Start with both of you taking a hunter's safety course.

Then start with small game. Read all you can about the habitats and habits of the animal you choose to hunt. Scout out the area you plan to hunt after you read so you can try to find the game and will know where to look when you actually hunt. Hopefully you and her fish, otherwise cleaning the animals will be quite the turn-off.

you have to take the safety course to hunt Anything in kalif, it will prolly push her to or away from hunting. if your in SoCal, the turners website has a listing of hunter safety class schedules. taking her fishing is a good start also.
the safety class instructor should be able to give you guys ideas on how to start or maybe hook you up with other hunters that dont mind you tagging along to learn stuff.
get some BLM and NF maps, your NF ranger station could give you leads on areas to hunt in. i suggest starting out on small game like jackrabbits and ground squirrels, YOU make the first kill, let he exprience it through you. if she doesnt like it you dont want her feeling worse that she killed a poor defenseless animal. if shes cool with it then have at it. after a few rabbit and squirrel trips maybe try for more difficult game like coyotes, you can do the calling while she shoots and vice versa.

anything else that you would plan to eat like deer or pigs i would suggest a guided hunt, tejon ranch (on the 5fwy between bakersfield and LA) has this but is pricey. raahauges in Norco also has bird hunting, as well as safety classes and clay bird shooting.

check out the hunting websites like  hunting.net, varminthunters.com, jesseshuntingpage.com (full of Kalif huters) they have a members yote hunt in SoCal every few months, like the one this past weekend.

The Hunter Safety course is an absolute must.  In most states you cannot get a license without having taken the course.  Ditto the fishing/small game scenario.

Depending on your financial situation, you might want to book a first big game hunt with a reputable guide/outfitter.  Explain upfront that you are new to the sport and that this will be a learning experience.  This way you are less likely to get lost, forget something vital, lose your game due to lack of tracking skills, etc.  I have seen too many hunters botch their first few hunts and not only ruin the sport for themselves, but waste a lot of valuable game.  The animals deserve your absolute best effort.

I will now get down from my soap box.

Michael

If you plan On big game hunting Your going to have to learn how to gut a deer. fun stuff.

What age range are you talking about here?

Keep it rewarding if possible and especially unboring.  It sorta depends on the individual, but I doubt if she would initially enjoy staying several hours at a time on a deer stand trying to be totally quiet.

First of all, do you have both the hunter safety course done?  You need that in order to get a license.  And hurry up about finding one - contact DFG right away and ask for their booklet listing outfits & people who teach it.

If you wait much longer, pretty soon all the instructors will be hunting.

I'd suggest talking to the instructors about your situation and seeing if they can put you in touch with a trap /skeet club anywhere near you. Or enter "where to shoot" in Google.com
Hopefully there you can find someone to take the two of you under their wing and get you started.

Safe weapons handling is a lot more important than getting out there hunting right away.  That's why I think learning to shoot clay targets is a big help - at a well-run range she can get some instruction on skeet, for example, and learn good habits and presence of mind that's a bit different from bench shooting.

Dove season is first up (shotguns) and you will see the flyers at a place where you buy licenses. I recommend buying your license at a non-chain sporting goods or gun shop where they actually know what they are doing.  You can get some decent advice there, too, hopefully.

Deer seasons are about to open at various times around the state.

However, for a beginner, I think you should try to find a pheasant club or better yet someone who belongs to one.  You may find these people shooting clay targets. Or, some of the clubs will invite you to come take a look at their operation and explain it to you.

You could also check out hunting squirrels / rabbits.  This might be the best ways to start, you can get squirrels and sometimes rabbits with a .22.  Or if you already have or can afford a shotgun apiece, pheasants.  You have a nice long season, and you can relax a bit and have some fun, as opposed to the intensity of say deeer season.

Does she like getting up at 3:30 or so? Duck hunting!!

If you are going to do any knd of bird hunting, practice at skeet & trap first.

DFG has a pretty good web site. Oh yeah, check out the junior Upland Bird hunts they have for youngsters.

They are a little hard to track doown, but keep checking the DFG site or do a lot of phoning to their office to find out who's putting them on and when.  Usually you have to send them a post card for a drawing, but these are worth the effort.  We went to one where a local hunting club bought the birds, supplied dogs and handlers, and it was a great day.  The adults get to accompany the juniors, but don't hunt.

Do you have any kind of dog?

You don't know about hunting?? Damn you are a pansy, what a girlie boy you are, what color panties do you have on?? [:D]  Now with that out of the way, I suggest you ask your friends about hunting, who knows you may have people you know who hunt that can help you into the sport. Please give it a try, I promise you will love being outdoors with your little girl, and you can learn this sport TOGETHER, which will make it even better, try this site [url]huntamerica.com[/url] it has lots of interesting info, and many great members that will be glad to help you out, good luck. Also you may want to look into joining a hunting club, they are quite common in the South, don't know about your area, you can also target shoot in these clubs and save on range fees....Confederate

[url]http://www.bowhunting.net/ybc/brian/gutting.html[/url]

I highly suggest you go into the ethics of hunting before she shoots a game animal.  Otherwise she is bound to be distraught upon a success in the field due to the constant brainwashing she has been exposed to in school and via mass media.

Hunters are among the most most active groups in terms of preserving wildlife and habitat.  If it wasn't for hunters, there would be nothing to hunt.  For every animal a hunter harvests, there is far more given back in terms of habitat preservation and restoration, species protection, and education.
Further, hunting is nature at it's best.  Deep in everyone's soul, is the urge to hunt and kill for survival.  Being in touch with that, and become a part of the great circle of life and death in our world in the way we have done for millenia, is a humbling and amazing thing.  Be sure to teach her about it before she throws a gun on the ground thinking she has just wasted a life for nothing.  When you shoot a game animal and eat it, that animal gave it's life for your survival, and the natural order of things has taken place.  It must be respected for it.

Start small, with chipmunks and squirrels and such.

How does she react now when you hit a squirrel driving down the road ??? Multiply that emotion times 20 if SHE is responsible for its death.

If she reacts badly, maybe shes not emotionally ready for hunting.

Teaching her about the need to harvest game is an excellent suggestion.  As the other member said it is very important that she learn that good conservation and hunting go hand in hand in keeping a strong healthy population of wild life.

It sounds to me like you first have to deal with your uncertainty about field dressing the game that you harvest.

I would suggest that you go on a hunt without your daughter and learn how to field dress what you shoot and see how it is going to effect you.  Learn what it feels like to you and how to do it.  Children do not have an inherent dislike of most things.  They "learn" those trates from adults.  If you are the one to show her how to field dress and don't turn your nose up at it or approach it using only your finger tips she won't think a thing about it.

Also do research on how to prepair the game for the table.  When you get home then go in the kitchen with her and work with her to fix a meal.  It enhances the quality time that you spend with her.

Do this right and she will carry those happy memories for the rest of her life.  Oh, don't forget to take lots of pics and start an album for her.  Another thing that I did when I started my two boys hunting and fishing is to start a journal and make entries everytime you take her to the range, hunting and fishing.  It is very enjoyable for them and me to look back at the events that took place on our many trips afield.

The world needs more dads like you.

Hell, I will almost have a wreck trying to avoid a squirrel but I love to hunt them.

I believe the emphasis should be on hunting for food.  Dont try to guess what reaction she will have.

Ask her what would she do if their was no super markets or McDonalds.  Question her about how people ate that came over on the Mayflower.

I plan on coming up with a meal that I want my daughter to help me prepare.  Only problem is that we will not be able to purchase the meat in any super market.

Dad and daughter will take care of that =)

I agree. Start out with birds or squirrels and then work up to larger game and maybe a guided hunt or two in there.

I don't think there is anything wrong with making the discoveries in hunting together.  It could be a very good bonding experience.  Along with all the great advice above, I would go to the library and check out some books on hunting and skinning.  While it does NOT replace the real experience, it does help give you an idea of how its done.  

Something else to think about is depending on how big your daughter is, the kind/ type, of rifle or shotgun can also make or break the experience.  ie a cheap 12ga shotgun can beat an adult up, and would be inconcievable for any kid under 13 or 14.  Hence, maybe smaller animals to start with such as squirrels, or rabbits, doves, all of which can be taken with 410/ 20 gauges or varmit sized hunting rifles all of which have less recoil.  

The experience of hunting should be fun with or without success.  The time out doors, spending time with family and friends, learning about nature IMO should outweigh a giant jack rabbit or 10 point buck.  

I was in your same situation once:

I grew up in south central MI.  My dad hunted before I was born, but because the hunting wasn't as good as N. Ontario, where he grew up, he stopped.  He was interested in guns though and started me out right and supported my enthusiasm for guns, but we never hunted.  Then I went to school (college) in MI's upper peninsula where 90% of the population hunts.  I was fortunate to have roommates and friends that hunted, so I got into small game hunting.  Then I met a girl (now my wife) from the U.P. and many of our "dates" included hunting small game.  Then when I married into the family I "had" to take up deer hunting so I'd have something to discuss with the in-laws the last three months of the year.  They were kind enough to give me a good start with deer hunting knowlege.  When I graduated college I moved to N. MI where the climate is very hunter friendly and learned a lot from my neighbors and co-workers.  

Now I'm in SE MI where I'm having trouble finding people who like guns and hunting.  If your area of CA is similar I can understand your trouble.  The best learning tool is a friend who can take you out into the woods and show you the preferred habitat and signs of your chosen game animal.  Make every effort to find a friend that can show you the ropes.  Maybe there is a hunt club you can join to meet people.  Or, maybe the hunter safety instructor can help you or find someone that can help.  

Do not get discouraged...  Depending on the area and the game, it could take a long time for success.  But, of course, success is that much sweeter when it finally comes.

My only other recommendation is:  Try to hunt where no one else does.  I found nothing more discouraging when I started, than running across another half dozen people on the little plot of hunting ground I'd chosen.  This was on the only piece of public land in parents county in S MI.  I knew I'd never see a deer with that many people moving around (and I worried for my safety).  Consequently, I now primarily hunt private land which I would highly recommend when you are learning and with children.  See if you can strike up a relationship with a landowner at work.  Farmers who are loosing their crops to animals are often receptive to hunters.  If you can get on a farmers land he can probably direct you to the most likely areas on his land to find your game.

My hunting has been built on my networking skills.  I don't network to find a better job...  I network to hunt.[:)]

I wish you were in my area I could hook you up with some friends I have that would be very receptive (family types that like to get the next generation involved).  I can't wait until my boys are old enough to join me hunting.

BTW, I have a niece that took her first deer with a bow when she was 13 and has taken many since (She's now 26).

Good luck!!
Kent

another idea is to watch the hunting shows on TNN and OLN, theres usually some pretty good shows on

Squirrels would be a good place to start.  That and you don't have the "bambi" factor.  Aimless brings up a good point about learning stalking.  I generally practice my stalking a couple weeks before the season starts, by stalking with a camera.  Kinda lets me get in the swing of things again.  Perhaps a few "camera" hunts might be a good teaching tool (Personally, I'd avoid doing these IN season...the idea of being mistakenly shot doesn't appeal to me)

FOTBR

I've found a good way to start youngsters is to show them some of the sites dealing with shooting, archery, hunting, such as Outdoor life, Shooters.com, and others.  The same with the Magazines,  Rifle and Handloader are two good ones, and others from all disciplines.

Let her start to save her money for the ammo she'll shoot.  My spray and pray soon developed into good marksmanship when I had to buy the ammo.

A few trips into the woods or fields just to watch and scout will expose her to different areas of study, birds, animals, flowers, trees, poison ivy, the different sounds, sunups, sundowns, game habits, game sign such as tracks, food preferences, day/night activity,
nests, bedding areas, trails, ad infinitum.

Pick some brains of hunters to learn  tricks of the trade--squirrel won't come out from behind the limb, throw a big rock or stick off to the side about 20 yards and the curious little devils will usually pop up to see what made the noise.  Pheasants will usually go up and then level off, shoot when they level off and any lead is usually unnecessary.

Safety is not for sale or barter.  A few big watermelons shot with a decent sized pistol or rifle round with good velocity and good hollowpoints seem to make a lasting impression as to what a gun can do.  Kids can equate a blown watermelon to what would happen to their own heads, thus the safety issue stands out as real and not just something adults preach about.