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sholilderhe had no idea he'd just been shot with an air rifle. . "It~as ol1ly when I.loo~~q.m, the mIrror and saw my ShIrt soaked with blood that Irealised what had happened," he said. It has been two months since thePap yout.hwassho(by a friend, but the incident still haunt~ him -especially as the pellet Isstill.lodged iilhis back. heard a loud shot and was appalled to in pain was terrifying. I took him to Ka~akawa Hospitalwhe:~e we waIted three hours for an x-ray.. A nurse tried to squeeze the pellet out but it was buried 100 deeply, then a doctor stuck ~is finger into thewoUlld to see if he coUld feel it. It was clearly hurting Michael." MrSP~lni~r thet:l tbokherson to WhangareIHospital where doc­tors decided the pellet wolild b~ too difficult to remove. "They've left the pellet and told us to come back if he has any problems. It really worries me that it might move and cause serious internal damage," Michael's injury in Feb­ruarY, there have been two other serious shootings inv(jlvingch~­drenand air heart 1!nd aoctors say she sholila make a fUll recovery. . a pellet from hIS head after he was shot with an rifle on. The . The head of Whangarel Hos­ pital's emergency department, colildeasily cause severe injury or death. "Air rifles are definitely . not. toys.Theyar~~Ir.earms and should be treated WIth the same respect," .. sholildbe warned not top.lay wIth guns. "Michael i$a keen"shooter~ He useq to shoot 'minors and I made 'sure he knew how to safely use a gun. Hislriend might have just been p\aying aroUlld but the consequences they treated the weapon seriously, butitwas not practical to keep it locked away, '~'Itishantly to keep the gun aroUlld in c~se there are possums on the roof or rats in the house," said MichaeL . Whangareigun club members aid the gun safety message had to be drummed.