Canada Ban on Shotguns: What You Should Know

Justin Trudeau, The Canadian Prime Minister, has been an extremely active voice for gun control. Alongside him has been Minister Bill Blair, constantly fighting for citizens to turn in their firearms (particularly their AR-15’s and similar rifles) and trying to pass laws that would deem such firearms illegal. Yesterday, after a tragic mass shooting in Nova Scotia, that became a reality. In Canada, it is now illegal to own over 1,500 types of firearms. A list was made, showing all the different firearms that were now illegal to be in possession of while in Canada. However, there is a 2-year amnesty period for law-abiding gun owners to comply. Trudeau made the comment saying “You do not need an AR-15 to bring down a deer”.

That may not alarm some people, however later that day, a statement was released by the Canadian Sporting Arms and Ammunition Association (CSAAA) with the news that Trudeau had originally included in his ban both 12-gauge and 10-gauge shotguns. That statement in particular got quite the reaction from the waterfowling community. With the recent spike in freelancers making their way North, and the amount of hunters that already used Canada as a hunting destination, social media was flooded with news of the ban.

The law was based off of the diameter of the shotgun’s barrel originally, which then translated to shotguns with removable chokes being outlawed. The only exception, as of now, is 10 and 12-gauge shotguns with fixed chokes. These are still legal. However that still poses a problem to waterfowlers, because the majority of fixed choke shotguns aren’t steel shot friendly (with the exception of some of the more modern made guns). While 16, .410, 20, and 28 gauge shotguns remain legal for use, it can’t be expected that too many waterfowlers would make a trek to Canada to hunt with such light calibers. Guides and hunters from all over North America took to all platforms of social media to voice their concerns over how tyrannical this seems to be. Guides made mention about how devastating this was going to be for business, and the effect it was going to have on public commerce in the more rural areas of Canada.

While we still are relatively “in the dark” on the whole thing, there has been talk that there are people fighting to have the law repealed, especially in regards to the shotguns. One news report even stated that by the end of the week we should know if the law will stand in place or not. Some guides have spoken out on social media saying that they’ve been told that it was only hearsay, or that the law will be repealed quickly. Good news if it’s true. However all of this can only be speculation.

Let’s hope so, otherwise it would mean guide services are going to be hurting for business, trips will be cancelled, and waterfowl hunting in Canada will be almost non-existent if this law remains in place.

So now what? Luckily for waterfowlers, there are enough rumors that seem to be floating around about a repeal that it seems to bolster a bit of hope that this law will be undone. In the meantime, organizations like the CSAAA are taking to more political platforms to urge Blair and Trudeau to do away with this unnecessary ban. As for the rest of us, it becomes a waiting game. A game to wait, watch, and see what unfolds next.

Written by: Ryan Barnes for Split Reed