Deer whistles?

J

jackknife

Joined
Oct 2, 2004
Messages
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Anyone know if those stick on deer alert whittles for the front of a car really work?

Last night I almost wrecked our new Toyota Camry when three good sized deer ran out of the woods and across the road right in front of our car. I now have great respect for the antilock brakes, as they really hauled the car down to a stop with no screeching of tires. The damm deer came out of the woods that bordered the road, and were smack dab right in front of me, no place to go, nothing to do except stand on the brake and pray for the eternity of the 2 seconds it took place in.

Now I'm thinking of going to get a couple of the deer whistles, but I've heard 50-50 from people who think they either are the best thing since the invention of the wheel, to those who think they are junk right up there with the left handed board stretcher. Anyone know of any scientific study? Or semi scientific study? Hell, I'll settle for someones Uncle being saved by one.

Carl.
 
I don't have any exp but I know that all the regional sherriff's dept's around here require them on all dept owned cars, its a tell people use to spot unmarked Crown Vic's.
 
I just got my Nissan frontier back after 3 weeks of being in the shop. I hit a buck doing about 55 mph. Did over $4,000 of damage to my truck. I didn't have a deer whistle. The only person who has referred me to deer whistles is my brother who's a mechanic and hit 2 deer in a matter of a month. He put deer whistles on all his cars, hasn't hit a deer yet. It's a cheap investment even if it only works half the time.
 
I used to drive around rural Missouri early in the day very often. Never had another close call with Bambi after I put deer whistles on my car. That doesn't prove causality, but that was my experience.
 
We have over a million deer here in Tennessee. I live in the heart of deer country. I haven't hit one yet. Others do. I suspect they don't carry duct tape in their tool boxes. I do.
 
People who are aware of deer tend to watch for them more and probably have a better chance of seeing them in time to slow down. My guess is that those who buy deer whistles are probably more tuned in to watching for deer. I've been driving for over 34 years in the mid-South and Upper Midwest and have almost hit deer many times but many more times saw them early and was able to slow down or bust a move and steer clear instead of chrome hunting. Good eye sight and quick decision making win over a whistle but maybe it is the duct tape...??? I never thought of it before. In fact, I never see deer when I hunt in my duct tape ghillie suit.
 
I wouldn't have any faith in them. Just because they hear a whistle doesn't mean they will not run the wrong way, right in front of your car. I think that if you drive in deer country long enough, you will hit a deer. Certain times of year (the rut) if you see a doe cross the road, it is a given that a buck will blindly follow.
 
I've heard from folks who used the whistles in very deer filled country that for the first few months you could see the deer react sooner to the car, then over time, the whistles seemed to bother them less and less. I think vigilance and good headlights are you best defense.
 
I have hit 3 deer in four years - total of $7000 damage to two of the vehicles - Jeep with brush guard did not suffer a scratch, but deer was history.

All three vehicles had whistles on them. I have seen unexcited deer by the road stop/pause upon my approach; HOWEVER, if they are being pursued, or are chasing other deer; the whistles have no effect - this was the case in all three of my deer strikes. I never saw them coming until I hit them. Two of them occurred in the 2 nd. week of November, in the middlle of the Central Md. rut.

Just put another set on my newly repaired PU today. I do not expect them to be effective against deer running blindly, but they may alert some wayside deer from wandering into the road until I can stop/pass.

Best advice - drive at a reasonable/cautious speed; and stay VERY ALERT!
 
Just another 2 cents but I need to add some to my current auto. I used them for many years (12 years of rural patrol duty) as did many other patrol vehicles in NC....only the non equipped cars hit deer. Some non equipped cars never hit a deer but no equipped car ever hit a deer. I think they are worth it Carl. They really are not expensive. I saw that even the cheaper plastic ones seemed to work...Herb
 
They are not going to work if your car speed is too slow. When I was living in western Ohio I had a buck jump over the chain link fence at a Kroger store. All that happened was I got some deer fur on the trucks bra and a pucker in my drivers seat. I have seen a buck and doe getting ready to jump out on the road so I slowed down and had 8 or 9 whitetails proceed to play follow the leader. I tend to take my sweet time during deer rut, bucks can do some really dumb things chasing tail. At times I don't think the Queen Marys ships horn would distract them.
 
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