# I Almost Hit a Deer Tonight and I Want Most of Them Dead Now **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 19, 2009, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-almost-hit-a-deer-tonight-and-i-want-most-of-them-dead-now/518114 "2009-11-19T03:12:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2009, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-almost-hit-a-deer-tonight-and-i-want-most-of-them-dead-now/518114/41 "2009-11-19T21:29:51Z")
> [@Edward\_The\_Head](#): > > Around here in Montgomery county, MD people are so afraid to hunt the damn things. The ‘hunting’ season is a week or so at most, and only a handful of people can actually do the hunting. Do you mean there’s a finite number of licenses that can be issued, or there’s a finite number of people who know how to shoot? I’m convinced that deer know what they’re doing when they dart out in front of your car. You see them on the side of the road up ahead, often in groups, and it just seems like they’re huddling together, whispering “Here it comes here it comes here it comes okay NOW GO!” They do it for the same reasons humans bungee-jump, I believe. ---
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2009, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-almost-hit-a-deer-tonight-and-i-want-most-of-them-dead-now/518114/42 "2009-11-19T21:40:39Z")
> [@Tom\_Tildrum](#): > > A deer recently made the news here by jumping into the lion’s den at the zoo in the middle of Washington, DC. It did surprise me that it was so far into the city, but I guess there’s a large park that runs through there. Did it jump back out? Or did it end up on the menu? ---
**Author:** ![cuberdon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/45deac/32.png) [@cuberdon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cuberdon)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2009, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-almost-hit-a-deer-tonight-and-i-want-most-of-them-dead-now/518114/43 "2009-11-19T21:41:07Z")
> [@tumbleddown](#): > > Here’s a contrarian thought: live in a city. Deer are rarely found in urban centers. If you want to live in the suburbs, you’re going to have deer. Deal. Google Tilden Regional Park, contrarian. ---
**Author:** ![MysteryFellow63427](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e4f/32.png) [@MysteryFellow63427](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MysteryFellow63427)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2009, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-almost-hit-a-deer-tonight-and-i-want-most-of-them-dead-now/518114/44 "2009-11-19T21:41:59Z")
> [@Dante](#): > > Had a friend hit a juvenile moose in a Mazda Miata. The moose’s legs demolished the front of the car, and the moose’s torso landed on the trunk. Basically, the only part of the car that wasn’t destroyed was the passenger part. He was fine, and the moose ran away. I’m starting to think driving a convertible or a compact car in Canada or Alaska is a baaaaad idea. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2009, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-almost-hit-a-deer-tonight-and-i-want-most-of-them-dead-now/518114/45 "2009-11-19T21:43:11Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > From what I’ve read, it’s not believed that those do much, but I suppose they can’t hurt. They can’t help either. They’re completely useless. ---
**Author:** ![Lanzy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/74df32/32.png) [@Lanzy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lanzy)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2009, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-almost-hit-a-deer-tonight-and-i-want-most-of-them-dead-now/518114/46 "2009-11-19T21:50:54Z")
My only deer collision occured after I stopped for 3, slowly drove past them, and then one of them charged the back of my car, put 2 holes in my trunk with its antlers. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2009, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-almost-hit-a-deer-tonight-and-i-want-most-of-them-dead-now/518114/47 "2009-11-19T21:56:42Z")
I used to have to drive through rural Georgia to get home. Even having grown up in rural Alabama I never saw as many damned deer in my life, and pretty much everybody had a story either about their own car or that of a household member being totalled. Georgia extended deer season and raised limits for a while and got the usual “You’re going to kill a dee-ah!” objections from some Atlantans and other urbanites, but those who had to drive through the gauntlet- even those like me who don’t hunt (I don’t abstain for ethical reasons- I just don’t like it) were of the "kill them all!"sentiment. ---
**Author:** ![KarlGrenze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/dbc845/32.png) [@KarlGrenze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGrenze)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2009, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-almost-hit-a-deer-tonight-and-i-want-most-of-them-dead-now/518114/48 "2009-11-19T22:58:18Z")
> [@Labrador\_Deceiver](#): > > 4 jumped in front of my car on an interstate between Athens and Atlanta at midnight. I was essentially the only car on the road, and I was probably running about 75mph. It wasn’t a matter of missing the deer, it was a matter of hitting as few at possible. I nailed one in mid leap, and clipped the second with the bumper. Scared the hell out of me. I’d say at least 50% of my friends and extended family have hit a deer at some point in their lives. Maybe more. You’re making me rethink my travel plans. ---
**Author:** ![apollonia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/2bfe46/32.png) [@apollonia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/apollonia)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2009, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-almost-hit-a-deer-tonight-and-i-want-most-of-them-dead-now/518114/49 "2009-11-19T23:02:27Z")
This post is oddly fitting. Deer season just opened in Michigan on the 15th and runs through the 30th. Already I have had many many reports of friends and family returning home with bucketloads of venison for the coming year. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2009, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-almost-hit-a-deer-tonight-and-i-want-most-of-them-dead-now/518114/50 "2009-11-19T23:22:46Z")
Years ago my little Honda CRX hit a deer and was nearly totaled. I feel your pain. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2009, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-almost-hit-a-deer-tonight-and-i-want-most-of-them-dead-now/518114/51 "2009-11-19T23:22:51Z")
> [@Yllaria](#): > > Did it jump back out? Or did it end up on the menu? The lions had just been fed, so they weren’t hungry, but they “played with” the deer enough to mortally wound it. The zookeepers herded the lions inside so they wouldn’t eat it (fear of disease) and then euthanized the deer. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2009, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-almost-hit-a-deer-tonight-and-i-want-most-of-them-dead-now/518114/52 "2009-11-19T23:45:09Z")
> [@Labrador\_Deceiver](#): > > 4 jumped in front of my car on an interstate between Athens and Atlanta at midnight. I was essentially the only car on the road, and I was probably running about 75mph. It wasn’t a matter of missing the deer, it was a matter of hitting as few at possible. I nailed one in mid leap, and clipped the second with the bumper. Scared the hell out of me. I’d say at least 50% of my friends and extended family have hit a deer at some point in their lives. Maybe more. I’ve never had an accident (Og be praised) but I’ve encountered them there as well. Where they were really thick as locusts was off the interstate on the 40 mile road between Madison and Milledgeville. I once had to stop the car and blow at the bastards to get them out of the road, then was terrified when one looked at the car that he or she was going to charge it. (Thankfully he didn’t, but I’ve heard of them doing so.) ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2009, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-almost-hit-a-deer-tonight-and-i-want-most-of-them-dead-now/518114/53 "2009-11-20T00:52:56Z")
Whoa, I never knew the kind of hidden dangers people living elsewhere had to go through. If I ever had to travel through those states, I sure as hell wouldn’t expect to watch out for rampaging deer. Occasionally, here in Los Angeles, I’d have to drive through some areas with a deer crossing sign but I’ve always just ignored them. Never seen a wild animal here except in zoos except for squirrels. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2009, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-almost-hit-a-deer-tonight-and-i-want-most-of-them-dead-now/518114/54 "2009-11-20T01:58:17Z")
> [@YogSosoth](#): > > Whoa, I never knew the kind of hidden dangers people living elsewhere had to go through. If I ever had to travel through those states, I sure as hell wouldn’t expect to watch out for rampaging deer. Occasionally, here in Los Angeles, I’d have to drive through some areas with a deer crossing sign but I’ve always just ignored them. Never seen a wild animal here except in zoos except for squirrels. Don’t even get us started on the dispossessed mountain gorillas. They might look cute on TV but… (Actually a friend of mine who moved to the interior of Costa Rica for a couple of years came to hate howler monkeys for keeping her awake at night and stealing anything edible or shiney left on her porch.) ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Parker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/35a633/32.png) [@Richard\_Parker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Parker)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2009, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-almost-hit-a-deer-tonight-and-i-want-most-of-them-dead-now/518114/55 "2009-11-20T02:05:02Z")
Do those little doo-hickeys you can attach to your car that claim to prevent deer collisions work at all? ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2009, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-almost-hit-a-deer-tonight-and-i-want-most-of-them-dead-now/518114/56 "2009-11-20T04:32:24Z")
> [@Richard\_Parker](#): > > Do those little doo-hickeys you can attach to your car that claim to prevent deer collisions work at all? That was the “deer warners” which **This\_Just\_In…** referred to earlier. Studies I’ve read suggest they don’t do anything. My wife’s family used to own a cabin in central Wisconsin, north of the Wisconsin Dells. The last 10 miles of the drive to the cabin were along an arrow-straight county highway, running through pine forest, with no lights. At night, with the pines looming on either side of the road, it was pitch black. And, of course, those woods were _full_ of deer. My wife used to call that drive “Everything’s A Deer”, because, if she saw _any_ shape along the road, she was convinced it was a deer, ready to bound out in front of the car. Yes, we did see a lot of shapes that _were_ deer. No, we never hit one there. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2009, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-almost-hit-a-deer-tonight-and-i-want-most-of-them-dead-now/518114/57 "2009-11-20T04:58:53Z")
> [@Richard\_Parker](#): > > Do those little doo-hickeys you can attach to your car that claim to prevent deer collisions work at all? They work perfectly well; to transfer money from your wallet to the manufacturers. For keeping deer away from your car; completely worthless. ---
**Author:** ![dnooman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/839c29/32.png) [@dnooman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dnooman)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2009, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-almost-hit-a-deer-tonight-and-i-want-most-of-them-dead-now/518114/58 "2009-11-20T05:40:54Z")
What an odd coincidence, I just rammed into an enormous Buck this very evening, possibly totalling the company car. Yes, I capitalized “Buck”. His size, I think, warrants it. I thought he was a pretty damn big deer, but I’m a city boy. Three separate locals (two of which still in “real tree” or whatever, camo gear) said “Wow, that was a big Buck”. Sadly the poor guy was still alive, and able to even hobble into the woods on 3 legs after a few minutes. None of the guys with weapons showed up until after he had left, and two groups of guys that went to try to put him down couldn’t find him. The windshield is seventy percent shattered, the front right quarter panel is just twisted metal, and the headlight assembly is gone, the hood is toast of course. I got several “You’re lucky to be alive” comments, and just as many “I’m surprised this tiny car held up to that”. It’s an '07 Honda Fit. I think that one of the holes in the windshield was from an antler. I’m just thankful that didn’t end up in my chest. I took pics on my Blackberry. Uploading to Facebook was easy, if I can figure out how to get 'em on a public photo forum, I’ll post a link. The deer left before I retrieved my phone, so pics are only of the car. ---
**Author:** ![Dobbs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Dobbs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dobbs)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2009, 6:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-almost-hit-a-deer-tonight-and-i-want-most-of-them-dead-now/518114/59 "2009-11-20T06:02:24Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > I Want Most of Them Dead Now I agree with this post. Last year, I killed a deer with a one year old Mustang. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [November 20, 2009, 6:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-almost-hit-a-deer-tonight-and-i-want-most-of-them-dead-now/518114/60 "2009-11-20T06:25:58Z")
Near the top of my wish list if I ever become gainfully employed is a FLIR system for my car. This allows you to see deer, space aliens, and politicians in the dark so you know which one to run over. After tagging a deer about 5 years ago I’ve become very adept at choosing roads at night with open space beyond the shoulder. If you look as you drive at night you’d be surprised at how many deer are qued up waiting for launch. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-almost-hit-a-deer-tonight-and-i-want-most-of-them-dead-now/518114.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-almost-hit-a-deer-tonight-and-i-want-most-of-them-dead-now/518114.md?page=4)