Do electronic sirens repel deer?

[Robert Gift]

During a summer evening I was called just after dark to rush a critical blood factor red lights and siren from Denver to Colorado Springs for a trauma patient bleeding out in surgery.

Once getting onto I-25, because of our excellent lights, the trip was accomplished without sounding the siren.

On I-25 south of Denver, I slowed to near the speed limit when traveling through sections especially noted for deer.

Should I have sounded the siren to repel deer?
Would it have any effect?
Would it likely cause them to flee - possibly into my path?

Thank you,

[q2bman]

Robert, I can say without fail that sirens, airhorns, and carhorns are not effective at deer warning!

I have hit many deer with a freight train sounding a k5la full blast. They just stand there and look at you. The best thing we found was to turn off our headlights and not sound the horn. They would usually move when not "stuck in our headlights". The last year of my lawenforcement career I spent at five city lakes as a lake ranger. The vehicle I drove was a Dodge 4 x 4 with led's and strobes. It also was equiped with a Federal SmartSiren. I had to respond several times to the city code 3 and hit many deer. If i had time to react to the deer standing in the road i always turned all lights off and they would run away. Other times I would be driving arround during the day and see a deer. I would hit the airhorn siren tone and the deer would just stand there. Roll the window down and say "hey" and they would run like crazy.

I don't understand that animal.

[Robert Gift]

Thanks Q.

You were in a railroad locomotive? Wow!
Where?
Is a k5la a horn cluster? What notes?

I thought of obtaining a recording of a mountain lion growling or natural predator and broadcast it through the siren P.A.
It does have an input jack for that.
But I have not bothered.

That reminds me, I once put the microphone to my mouth and imitated
a siren winding down.
A friend said it sounded just like a fire truck and they were expecting it and wondered where it went.

Deer is my greatest concern.
I can expect and look for ice which is my next greatest concern.

[q2bman]

I agree, deer are everywhere arround here. Ice is only here a few months out of the year.

Yes, I was a conductor for the BNSF. I conducted freight trains out of Oklahoma City to Tulsa Oklahoma and from Amarillo to Fort Worth Tx. Now i'm a dispatcher at the BNSF Network Operations Center in Ft. Worth Tx. Awsome jobs both. I would recomend them to anyone wanting a good career at an awsome company!


I don't know, you can find out more info on them at airchimeconsultants.com i think that's right.


I used to do the "q" sound through the pa for kicks too. My fellow officers thought it was funny. Good ole' car 54 action.

[Robert Gift]

Any proof that those deer repellant whistles do anything at all?

Ram air supposedly makes them whistle above human hearing range.
I have two given to me at a garage sale.
They do look like whistles, meaning I believe they emit sound if I blow into them.
Don't know if vehicle ram air is enough to make them whistle.

Thanks for your advice about turning off the lights.
So, even the non steady flickering 360s will not repel deer?

Whats a boy to do?

[q2bman]

i had some on an old truck of mine i sued to drive to work. I would see deer in the shoulder looking at me. I gues they hear something. They did not run. Just stood and looke at me.

[Robert Gift]

Maybe that is because you look like a carrot!

Sounds like the predator sound broadcast through the ELECTRONIC SIREN would be best.
Another good point for e-sirens.
Although a slow Q sounds a little like a growl. Hmmmm.

I really would like to try a CD for broadcast.