Who Removes a Dead Animal in Missouri

Usually the property owner arranges it. St. Louis County tells residents with a dead animal on their property to bag it and put it in the trash, or to contact a private pest control or carcass removal service. Chesterfield's list of who to call says "Call Contractor" for private property, and Creve Coeur and Manchester tell residents to call a private service or bag the animal for trash. The Missouri Department of Conservation's carcass advice, written for animals removed because they were damaging property, gives the same two options, burying it or bagging it for trash, and MDC points homeowners to local businesses that specialize in wildlife removal.

A few, mostly at the curb. Kansas City's code says there is no charge for the occasional removal of a small dead animal, once it is in a refuse bag at the curb and the city has been told; residents call 311. Raytown's Animal Services page also has the owner bag dead wildlife at the curb for Animal Control. St. Peters says Animal Control may remove one from your property for a small fee. Manchester's contractor removes dead deer from residential yards. Lee's Summit and St. Joseph tell residents to call Animal Control. None of the city pages we read describes going under a deck, into a crawl space or into an attic. The locations page has each city's own wording.

MoDOT, when the animal is a hazard in the driving lanes; its 2024 release adds that a deer on the shoulder is dealt with during normal weekday work hours. MoDOT says its crews drag large animal debris to the outer portion of the grassy roadside, and it does not contract out roadkill removal. A deer that is completely off a state road is not picked up unless it blocks mail delivery or lies in a neighborhood, especially near a bus stop. Report one on 888-ASK-MODOT (275-6636) or through MoDOT's online road-concern form, and do not try to move an animal from a busy road yourself.

The city or the county that maintains it. In St. Louis city, the Citizens' Service Bureau takes reports of a dead animal in the right-of-way on 314-622-4800. Greene County's Highway Department handles county roads on 417-831-3591, and its FAQ sends a city road in Springfield to the city on 417-864-1010. Boone County Road & Bridge removes a dead deer from a county road on request. St. Charles County takes roadway reports on 636-949-7305. Kirkwood, Chesterfield and Creve Coeur take street reports through their street or public works departments.

The MDC pages we read describe what a homeowner can do and what to report; none of them describes MDC collecting a carcass from a home. MDC asks to hear about a single deer that looks sick, three or more sick or dead mammals, or five or more sick or dead birds, at WildlifeHealth@mdc.mo.gov. A dead spotted skunk, a protected species, should be reported to MDC before anyone moves it. A dead bald or golden eagle goes to MDC or the National Eagle Repository. MDC's bird-flu page does say it is collecting sick and dead waterfowl and raptors for testing, so report a dead goose, duck or raptor to MDC before anyone disposes of it.

We found no Missouri statute or regulation that sets a deadline for a homeowner to remove a wild animal that died on their property. The state's 24-hour disposal law, RSMo 269.020, applies to people who own or care for livestock and other domestic animals, and the Missouri Department of Agriculture says it does not respond to reports of dead wildlife or pets. City and county ordinances can set their own limits: unincorporated Jackson County's code gives a property owner 48 hours, and Kansas City's gives 12 hours for a large animal.