Georgia, private property
Dead Animal in an Attic or Garage in Georgia
No current state or local service we found removes a dead animal from inside a home, attic or garage. Atlanta's ATL311 article says that if the animal is in the house, the resident is responsible for placing it at the curb. If the animal is a bat, leave it alone; Georgia DPH says it is best never to handle any bat. For a raccoon, opossum or squirrel you can reach through the attic hatch or across the garage floor, call 404-609-1114 to see whether an independent operator covers your address.
What if the dead animal in my attic is a bat?
Do not handle it. Georgia DPH's Rabies Control Manual says it is best never to handle any bat. It lists waking to find a bat in the room, or finding one in the room of an unattended child, among situations where, DPH says, 'a bite cannot be definitively ruled out', and says rabies testing and medical advice should be sought. If either applies, ask the county health department what to do with the bat. Georgia lists three bat species as protected, and this page promises no bat removal.
Source: Georgia DPH, Rabies Control Manual, checked 2026-10-01.
Before you pay anyone. Check whether it is a bat, and whether anyone slept in a room where a bat was found. If so, ask the county health department what to do with the bat; DPH says the Georgia Poison Center gives rabies consultations to the public at 404-616-9000. Then check reach. An attic you can enter through its hatch or pull-down stairs, or a garage floor, is reachable. A carcass sealed inside a wall cavity or between floors is a different situation, covered in our article on a dead animal smell in a wall.
What this covers
- A dead raccoon, opossum or squirrel in an attic reached through the existing hatch or pull-down stairs
- A raccoon, opossum or squirrel lying on attic boards or in insulation within reach of the access
- A dead mammal on a garage floor, behind stored boxes or under shelving (not a bat, bear, rat or mouse)
- A smell in an attic or garage when its source can be reached without cutting anything
Where the limit is
Nothing routed through this site involves cutting into or opening drywall, plaster, ceilings or other finished surfaces. This page promises no bat removal. Georgia lists three bats as protected species (Rafinesque's big-eared bat, the gray bat and the Indiana bat), DPH advises never handling any bat, and DNR's permit conditions for live nuisance wildlife allow bat exclusion only and do not authorize lethal removal of bats. This site does not list rat or mouse removal, and live animals, trapping, exclusion, repairs and odor treatment are outside it.
What Georgia's agencies say. DPH's manual says 'Bats are a protected species and therefore should not be harmed or killed if there has been no exposure', and that if a person or domestic animal has been exposed, the bat should be submitted for testing, if available. DNR advises against bat exclusions from April 1 to July 31; that advice concerns live bats being shut out of a house and sets no rule for a dead one. For a dead bat that nobody touched, ask the county health department what to do with it.
What a removal service can help with. For a raccoon, opossum or squirrel reachable through the attic's existing access or lying in the garage, a call settles whether an operator covers the address. Columbus's code still lets city crews enter private property, houses and other structures at the request of the owner or occupant, at the chief's discretion, but we found no current Columbus page offering it.
How a call goes
- If it is a bat, do not handle it; this site promises no bat removal. If anyone may have been exposed, call the county health department.
- Say how the attic is reached, such as a hatch in a closet or pull-down stairs, and where in the attic the carcass or smell is.
- For a garage, say where the animal is and what is stored around it.
- Give the address or ZIP. Calls reach this site's routing line, which passes them to an independent operator where one covers the area, and price and availability are settled on the call.
Questions about this situation
Will anyone cut through my ceiling to get a dead animal out?
Not through this site. Calls here are for an attic you can enter through its existing access, or a garage, where the carcass can be reached without cutting anything. For a carcass sealed inside a wall, see our article on a dead animal smell in a wall.
What about a dead mouse or rat in the garage?
This site does not list rat or mouse removal. CDC's steps for a dead rodent are to wear gloves, spray the rodent and the area around it with disinfectant and let it soak for 5 minutes or as the label directs, double bag it with each bag knotted, and put it in a covered garbage can that is regularly emptied. Georgia DPH says hantavirus pulmonary syndrome 'is caused by several hantaviruses, which can be carried by certain mice and rats', and that it is not endemic in Georgia.
Is a dead squirrel in the attic a rabies risk?
Georgia DPH's manual says squirrels, rats, mice, chipmunks and rabbits are almost never infected with rabies, while it names raccoons, skunks and foxes as the land wildlife most often infected in Georgia. 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.
Does Georgia require me to remove a dead animal from my attic?
We found no statewide rule that sets a deadline for a homeowner to remove a wild animal carcass from their own property, or that requires them to remove it. Some cities set 24-hour disposal limits. Sandy Springs and Johns Creek codes say a dead animal may not remain on your premises beyond 24 hours without being disposed of or properly removed. Check your city or county code.
Which animal it is
- Dead deerSince June 2025 a statewide rule has limited where and how a deer carcass may be disposed of. Henry County DOT takes deer from county-road rights of way, and Cherokee Public Works takes a deer 'in roadway or impeding traffic'; we found no current public service that collects one from a yard.
- Dead raccoonDPH names raccoons, skunks and foxes as the land wildlife most often infected with rabies in Georgia. The local services we found collect raccoons only from streets, rights of way or public property, or at the curb once you carry one there.
- Dead skunkDPH lists skunks with raccoons and foxes as the land wildlife most often infected with rabies in Georgia. Some road crews collect roadkill; we found no current public service that collects one from a yard.
- Dead opossumDPH says opossum bites are generally not considered a rabies risk. Henry County's request page names the possum among small wildlife it does not remove, though its code (3-4-8) makes dead animals in county-road rights of way a county duty (both read 2026-10-01).
- Dead squirrelDPH says squirrels are almost never infected with rabies. Henry County's request page names squirrels among small wildlife it does not remove, though its code (3-4-8) makes dead animals in county-road rights of way a county duty (both read 2026-10-01).
- Dead birdMost wild birds are protected by Georgia and federal law. DNR gives homeowners steps for one dead bird and asks for reports of certain others.
Not sure who is responsible? Who picks it up · How to dispose of it · Dead deer in the yard · Georgia dead animal laws
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