. That got me my Disability form the Military. My feet are the biggest problem though. I can't walk, or stand for more than a few minutes before they start hurting real bad. Arthritis in both feet due to very small bones! I hunt with a staff, and I always have my cell phone with me, though it's turned off. I am also a type 2 diabetic, and am hard of hearing. My hearing is bad enough that I will travel in circles unless I use a GPS device to keep me from getting lost. I don't hunt from tree stands anymore, but do use a ground blind. I thank God that I can still do some things that are important to me, and I pray for you all to have the things in life that you want. There won't be any disabilities in the next life!

[dad2thebone]

You all have courage to go hunting like you do, my hats off to you.I was injured when i fell at work into a small trench and ruptured my L3 and 3-4 -5 S1 discs and crushed a few more in the process OH WELL they gave me add a parts, back fusion last year so hunting is out the next couple of years and a cat scan showed a crack at S-1 so I'm going to need another surgery soon . Just remember the last was no fun so I'm waiting awhile. I cant take a rough or long drive anymore so I'm limited to whats close . That's why I'm fun shooting for now the boys take me out and i shoot till I need my meds and then I'm done for days. Once again my hats off to you that still hunt with your severe injuries. I hope I can hunt again too. Thank God for this site gives me something to do.