How to Dispose of a Dead Animal in Georgia

We found no EPD or DNR text that bans a small dead animal from household garbage. EPD's solid-waste rules list dead animals as an example of putrescible waste, the same class as kitchen waste and garbage (Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. 391-3-4-.01(62)). Construction and demolition landfills take only non-putrescible waste, so a carcass belongs in a municipal solid waste landfill, not a construction and demolition landfill. On a page for deer hunters, DNR says smaller deer parts "can be bagged and thrown in household garbage containers." That guidance is about parts. It does not mean a whole deer can go in a cart.

Whether your cart takes a carcass is up to the program or the hauler, and the local codes we read differ:

• Macon-Bibb (code 22-15): "Dogs, cats or any other dead animals shall not be placed in garbage containers."
• DeKalb County (code 22-30): dead animals "other than dogs and house pets" will not be collected.
• Cobb County: "Collectors shall not be required to collect, remove or transport dead animals."
• Gwinnett County lists "dead animals larger than ten pounds" as unacceptable waste in its rules for residential and commercial service providers.
• Chatham County's drop-off centers "cannot accept" dead animals.

Ask your hauler before you bag it. For a dead rat or mouse, the federal steps below end with a double-bagged carcass in a covered garbage can.

DNR lists a "Permitted solid waste landfill (as you would for household garbage)" among the proper ways to dispose of deer carcasses and parts. Each landfill sets its own terms, so call before you drive. What the ones we read publish:

• Athens-Clarke County Landfill: "Animal Carcasses (Cat, Deer, Dog): $20 minimum (Larger carcasses, call first)."
• Augusta: the landfill at 4330 Deans Bridge Road (706-592-3200) asks for a call before large carcasses arrive.
• DeKalb County: residents can take animals over 100 pounds to the county landfill at 4203 Clevemont Road, Ellenwood, for a $200 base charge for the burial hole plus the landfill gate rate.
• Clayton County: county code prohibits depositing dead animals in the county landfill "without special permission."

The fees above apply to a carcass you bring in yourself.

On land you own, where local code allows it. EPD's solid-waste rules exempt an owner disposing of household waste on their own land if it does not harm public health (Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. 391-3-4-.04(3)). The exemption covers an owner (not a tenant), so a tenant should ask the owner. We found no statewide depth or setback for burying a wild animal in a yard. DNR's guidance gives no number either. It says unused deer parts "should be left on the property where the deer was killed, sent to a landfill, or buried deep enough to prevent scavenging," and that it is generally best to bury a dead bird "at a depth where it cannot be dug up."

The burial rule people quote covers other animals. Georgia's Dead Animal Disposal Act, the source of the often-quoted 24-hour and 3-foot burial rules, defines "dead animals" as livestock, animals tied to pet and kennel businesses that the Department of Agriculture licenses, commercially processed animals and wildlife-exhibition animals. A wild animal that dies on your property is not on that list. The Department of Agriculture's rule repeats that definition (adding stables), and its depths and setbacks apply to those animals only.

Local codes can say more. Unincorporated Forsyth County's code says no wildlife "shall be buried within the limits of the county" except on property zoned agricultural. Unincorporated Cobb County's section 10-7(c) sets 12 hours for burial or incineration in a county approved incinerator, unless the carcass is properly refrigerated or frozen, and calls for burial at least three feet below ground with "not less than three feet of earth over the carcass"; the section's abandonment rule is written around a person who owns or cares for the animal, and we found no county page on how it applies to a wild animal that dies on your lot. Augusta's section 4-1-26(f) sets 12 hours after death or discovery for disposal 'by either of the approved methods', burial (at least three feet below ground) or incineration in an approved incinerator; section 4-1-26(c) also allows the Deans Bridge Road landfill. The section's duties are written around a person who owns or is caring for the animal and 'the owner of any dead animal carcass', and we found no city page explaining how it applies to a wild animal that dies on your lot. Check your own city or county before you dig. Leases and homeowners' association rules were outside what we checked.

Deer have a statewide rule. Since June 25, 2025, Georgia's deer carcass rule has made it unlawful to dispose of a deer carcass anywhere other than the property on which the deer was killed unless an approved method is used. The approved methods include a commercial deer processor, a permitted solid waste landfill, burial, incineration, rendering or composting. DNR describes proper disposal as required across all of Georgia, for anyone transporting or disposing of deer carcasses or parts.

The rule speaks of "the property on which the deer was killed." We found no guidance on how that applies to a deer that dies on its own in a yard. Ask DNR's Wildlife Resources Division: 1-800-366-2661. DNR's garbage guidance covers smaller parts, so do not assume a whole deer can go in a household cart. Dead deer in your yard covers the rest, and dead deer removal explains how a call is routed.

Not on land you do not own or control, or in water, unless an exception in the littering law applies. Georgia's littering statute counts discarded or abandoned dead animals as litter, apart from the highway carcasses GDOT removes under 4-5-4 (O.C.G.A. 16-7-42). Dumping or leaving litter on public or private property, or in any waters in the state, is a misdemeanor (16-7-43). The exceptions include a person who is the owner or tenant in lawful possession of the property, who has the owner's or tenant's consent, or who acts under their personal direction, "all in a manner consistent with the public welfare."

EPD's solid-waste rules separately say no solid waste may be disposed of in an open dump, and no one may allow open dumping on their property (the own-residence exemption described above still applies to owners). The copy of the littering statute we could open is a 2016 mirror; check the official code for current wording.

Georgia DNR says to avoid handling dead birds. If you must dispose of one, it says to wear disposable gloves or use an inverted plastic bag, and that it is generally best to bury it at a depth where it cannot be dug up. For a dead protected species such as a bald eagle, DNR asks for a call to 1-800-366-2661 or (478) 994-1438.

Multiple dead birds in one place are a reporting matter. DNR asks the public to report multiple dead vultures, crows, ducks, geese, waterbirds or shorebirds seen at a single site, and any single dead or sick hawk, eagle, falcon, owl or osprey, and to observe such incidents only from a distance. For multiple dead songbirds, DNR asks for a call to 1-800-366-2661 or a local DNR office rather than a report on its online form. Dead or sick domestic poultry go to the Department of Agriculture's avian influenza hotline, (770) 766-6850.

Most wild birds are protected by federal law and by Georgia's bird statute; house sparrows, European starlings and feral pigeons are not. Whether a paid service may remove dead native birds is a question we could not settle (see what is unresolved).

The Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) says hantavirus pulmonary syndrome "is caused by several hantaviruses, which can be carried by certain mice and rats," that most cases occur west of the Mississippi River, and that the disease is not endemic in Georgia (DPH hantavirus page). DPH's page gives no cleanup steps. The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) does:

• Wear gloves.
• Spray the dead rodent, any nest and the surrounding area with a disinfectant, and let it soak for 5 minutes or as the label directs.
• Put the rodent in a plastic bag and knot it, then place that bag in a second bag and knot that one too.
• Throw it in a covered garbage can that is emptied regularly, or ask the state health department about other ways to dispose of it.
• Wash your gloved hands before taking the gloves off.

CDC also says not to vacuum or sweep rodent urine, droppings or nesting material. These steps are federal guidance. Local rules still apply: Macon-Bibb's code, for one, bars "any other dead animals" from garbage containers.

We give no medical advice, but Georgia's health and wildlife agencies publish precautions. DPH names raccoons, skunks and foxes as rabies vector species and the most common land wildlife infected with rabies in Georgia, and says all bites and scratches by these animals must be considered possible exposures. DPH also says a bat's rabies status cannot be told by looking at it, so it is best never to handle any bat. The virus is fragile and does not survive long outside a host, DPH says, though it can survive in saliva and brain tissue for a short period depending on conditions. DNR's advice for birds is to avoid handling them, and the gloves-or-bag steps above come from DNR (birds) and CDC (rodents).

If someone was bitten, DPH says to report it to the county health department or 1-866-PUB-HLTH (1-866-782-4584). For other contact by a person or pet, ask the county health department what to do with the carcass. The Georgia Poison Center gives rabies consultations to the public around the clock at 404-616-9000, and DPH also lists 800-282-5846 statewide. The state lab tests an animal for rabies only after a person or domestic animal was exposed, so a dead animal nobody touched is not routinely tested.

When the animal is on your property and the routes above do not fit: it is under a deck, in a crawlspace or in an attic; it is a deer or something else too large to bag; your city or county has no curb program; or you would rather not handle it. For a dead bear, alligator, hawk, eagle, owl or other bird of prey, call DNR (1-800-366-2661); DNR also asks for a call about a protected species such as a bald eagle, and we found no Georgia guidance on a bear or alligator found dead on private land. Bats: DPH says it is best never to handle any bat; if a person or pet may have been exposed, call the county health department. On a road or in a park, start with the government that maintains it, as set out in who picks up dead animals.

This site never handles, transports or disposes of a carcass and has no field staff. The line is statewide: one number, 404-609-1114, with calls passed to an independent operator where one covers the area. Independent operators set their own prices, and availability and price are settled on the call. We make no claim about any operator's permits or insurance, and we found no Georgia rule that specifically licenses dead-animal removal.