What's your view on toy guns?

[kneedeepinthedirtylaundry]

My 3 year old DS loves them, much to our dismay! He pretends things are guns in play, and loves going to a friend's house where they play with the friend's toy guns.

He also loves pirates and I found a cheap pirate's gun in Woolies today for 99p and, inspired by the entertaining vision of him and said mate running around screaming exuberently "peow peow" at each other, I bought it. Haven't given it to him yet, and my DP thinks I'm mad and doesn't want me to.

However, can't deny that DS is interested in and curious about them (despite DP saying "guns are horrible. I don't like them!" DS just says "Well, I like them!").

I kind of feel he may as well outgrow them as a toy (as me and many of my peers did in the 70s), rather than deny him something he's interested in, so his intetrest becomes covert.

I mean, where does it stop? Stop him from wearing a pirtate's outfit cos they are sword-weilding bandits?

Liberal confusion! Please help.

In theory, I am opposed to them. But then I look at my best friend's brothers. As children they had loads of toy guns and engaged in the usual boyish rough and tumble games. Now they are fully grown, completely normal men which makes me think that maybe that kind of thing IS innate and thus unavoiable.

I'm a complete liberal wuss, but I let DS play with guns. Like others here, he seems to have a natural yearning for them, as I honestly can't see where he got into them from.
Personally I reckon you're piling adult worries onto too young shoulders if you start on about what grown up/ proper guns do and how horrendous they are. I'd bet no-one here thinks their DS is into guns because he wants to actually hurt anyone. Of course they don't, it's just a game and it's fun. My DS(3) has no conception of real hurt/ death, nor should he yet. If they play with swords, you teach them not to actually hit one another don't you? Equally if they play with guns and it becomes overtly aggressive, you'd step in. Surely it's about learning through play, developing and letting them find the truth as they grow. It really doesn't mean they'll turn into homicidal maniacs.

Guns don't bother me. Besides, how would I keep my son away from them when my husband is in the Army? There are numerous pictures of my husband in uniform - some with guns, some with his sword - and at family days there are tanks and APCs for the kids to clamber over.

I think if they see guns as forbidden, it only glamourises them, whereas they grow out of the "Bang, bang, you're dead phase!" if they're allowed to play with them.

Well, my brothers grew out of that phase; my husband didn't - he's wanted to be a soldier for as long as he can remember!

Well I bought my dd1(5) a green machine gun for her birthday. She loves it, and loves pretending to kill her little sister and us. I love pretending to kill DH with it.

I'm shot on a regular basis or captured by pirates.

DS (4 tomorrow) uses his fingers, bits of wood, anything really to turn into a gun, alongside all the other adventures he's having. He doesn't have a toy gun yet only because I can't find one that doesn't make an irritating noise. It's creative play and I have no problem with it.

Thanks everyone. You've all contributed to our discussion. I suspect I'm going to be shot by a little pirate soon, too!