Dead Animal Removal in Lewistown, PA

Why Lewistown Has the Dead-Animal Calls It Does

Lewistown sits on the Juniata River at the mouth of the Kishacoquillas Valley, anchoring Mifflin County's roughly 46,000 residents. The valley — known locally as Big Valley — holds one of the oldest and most distinctive Plain communities in Pennsylvania, and horse-and-buggy traffic on the valley roads creates a roadside-recovery pattern that differs meaningfully from conventional vehicle corridors. Jacks Mountain and Stone Mountain wall the valley on both sides, Rothrock State Forest covers the northern county, and the Juniata Narrows carry US-22 and the rail line through a tight water gap. Lewistown's older borough housing, built for rail and manufacturing labor, produces the attic and cellar work typical of a nineteenth-century river town. Deer-vehicle collisions concentrate on US-322, US-22, and PA-103.

Common species calls in greater Lewistown: Most-called species across Mifflin County: deer (Big Valley farmland and the Jacks Mountain ridgeline onto US-322, peak Oct-Dec rut), raccoon (Lewistown's rail-era housing; primary PA rabies vector), groundhog (pasture and outbuilding undermining), skunk, opossum, squirrel, and black bear toward Rothrock State Forest. Horse-and-buggy road traffic in Big Valley adds a distinct roadside pattern.

Pickup jurisdiction in Lewistown: Mifflin County does not operate a county health department — only seven Pennsylvania counties do. It is served by the Mifflin County State Health Center under the Pennsylvania Department of Health. Borough and township public works handle right-of-way carcasses; PennDOT covers US-322, US-22, and PA-103. DCNR administers Rothrock State Forest and Reeds Gap State Park. Private property and agricultural carcass disposal are the owner's responsibility under the Pennsylvania Domestic Animal Act. Roadway deer and bear fall to the Pennsylvania Game Commission Southcentral Region office (8627 William Penn Highway, Huntingdon — 814-643-1831).

Neighborhoods in and around Lewistown: Lewistown, Burnham, Reedsville, Belleville, Milroy, McVeytown, Yeagertown, Allensville, Newton Hamilton, Juniata Terrace.

All Lewistown field work is performed by independent partner operators, following the Pennsylvania Domestic Animal Act (PA Department of Agriculture) and PA DOH rabies-vector protocols (PA DOH rabies-vector guidance).