"Deer Whistle", is it like snipe hunting?

[yellow]

Soo.. My wife and I bought a house out in the country and the other night on the way home from a run to the local country store I tagged a 6-point buck. Well, he tagged me, actually. I had a "feeling" and slowed way down and POW he comes scampering out of the woods into the road. I swerved into the opposite lane to avoid him and he kept coming and plowed right into the right front wheel panel. Lucky for him (and me) I had swerved so he got stunned by the antenna bud on my Liberty and then mostly just slid off the rest off the side of the WeeSUV. Besides bending the quarter panel in at the antenna bud, and a horn making a dent in my hood, there was nothing but hair and piss on the car. He got up pretty quickly and scampered off again, and I assume survived..

So onto my question.. In lieu of purchasing a cheap throw-away pick up truck and putting "DEER TRGT" on the license plate for driving around in the country, I was considering a "Deer Whistle". But, since I am a Yankee in the South (Where I come from, population density is MUCH higher, so "country" is different) I feel like "Deer Whistle" is equivalent to Snipe Hunting.

Are any of you country folk out there equipped with Deer Whistles? Have they worked for you? Complete craprication for idiots throwing away cash? Got any recommendations?

 

[wordmunger]

I don't have one, but from what I've read, they do absolutely no good.

 

[sorryiwasdreami]

I'm not sure what you mean by deer whistles being the equivalent to snipe hunting.

First of all, they are a gimmick, and don't have any influence on deer. Don't waste your money.

The theory was that these whistles were small plastic items that you stick on your front bumpers. They supposedly emitted a very high pitched sound as air passes through them; lots of air would pass through them at high speeds when they are attached to your car. The noise created by these whistles would scare the deer away from your vehicle.

Deer whistles not only don't work as advertised, they can't work. Why? Because the standard claim by "Save-A-Deer" and other deer whistle manufactures is that the deer whistles emit an ultrasonic or high frequency sound wave that stops deer in their tracks. "Although the theory sounds good, tests show that the whistles do not work.

http://www.ibmwr.org/otech/deerw.html

Again, they don't work.

 

[yellow]

I'm not sure what you mean by deer whistles being the equivalent to snipe hunting.

Snipe Hunting = Fool's Errand

Personally I figured that it was crap because of the Doppler effect. How could a freaking deer even hear me coming?

 

[wordmunger]

Snipe Hunting = Fool's Errand

Personally I figured that it was crap because of the Doppler effect. How could a freaking deer even hear me coming?

Unless you're travelling faster than 741 miles per hour, your sound will get to the deer before you do. But deer whistles still don't work.

 

[yellow]

Unless you're travelling faster than 741 miles per hour

Well, I drive PRETTY fast..

But yes, I don't think I break the sound barrier. But I figured the change in frequency from the Dopplar effect would render it mostly ineffective, but ultimately, it doesn't matter. Deer are stupid. Whistling at them doesn't matter. I guess it's onto DEER TRGT!

 

[wordmunger]

Well, I drive PRETTY fast..

But yes, I don't think I break the sound barrier. But I figured the change in frequency from the Dopplar effect would render it mostly ineffective, but ultimately, it doesn't matter. Deer are stupid. Whistling at them doesn't matter. I guess it's onto DEER TRGT!

Well, if you were designing a whistle, wouldn't you take Doppler into account, then adjust the frequency of the whistle accordingly? Or maybe the designers hadn't thought of that one yet -- can you say "patent application"?

 

[yellow]

Or maybe the designers hadn't thought of that one yet -- can you say "patent application"?

Could you though on a non-sophisticated piece of hardware that is wind driven? Perhaps on the electric versions one could modulate the frequency... but what the hell am I talking about? I'm no engineer. I have no idea what I'm talking about.

 

[MongoTheGeek]

They are simple whistles and I have heard they don't work.

I have heard though and my experience seems to bear this out, that if you react to the dear (slow down, speed up, etc.) they realize they've been spotted and panic; and when they panic they run.

So unless its in the lane with you ignore it. I've lived in deep deer country for 10 years now and have yet to hit one.

 

[opusthe2nd]

Nope, dont work. We hit more deer here than I would like to admit. That is, unless you hit a golden eagle like I did last week. Its not 'if you hit a deer', its 'when you hit a deer', or an elk, moose, grizzly, sheep, etc.

Any you really dont think there is such a thing as snipe hunting? http://www.huntsflorida.com/AboutSnipe.htm

 

[yellow]

I know there's such thing as a snipe, but "snipe hunting" is a.. whatever the right word is.

Well, anyway, I have an idea for a new type of deer-scarer-awayer. The "Anti-Deer-Drunken-Hillbilly". Rather than a whistle, it repeatedly says stuff like "Hey beau, whodondapolesdisweeken?"

 

[patrick0brien]

No, deer whistles do not work as designed or advertised.

I feel the only thing they might do is get the deer to stop mid street, raise his head and go "Whuut?"BLAM!

 

[yellow]

Maybe a recording of baying wolves or barking dogs would be more effective?

 

[Lord Blackadder]

Snipe Hunting = Fool's Errand

Personally I figured that it was crap because of the Doppler effect. How could a freaking deer even hear me coming?

LOL, that was some good reading!

I experienced a snipe hunt once on a camping trip years ago. The pranksters put doggy-doo in a paper bag and returned after the snipe hunt triumphantly. I, as the unassuming victim, was given the supposed honor of killing the snipe by stomping on the bag and crushing the poor animal. Sensing trickery, I flung the bag into the campfire, ruining the prank and the campfire atmosphere simultaneously.

Oh, and those deer whistles don't work. Plus, they look very stupid.

 

[gwuMACaddict]

best thread title i've seen recently...

yes, deer whistles are a joke

 

[e²Studios]

And this is why i love living in a Concrete jungle.. wildlife freaks me out, i remember being at a friends place in rural PA and seeeing a wolf late one night thinking its a dog, i dropped my cigarette (was a smoker at the time) and ran in to the house, i never once went outside again unless it was to get in to my car. I almost hit a deer driving to Lake Tahoe once....

I'm a city person..

Ed

 

[yellow]

I don't like people enough to go back to city life. Freaking people.