Poll: 60 percent cite protection as top reason for gun ownership

WASHINGTON, Oct. 29 (UPI) -- Gun owners' No. 1 reason for owning a firearm is the need for personal safety and protection, a Gallup poll indicates.

Sixty percent of respondents mentioned personal safety in response to the open-ended question, Gallup reported, a statistic that has not changed significantly since 2000 or 2005.

Purchasing a gun for protection is therefore not a new phenomenon caused by the recent mass shootings, Gallup reported.

Hunting came in second, with 36 percent of respondents mentioning it.

Only 5 percent of respondents mentioned Second Amendment rights, Gallup reported.

The survey was conducted Oct. 3-6. Phone interviews of 309 gun owners were completed and the sampling error was 7 percentage points.