Deer Collision Season in Texas
1 in 223 odds of an animal collision claim, 38th of 51 in State Farm’s 2025-2026 ranking. Texas holds one of the largest white-tailed deer herds in the country, thickest in the Hill Country, with mule deer in the Trans Pecos and Panhandle.
Odds of hitting a deer in Texas
1 in 223, from State Farm’s analysis of industry animal collision claims between July 1, 2025 and June 30, 2026. That ranks Texas 38th of 51 (the 50 states and the District of Columbia), in the low likelihood category, against a national figure of 1 in 145. That is a lower likelihood than 1 in 222 in the 2024-2025 edition.
Source: State Farm, How likely are you to have an animal collision? (2025-2026). Compiled 2026-09-21.
Fatal animal crashes in Texas by month
NHTSA’s Fatality Analysis Reporting System recorded 186 fatal animal crashes in Texas from 2015 to 2024, about 18.6 a year, with 197 deaths. That is 0.5 percent of all fatal crashes in the state and 1st among the states by count. July is the month with the most fatal animal crashes in Texas, 28 of 186 across the ten years. FARS counts crashes with any animal; the insurance claim season, October to December, is shaded.
Source: NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), first harmful event Live Animal, 2015 to 2024. Compiled 2026-09-21.
Deer crashes Texas reports
State counts include crashes that injured no one, so they run far higher than FARS, and each state defines and counts them its own way.
6,2892024 in Texas: statewide crashes with contributing factor 'ANIMAL ON ROAD- WILD' (all wild animals, not deer only); a further 2,990 had 'ANIMAL ON ROAD- DOMESTIC'
Compiled 2026-09-21.
When the deer rut runs in Texas
The deer rut in Texas runs August 24 to February 1.
Source: Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, The Rut in White-tailed Deer.
Sunset in Houston when the clocks fall back
On November 7, 2027, clocks fall back an hour and sunset in Houston moves from 6:31 PM to 5:30 PM, putting the evening drive home in dusk and darkness.
Houston, 61 minutes earlier by the clock.
Clock change: Uniform Time Act, 15 U.S.C. 260a, and 49 CFR part 71. Sunset calculated for Houston and checked against the U.S. Naval Observatory Astronomical Applications Department.
What state agencies tell drivers
“If you cannot avoid hitting a deer with your vehicle, brake firmly and stay in your lane. Avoid sudden swerving, which can result in a loss of control and a more serious crash.”Wisconsin Department of Transportation, quoted exactly.
“If a deer runs in front of you, do not swerve. Brake firmly and stay in your lane.”Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security / Tennessee Highway Patrol, quoted exactly.
“Don’t swerve to avoid hitting a deer. Swerving can cause motorists to lose control and travel off the road or into oncoming traffic.”Missouri Department of Transportation, quoted exactly.
Questions people ask about deer collisions in Texas
Fatal animal crash counts compiled 2026-09-21 from the NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS). State Farm odds, agency counts and quotes compiled 2026-09-21 from the pages linked above, quoted exactly.