Should Wyoming Trains Bark Like Dogs?

In Japan, the problem of trains hitting deer on the railroad tracks is bad enough to warrant research into ways of scaring the animals away so they don’t get hit.

Researchers found that speakers mounted on the engine blaring a three-second sound of a deer snorting get the deer’s attention, and 20 seconds of barking dogs have cut the number of deer deaths in half.

I asked a Union Pacific worker if that was a problem in Wyoming and he said not that he knew about. I figured the noise of the train would be enough to scare them off, but who am I to argue with the Japanese.

They say the deer congregate on the tracks to lick up the tiny iron filings that are created by the friction of the wheels on the tracks. It’s like a vitamin supplement for the deer.

The barking trains seem a better alternative to spreading lion dung on the tracks because of its susceptibility to the rain.