Who Picks Up Dead Animals in Georgia?

The Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT). Under O.C.G.A. 4-5-4(b), GDOT has a duty to remove and dispose of dead animals found within the rights of way of highways maintained wholly or partly with state funds. For that section, the law defines dead animals as all animals, whatever the cause of death. Cobb County's road maintenance page names the roads GDOT "owns/maintains": interstates, U.S. highways and state routes.

We found no GDOT page that explains how to report a dead animal. Some cities and counties print a GDOT number for their own area:

• Atlanta (ATL311 article): for a dead animal on the interstate, GDOT at 404-635-6800, "or dial 911 if it is a traffic hazard."
• Gwinnett County: GDOT at 404.631.1990 for state roadways, during regular business hours. GDOT's own contact page lists that number as its main line.
• Athens-Clarke County: GDOT at 706-583-2644 for dead animals on a state highway in the county.
• Fayette County Road Department: GA DOT at 706.845.4115 for the state routes it lists in Fayette.

The statutory duty covers the highway right of way. It does not reach a yard, a county road or a city street, and we found no GDOT service for private property.

On a county road or city street, report it to the government that maintains the road, where it publishes a channel; some limit what they take (Henry's request pages list deer, dogs and cats only, though its code (3-4-8) makes dead animals in county-road rights of way a county duty (both read 2026-10-01); Cherokee Public Works: deer or large dogs in the roadway). County pages describe unincorporated areas, and a city inside a county may run its own program. What the local governments on our location pages publish:

• Atlanta: Public Works collects dead animals from the curb, the city right of way and city parks. Requests go through ATL311, 404-546-0311.
• Gwinnett County: Animal Welfare and Enforcement removes dead animals from public property. Email DeadAnimalRemoval@GwinnettCounty.com or call 770.339.3200.
• Cobb County: county code gives Cobb Animal Services and Cobb DOT the dead animals within the rights-of-way of county roads, and the county's request catalogue sends dead animal removal to 770-499-3911 ext. 5. Roads inside Cobb's cities, such as Marietta and Smyrna, are maintained by those cities.
• DeKalb County: Sanitation lists its dead animal collection as "Roadkill only (streets, county rights-of-way)." Call 404-294-2900.
• North Fulton: Alpharetta takes reports through its "Debris / Animal in Roadway" request type, and Johns Creek takes roadway reports at City Hall, 678-512-3200. We found no road channel for Roswell and no dead-animal page for Sandy Springs.
• Cherokee County: Public Works lists its pickup criteria as a "Deer or Large Dog that are in roadway or impeding traffic," (770) 345-5842.
• Forsyth County: Roads and Bridges removes dead animals in road rights of way, 770-781-2155.
• Henry County: Henry County DOT takes dead deer from the right-of-way of county-maintained roads, and Animal Care and Control takes dogs and cats from county-maintained roadways. Henry's request pages list deer, dogs and cats only, though its code (3-4-8) makes dead animals in county-road rights of way a county duty (both read 2026-10-01). The City of McDonough runs its own request type.
• Augusta: Animal Services lists "Disposal of dead animals on city streets" among its services, (706) 790-6836.
• Columbus: we found no official page that says who collects a dead animal from a city street. The Public Works FAQ says the Community Service Division, its right-of-way litter crew, does not pick up dead animals.
• Macon-Bibb: Solid Waste says "Dead animals are removed from public road ways only," (478) 803-0499.
• Athens-Clarke: Solid Waste picks up dead animals in the street or on the right of way if they are the size of an armadillo, raccoon or opossum or larger. Email collections@accgov.com, or call 706-613-3501 and press 7.

On a state route that runs through any of these places, the carcass is GDOT's, as described above.

We found no current public service that collects a dead wild animal from a yard. Of the local governments we checked, three publish curb or roadside programs, and each starts with the resident moving the animal:

• Atlanta: "If the animal is in the house or backyard, the resident is responsible for placing the animal at the curb."
• Gwinnett County: "Small animal carcasses will only be picked up from private property if contained in a plastic bag and placed roadside near the right-of-way."
• Athens-Clarke County: its Dead Animal Pickup Request page (last updated August 12, 2025) says to place a dead animal from your yard at the curb and states no size rule. The county's FAQ 142 limits collection to animals the size of an armadillo, raccoon or opossum or larger and tells private-property callers to "Contact a wildlife removal company or take animals to the ACC Landfill (fees apply)." FAQ 279 says an animal that is not in the street or on the right of way "is the resident's responsibility." Ask the county which applies.

Others say no in writing. Henry County: "Henry County does not remove deer from private property." Macon-Bibb: "Dead animals are not removed from private property." Fayette County's Road Department will not move an animal to the road edge, because "we cannot and will not go on private property, under any circumstances." County codes in Gwinnett, Cherokee and Henry put the disposal of carcasses on private property on the owner or possessor. Augusta and Clayton County offer paid pickup for owned pets only.

Columbus's code still lets city crews enter private property at the owner's or occupant's request, at the chief's discretion, but we found no current Columbus page offering it. The code says collection personnel "may" enter private property, houses and other structures at the owner's or occupant's request, at the chief's discretion, to remove dead animals, and that a fee may be set for large dead animals; ask the city before counting on it. In Sandy Springs, Alpharetta and Johns Creek we found no published service for private property.

We found no current public service that reaches under a structure. The curb programs in Atlanta, Gwinnett and Athens-Clarke all begin with someone in the household getting the animal out. Columbus's code still lets city crews enter private property, including houses and other structures, at the owner's or occupant's request, at the chief's discretion, but we found no current Columbus page offering it. If you cannot reach the animal yourself through an existing opening, or would rather not, a private service is the realistic route; see under a deck or in a crawl space and in an attic or garage. 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.

A smell from inside a closed wall is a separate case. This site handles a sealed wall cavity as information only, and requests to cut into drywall, plaster or ceilings are not routed. Dead animal smell in a wall has more.

The government that runs the land, where it publishes a route. Atlanta Public Works collects dead animals from City of Atlanta parks. Athens-Clarke sends parks and trails to its Leisure Services department at 706-613-3801. Gwinnett's Animal Welfare and Enforcement removes dead animals from public property, which county code describes as including public schools, parks and roadways. Cherokee County's code authorizes Marshal's Office officers to remove dead animals from public property. Chatham County's code gives its Public Works Department the same authority in unincorporated areas, including public schools, parks and roadways.

In some places, yes. These services are for pets, and each applies only where it is published:

• Augusta: the fee schedule lists "Owned Deceased Pick-up and Disposal" at $50 per animal. We found no Augusta service for dead wildlife in a yard, attic or crawlspace.
• Clayton County: "Refuse Control also picks up dead pets belonging to the citizens of Clayton County for a fee of $20.00." We found no county service for dead wildlife in a yard or under a house.
• DeKalb County: residents can take a pet to the county's Animal Crematory at 810 Camp Road, Decatur, for a $28.80 disposal fee. County code says dead animals other than dogs and house pets will not be collected.
• Gwinnett County: owners can bring a deceased pet to the Bill Atkinson Animal Welfare Center. The county says fees may apply; we found no published amount.

For a wild animal, the road and yard answers above apply.

When the animal is on your property and no public program fits. That covers an animal under a deck or a house, one too big to bag for a small-carcass program like Gwinnett's, a deer in a Henry County yard, or any other dead wild animal you cannot or would rather not carry to the curb. 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. Athens-Clarke's FAQ 142, quoted above, points private-property callers to a wildlife removal company or the county landfill.

Georgia Dead Animal Removal never handles, transports or disposes of a carcass and has no field staff. It is a statewide publisher with one number, 404-609-1114, and calls reach this site's routing line, which passes them to an independent operator where one covers the area. Independent operators set their own prices, and availability and price are settled on the call. Start with a dead animal in the yard or dead deer removal, or send the details.

We found no statewide Georgia rule that requires a homeowner to remove a wild animal carcass from their own property, or that sets a deadline for doing so. The 24-hour rule people quote belongs to the Dead Animal Disposal Act, which covers livestock-type animals. Some local codes set their own limits, and none is statewide. In Sandy Springs and Johns Creek, a dead animal may not remain on your premises beyond 24 hours without being disposed of or properly removed. Unincorporated Forsyth County sets 24 hours from death, for the animal's owner, agent or custodian. 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; 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. 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. Georgia dead animal laws lists each one with its code section.