Anyone use Deer whistles? Do you think they work?

[zuni]

Okay,so I have read all the studies that say that the deer whistles are useless pieces of plastic that at best only help support the economy because you are spending money for them. That being said I have them. I frequently travel in areas with many stupid deer. Thankfully they are Florida deer so only the size of large dogs. I ruined one deer's evening (and my own) when he decided to dart in front of my Explorer. I was able to drive away with a little front end damage and a broken headlight but the deer was not so lucky. I have counted as many as 40 deer along the road in an evening and typically see 10 to 20. Prior to the accident I didn't have deer whistles. Everyone else driving in the area swore by them and I figured heck for $6 why not. 3 years now with no strikes. Do they work, probably not. Is is coincidence, probably. Am I going to take them off, no. I am as aware of them as I was before, hell I'm counting them so it's not that I'm not looking. So far they have not been inclined to run in front of me which is all that matters.

CJ JAX

 

[Peter Aawen]

Not many Deer down-under, but there's lotsa Roo's on the roads!

I haven't bothered to track down the details, but a couple of the Universities here in Aust did some fairly comprehensive research & testing on all of the electronic "Hopper Stoppers" as they are called down here that were available at the time.... we don't have too many deer infested localities, but hey, we certainly do have many areas with kangaroo & wombat infestations, and even a few areas that have issues with the numbers of camels or cattle & sheep on the road! Since hitting any/all of those animals can do some pretty horrific damage to a vehicle, fatalities resulting from animal strikes aren't un-common! Anyhow, I'm pretty sure the Universities came to the same conclusion as the referenced investigations into the air driven jobbies - if they work at all it's purely co-incidental!

From my own experience after more than 40 years driving vehicles around this country, vehicles ranging from heavy transport trucks & Semi's thru to motorbikes large and small and everything in-between, racking up quite a few (million) miles of driving on roads with animal problems in the process, both with and without these devices (yeah, we've tried them all! pps that pretty much agrees with my experience! The only thing that really works in minimising the risk of animal strikes is slowing down and taking extra care when you are in areas where animals are prone to wander onto the roads.... and remember that here that pretty much includes all of the country anything more than a couple of miles outside of the towns/cities - at times/places/seasons the animals on the roads have been known to reach concentrations of hundreds per mile!! :yikes: Besides, here in Oz someone hits a roo in the middle of one of our cities fairly often - you'd be surprised at how far these things can travel into a city, and there's literally millions of them around, but not one of them knows or obeys the road rules for safe crossings!! :shocked:

Still, I 'spose if it floats your boat to pay for & install devices like that and ride (or drive) under the misapprehension that it's somehow making things safer for you, then I'm OK with that, just so long as I'm not forced to install one too! :2thumbs:

 

[Saluda]

(Glad I have your permission to buy and install something on my Spyder. Who's attempting to force you to install them !)

For what this is worth, have exchanged PM's with Peter which is maybe what I should have done first. I consider him a gentleman and do respect his opinion. (Still keeping the deer whistles but did want to update this post)

Thanks, Mike

 

[Bob Denman]

Saluda,
Your Signature Line says, "Never stop questioning."

Why? :dontknow: :roflblack::roflblack::roflblack: :joke:

 

[Woodsrider]

I love our threads, really . Me and a Connie 14 met a deer at high speed 2.5 years ago and I'm permanently a different person for the experience. The titainium plates and screws, the aches, it's all good fun and worth the stories of flipping over and over (which I don't remember any of).

After that I rode with an electronic whistle....and came to a complete stop if I saw a deer anywhere. When I bought the 2014 Spyder, the whistle didn't go on, I'm past it finally, it was my third deer hit, second on a motorcycle, and odds are it'll happen again. Maybe they hear it, doesn't matter, stupid forest rat just heads off in a random direction no matter what.

 

[Saluda]

Isn't it self explanatory ?

 

[BajaRon]

As long as you drive like you Didn't have them, I don't see that it hurts to install deer whistles on your ride.

 

[flaggerphil]

In my life, I've had three bad deer strikes (fortunately, none on a motorcycle). Two happened with deer whistles on and one without. I've read tons of stuff saying they don't work and, in my experience, they don't.

Just a waste of money IMHO.

 

[Bob Denman]

Isn't it self explanatory ?

That's another good question!

 

[Saluda]

Is this drifting from the thread title ??

 

[Bob Denman]

Hi, Jack!

 

[BajaRon]

Drifting??!! I'd say it's in a full on power-slide! :yikes:

 

[CanAmChris]

Drifting??!! I'd say it's in a full on power-slide! :yikes:

As with any topic where there are two opposing beliefs, you get the inevitable derailment of the thread. Once the human brain latches on to something it is very difficult to get it to change.

 

[Bob Denman]

Well... If you're going to go and get all logical on us like that: :gaah::banghead::gaah::lecturef_smilie::lecturef_smilie::lecturef_smilie::gaah::gaah::banghead:
My mind is about as made up, and my bunk was in college! :shocked:

 

[CanAmChris]

Well... If you're going to go and get all logical on us like that: :gaah::banghead::gaah::lecturef_smilie::lecturef_smilie::lecturef_smilie::gaah::gaah::banghead:
My mind is about as made up, and my bunk was in college! :shocked:

Much to my dismay, I have been cursed with rational thinking and logic skills. pps: But hey, at least I have this cool tee shirt!

 

[Bob Denman]

:2thumbs:

 

[Fat Baxter]

Deer whistles don't work? Next, you'll probably give me a lecture about my gremlin bells......



(Seriously -- deer are most active one hour before and after local sunrise and sunset)

 

[r1100rider]

While I DO agree that the whistles are not effective; it's not for the reason that you suggest. The whistles are making their noise up in a frequency range, that the deer can hear... and it's an unusual noise for them to be hearing: they notice it. :shocked:
It's that nobody can predict what they will do, AFTER they notice it! :yikes:
Often; they just look at the sound source...
But when they decide to run; there is NO way to tell the direction!

first of all most of the deer whistles are incorrectly installed there is a right and left they can only have so much angle from level and they have to be not blocked from behind so air can pass through and then they must be kept cleaned out not filled with bugs , as for the therory of not knowing what the deer will do I disagree with the animals instinct will be correct most of the time and if they have a few extra seconds before they are blinded and surprised having to make a panic choice they will move away from the object and noise , there is no way that a controled study can be done with a wild animal if you don't believe the panic theory try hitting the brake and headline switch next time you see a deer at nite and the deer will be gone when you turn your lites back on , next leave the lites on to blind and panic them and yes they may go any direction , the fact that cars have been towed away with whistles means nothing that is like saying survalace doesn't work because your neighbor still got his window broke , if a deer whistle increases your odds even 10% then that is something , I used them for years and you can tell the differance more look up when you are farther away and more are running for the hills and not standing in the middle of the road with the "deer in the headlights " look .

In stall properly keep clean use all other common sense measures be careful and brake hard when you see them Don't jerk the wheel trying to go arround them better to hit the deer than to run off the road

 

[missouriboy]

While driving with my sister in law in her Toyota Matrix around 7pm..speed went from 55 to 40, near my home. Saw what I at first thought was a brown paper bag sailing past the windsheild, which in fact was a deer leaping, and clearing, the front of the vehicle...close, but no cigar..
I agree with keeping on your toes while riding/driving,but, sometimes you never see it coming.

How fast can an antelope run?

In 1965 I was driving a '59 Rambler on US 30 in Wyoming in broad daylight when a small antelope overtook my left-side peripheral vision, jumped over the hood from left to right, then proceeded across the ditch and jumped over the fence. My last sight of it was jumping over the fence, and it was still in my forward line of sight!

Now here's the part I can't believe, except I experienced it myself: the speedometer was pegged on a flat 70mph!

Conclusion: either an antelope can well exceed 70mph -OR- that speedometer was off by more than I could ever believe.

Whaddya think? :dontknow:

(Factoid: I once read somewhere that the fastest land animal is the cheetah, which can attain 70mph in short bursts only, while pouncing on prey.)

 

[bikerchris1270]

What’s the best way to TEST DEER WHISTLES?
Let the comments fly……..