Mississippi, private property
Dead Skunk Removal in Mississippi
A dead skunk is hard to miss. Its musk can carry well beyond where it lies. Mississippi classes skunks as nuisance animals, and the State Department of Health advises against handling them, alive or dead.
Is it safe to move a dead skunk?
The Mississippi State Department of Health advises against handling or touching live or dead wild animals that can carry rabies, and names skunks among them. If a person or a pet may have been bitten or scratched by the skunk, call MSDH's Office of Epidemiology at 601-576-7725.
Source: Mississippi State Department of Health, checked 2026-10-05.
Before you call anyone. Check that the skunk is dead and that nobody, person or pet, touched it. If it is on a road, start with whoever maintains the road.
Cases this page is for
- A dead skunk in the yard, a flower bed or beside a building.
- A skunk under a deck, porch or shed that can be reached without cutting anything.
- A skunk in a crawl space reached through an existing access point.
What falls outside it
Live skunks, trapping, exclusion, deodorizing or any chemical treatment of the area. None of that is offered through this site. A carcass sealed inside a wall cavity is information only here.
Mississippi law classes skunks as nuisance animals (Miss. Code Β§49-7-1, as reproduced in the Legislature's 2026 bill text). Through this site the carcass is removed and taken for disposal, and nothing is kept.
How long the smell lasts depends on the animal's size, the temperature, humidity, airflow and where it lies. No one can promise a date.
From call to removal
- Call, or send the form, and say where the skunk is and which town you are in.
- Mention whether a pet or person had contact with it.
- Where an independent operator covers your address, it agrees the price and timing with you.
- The carcass is removed and taken for disposal.
About this animal
Do skunks carry rabies in Mississippi?
The Mississippi State Department of Health lists skunks among the wild animals that can carry rabies and advises against handling them, alive or dead.
Will removing the skunk remove the smell?
Removing the carcass takes away the source. How long the remaining odor lasts depends on the temperature, humidity, airflow and where the animal lay, so no one can give you a fixed time.
How does Mississippi classify skunks?
Mississippi law classes skunks as nuisance animals, along with foxes, coyotes, beavers, nutria and wild hogs.
My dog had contact with a skunk that then died. Who do I call?
If the dog may have been bitten or scratched, call your veterinarian, and call MSDH's Office of Epidemiology at 601-576-7725 about a possible exposure.
Where on the property
- Under a house or deckNo city or county page we reviewed mentions collecting from under a structure. If there is an existing way in, a carcass under a house or deck can be removed without cutting.
- In the yardAn animal in the open, the easiest case to reach. Some city routes for homes may cover it, so check yours first.
- Odor, no animal in sightThe smell is there but the animal is not. Where the odor is strongest usually decides whether anything can be done.
Whose job is it? Who picks up dead animals Β· Deer carcass and CWD rules Β· How to dispose of a dead animal
By area: Jackson Β· Madison County Β· DeSoto County Β· Gulfport and Biloxi Β· Hattiesburg