You should never forget that it's loaded, whether it is or not. The best way to do that is to always keep every gun loaded, so you'll never assume that one is empty.karl_311 wrote:What if I make a mistake and forget it's loaded?
Every one of our guns is kept loaded at all times unless it's locked up or one of us is actively dryfiring, cleaning or maintaining it. (Though the long guns, generally not being drop-safe, are kept with empty chambers and full mags.) That way we never pick up a gun without assuming it's loaded, and needs to be unloaded first if we're going to be doing something other than shooting it.