Free Wildlife Help in Fort Worth
Some wildlife problems in Fort Worth cost you nothing to resolve. Most do not. This page is the honest split, with the numbers, so you do not pay for something the City handles and do not wait weeks for something it does not.
What the City of Fort Worth does handle
Dead animals on public streets and city property. Reported through the City's Customer Care Center on 817-392-1234, or through the City's online reporting route. Solid Waste responds to those requests.
Small dead animals on city streets and private property. The City's published guidance states that it handles the pickup of small dead animals on city streets and private property.
Questions about wildlife rescue and rehabilitation. The same number, 817-392-1234, is the one the City publishes for these.
Dead or sick wild birds. The City refers these, particularly where a larger die-off is involved, to Texas Parks and Wildlife on 512-389-4800. If bird flu is a concern, that referral is the reason.
Wildlife rehabilitators. Texas Parks and Wildlife publishes a list of licensed wildlife rehabilitators by county, including Tarrant County. If you have found an injured or orphaned wild animal rather than a nuisance one, that list is the right starting point, and rehabilitators are generally not a commercial service.
What the City does not handle
This is the part that surprises people, and it is stated plainly in the City's own guidance.
Fort Worth Animal Care & Control no longer picks up wildlife or provides traps to capture it. The guidance names the animals specifically: rabbits, opossums, squirrels, snakes, rats and other wild animals.
The City's own page on wild animals tells residents to search online for animal rescue and removal services, or for pest control.
So if the animal is alive and in your house, your attic, your wall or under your deck, there is no free municipal service for it in Fort Worth. That is not a criticism of the City, it is simply how the service is scoped, and knowing it saves you a week of waiting for a truck that is not coming.
The honest summary
| Your situation | Free route | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| Dead animal on a public road | City, 817-392-1234 | No |
| Small dead animal on the street or your property | City, 817-392-1234 | No |
| Dead or sick wild birds, especially several | Texas Parks and Wildlife, 512-389-4800 | No |
| Injured or orphaned wild animal | TPWD licensed rehabilitator list, Tarrant County | Generally no |
| Live animal in your attic, wall or crawlspace | None | Yes |
| Dead animal inside a wall, attic or duct | None | Yes |
| Snake in the garage or yard | Sometimes; volunteer removers do operate in North Texas | Often yes |
| Sealing the entry points | None | Yes |
Why we are telling you this
It is a fair question to ask of a company that would otherwise be quoting you.
Two reasons. The first is that we would rather not take a call that ends with someone paying us for something the City does for free, because that is how a business gets a reputation it deserves. The second is more practical: the pages currently ranking for free wildlife removal in this city tend to collect government phone numbers as a way of getting you onto a page and then converting you anyway, and at least one of them coaches readers on how to present their problem to improve their odds. We would rather just tell you which column your problem is in.
The one thing that is never free
Sealing the building.
Even where a free route exists for the animal, nothing in the free column closes the gap it used. A dead animal collected from your driveway does not tell you how it got under the house. A rehabilitator taking an orphaned squirrel does not screen your gable vent.
If an animal has been in the structure, something is open, and it will be found again. That part is wildlife exclusion, and it is the only part of this we would genuinely argue you should not skip.
If your problem is in the paid column
Call (571) 412-0006 and describe it. If it turns out to belong in the free column after all, we will tell you that instead.
For a dead animal inside the structure rather than outside it, go to dead animal removal. For what the paid work actually costs, what wildlife removal costs.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does animal control get rid of raccoons for free in Fort Worth?
No. The City's guidance states that Animal Care & Control no longer picks up wildlife or provides traps, and directs residents to search for animal rescue and removal services.
How do I get rid of a raccoon for free?
There is no free municipal removal service for live wildlife in Fort Worth. If the animal is dead, or on a public road, the City route on 817-392-1234 applies. If it is alive in your house, it is a paid job.
Who can remove bats for free?
No free service exists for bat exclusion, and bat work is the last job worth cutting corners on, since Texas Parks and Wildlife discourages exclusion between May 1 and August 15 while the young cannot fly. Doing it at the wrong time creates a larger problem than the one you started with.
Who picks up dead animals in Fort Worth?
The City, through the Customer Care Center on 817-392-1234, with Solid Waste responding to requests. Dead or sick wild birds are referred to Texas Parks and Wildlife on 512-389-4800.
Is there free help for an injured wild animal?
Texas Parks and Wildlife publishes a list of licensed wildlife rehabilitators by county, including Tarrant County. That is the right route for an injured or orphaned animal, as opposed to a nuisance one.