Dead Animal Removal in Colorado
Private-property removal Β· Phone quote before any visit Β· Independent operators where one covers your address.
We found no Colorado law that names anyone to take a dead wild animal off your property for you, and most cities that publish a position leave it with the owner. A few will take one, so check that before you pay anyone.
- Yards, decks, crawl spaces, attics and garages, reached without cutting
- We point you to the city or county when a public service covers it
- No price, arrival time or coverage is promised on this page
Who removes a dead animal in Colorado?
On private property, usually the owner: we found no Colorado statute or Parks and Wildlife rule that hands the job to anyone else, and the larger cities that publish a position mostly decline it. Centennial is the main exception, taking raccoon-sized animals and deer from single-family yards on request. CDOT crews clear state highways, and city streets and county roads go to whoever maintains them. The full answer names each route. Call 303-625-6556.
What operators take on
Pick the case closest to yours
By animal
If you can tell what it is, start here. Each page covers where that animal lives in Colorado, who may need to hear about it before anything is moved, and what an operator would ask on the call.
Dead deer
Mule deer live in Colorado suburbs as well as open country, and most local governments leave a deer that dies on private land with the owner.
What this involves →
Dead raccoon
Raccoons now live statewide at moderate elevations, helped by towns and planted trees, and they often die where they were living: under a deck, in a garage or in an attic.
What this involves →
Dead skunk
Striped skunks live throughout Colorado, and along with bats they are the state's main source of rabies, which changes the first thing you should do.
What this involves →
Dead opossum
Opossums are newcomers to Colorado and live in the eastern part of the state, where they den in burrows, under buildings or in brush.
What this involves →
Dead squirrel
The fox squirrel is the one in most Front Range backyards. Rock squirrels are a different case, because plague is often found in them.
What this involves →
Dead bird
Most native birds are federally protected. Since the end of 2024 federal rules let anyone pick one up for disposal, though state permits may also apply. Several dead birds in one place are a report first.
What this involves →By situation
Where the animal is lying decides whether there is a job at all. These three are grouped by how it is reached, and none of them involves cutting into a finished wall, ceiling or floor.
In the yard
The easiest carcass to reach and the one with the most local rules attached. A few Colorado places will take it; most leave it with you.
What this involves →
Under a deck or crawl space
The job none of the Colorado public services we checked publishes that it will do. The question is access: a hatch, lattice or skirting that comes off.
What this involves →
Attic or garage
An attic or garage carcass can usually be reached through the hatch or the door. What decides the job is whether it is in the open space or sealed inside a finished cavity.
What this involves →Photographs on this site are stock or AI-generated images showing conditions and equipment typical of this work. They are not photographs of jobs carried out by Colorado Dead Animal Removal or by any operator, and nothing in them is a claim about who is available in your area.
Sounds like yours?
Say what the animal is, where it is lying and how anyone would get to it. That is most of the first conversation.
Start here
Three different situations, three different answers
Almost every call comes down to one question: where is the animal lying? That single fact decides who is responsible, and it is worth settling before you spend money.
On your own property
Yours to arrange
A yard, a driveway, a crawl space, an attic, a garage or the gap under a deck. We found no Colorado law that names anyone to take it away for you, and Denver, Lakewood and Boulder County say in writing that they do not. Centennial and NOCO Humane are the exceptions worth checking. If the animal can be reached without cutting, an independent operator can take it away where one covers the address.
On a road or public ground
Ask the agency first
A city street, a county road, a park or a state highway. CDOT crews clear carcasses from the state highways, and several cities and counties publish their own pickup routes for streets and county roads. Find out which one applies before you pay anybody for it.
Small, reachable, and you are willing
You may be able to do it yourself
A Colorado Parks and Wildlife rule lets anyone dispose of dead wildlife that is unfit to eat and has no market value, as long as health and pollution laws are followed. A bat, a bird, a deer's antlers, a bear or a lion, or anything that touched a person or a pet is a different case. Whether it can go in your trash cart is up to your city.
By where it is lying
Who handles it depends on where it is
| Where it is | Who handles it | What the source says |
|---|---|---|
| Your yard, deck, crawl space, attic or garage | Usually the property owner | We found no state law assigning it elsewhere; Denver, Lakewood and Boulder County publish that they do not collect there |
| A single-family yard in Centennial | The City of Centennial, on request | Raccoon-sized animals and deer, not birds, squirrels, rabbits or pets; no fee is published |
| Private property in Fort Collins, Loveland or unincorporated Larimer County | NOCO Humane, for a fee | $35 per animal |
| A state or U.S. highway or an interstate | CDOT | Its maintenance crews clear carcasses; report through a regional office or the online contact form |
| A city street or county road | The city or county | Denver, Lakewood, Douglas County and El Paso County publish pickup routes |
| A dead bear or mountain lion, anywhere | Colorado Parks and Wildlife first | Possessing any part of one needs CPW authorization |
Before you pay
When you should not be paying anyone
For an animal on a city street, a county road or a state highway, start with whoever maintains that road. CDOT crews clear the state highways, and Denver, Lakewood, Douglas County and El Paso County publish pickup routes for their own streets and roads. Call them first.
On private property, Centennial is the main exception. The city removes raccoons, foxes, coyotes, deer and similar-sized wildlife from single-family yards when the owner or tenant asks, and publishes no fee for wildlife. NOCO Humane officers can pick up from private property in Fort Collins, Loveland and unincorporated Larimer County for a fee of $35 an animal. The locations page sets out what each of the larger places publishes.
Calls route by ZIP where an operator covers the address. Whether one is available for yours is answered on the call rather than assumed here.
By area
What the larger cities and counties publish
Denver refuses private-property pickups in writing, Colorado Springs' code puts the cost on whoever has the animal on their premises, Centennial collects, and NOCO Humane charges. 16 Colorado cities and counties are written up on one page, quoted and dated.
If you handle a small animal yourself
Check your own city before the trash cart
| Where | What the local government says |
|---|---|
| Boulder County | Lift it into a plastic bag with a long-handled shovel, glove up, double-bag it, outdoor trash container |
| Unincorporated Jefferson County | Do not touch it bare-handed; double-bag it for an outdoor trash container |
| Unincorporated Arapahoe County | Gloves and a double bag for rabbits and squirrels, then routine trash service |
| Pueblo County | Bag it for an outdoor trash receptacle; if a person or pet had contact, keep it and call the health department |
| Lakewood | Bag it and put the bag in an outdoor trash container |
| Thornton | Not in city-provided carts unless the director approves |
Colorado rules
The reference pages
Who Removes a Dead Animal in Colorado
Who is responsible for a dead animal in Colorado on private land, city streets, county roads and state highways, from the agencies' own pages.
Read it →Colorado Rules for Handling a Dead Wild Animal
What Colorado wildlife, health and federal rules say before you move, bag, bury or keep any part of a dead wild animal, with the source for each.
Read it →Before you call
Who answers when I call this number?
A routing line, not a field crew. Colorado Dead Animal Removal sells advertising and passes calls and form inquiries to independent operators where one covers the address. Nobody here handles a carcass. Whether an operator is available for your address, and what it would cost, is settled on the call.
Will my city take a dead animal out of my yard?
Most Colorado cities that publish a position say no. Centennial is the clear exception for raccoon-sized animals and deer on single-family property, NOCO Humane charges $35 per animal in Fort Collins, Loveland and unincorporated Larimer County, and two counties offer a courtesy or a paid appointment. The locations page sets out each one.
Does this include an animal that died inside a wall?
Only if it can be reached without cutting. Operators do not open drywall, plaster, ceilings or other finished surfaces, so a carcass sealed inside a finished wall is not a removal job. One that can be reached from the attic, a crawl space or an existing opening is.
How much does dead animal removal cost in Colorado?
No price is published here, because it turns on the animal, where it is lying and how it is reached. A deer in an open yard and a raccoon under a low deck are different jobs. Where an operator covers the address, the price is agreed on the call before anyone sets out.
Do you deal with live animals too?
No. This site is about animals that are already dead. Trapping or moving a live animal is regulated separately by Colorado Parks and Wildlife, and state health laws do not permit relocating a skunk.
If it is on your own property
Call and describe it. The first thing worked out is whether a public service covers it, and if not, whether an operator covers your address.