The Most Dangerous Animal in Georgia - The Firefly at Madison

For your safety, and for a more enjoyable experience on your travels in the US Southeast, you should be aware of the most dangerous animals in Georgia. We don’t want you to be fearful, but being respectful is fine.

Aside from your safety, why else are we telling you this?

Well, as part of the Bed and Breakfast life, we enjoy it when people take day trips and road trips around the place. It’s good to get to know a little bit about the local history and economy. It’s also good to explore, and we are explorers too. Part of our value as a B&B is to know about what is in the area, and this is a perfect example. You never know when you will encounter the Most Dangerous Animal in Georgia.

Sharks

The probability of you seeing a shark in Madison is practically zero. The probability of you seeing a shark in the waters off Tybee are greater than zero, but the probability of shark attack is very low.

The most recent attack at Tybee was a surf instructor, who, according to the linked article below, kind of laughed it off.

It’s a little more common in the Carolinas and south around Florida. The last fatal shark attack in Georgia was in 1976.

This specific shark, on ice at the Dekalb Farmer’s Market, looks fairly dead and harmless

The Most Dangerous Animal in Georgia is not this poor shark, who is on ice at the Dekalb Farmer's Market

Bears

Bears used to live throughout Georgia but now mainly hang out in the mountains, or down in the Okefenokee swamp.

These animals are shy, and from time to time, you will hear of one that manages to run loose in one of the Atlanta suburbs for a few days before the poor thing is hit by a car.

The Wikipedia link below states zero fatal bear attacks since 1900 in Georgia.

But it also said that some idiot in the 1970’s climbed over three fences to get into the New York Central Park zoo bear cage. So if you really want to repeat this feat, we can tell you where the nearest captive bear is.

Other than that you are good.

This bored bear is at the Bear Hollow Trail

Snakes

This one is sort of real. There were two fatal snakebites in Georgia in the last decade or so. According to the Wikipedia article linked below, a 59-year old female was bitten in Camden County, which is Savannah. She was not able to receive antivenom because of her allergies. She was put into a medically induced coma, and later died. In another case, a hiker was bitten and died in Arnoldsville, which is just north of Athens.

Georgia is home for about five kinds of venomous snakes, and the best advice is to not mess with them.

“Snake Handling” has still not completely disappeared as a religious observance. A few years ago someone was bitten and died during that. There was an incident described in the reference of a pet cobra which escaped in Texas.

Side note: It is illegal to kill non-venomous snakes in Georgia, according to the article attached in the links. However, there is lack of agreement on killing snakes that eat rats.

Firefly Challenge: If you are going to Florida to try to trap and kill Burmese Pythons we will greet you warmly on your return. They have apparently overrun the place.

In the unlikely event you are bitten by a snake, there is a suggested treatmentt is to keep the affected limb below heart level, and go to the ER. The Most Dangerous Animal in Georgia is not usually a snake.

This snake display is at the Rock Hawk. The Most Dangerous Animal in Georgia is not the snake.

Cows

To most of us cows seem rather docile, and harmless. But if you are trying to convince them to do anything besides stand around in some pasture and graze, they are not harmless.

Cow-related fatalities among farmers is fairly common. There are 5-8 deaths per year.

According to the article I linked below, there are several of cow-related fatalities per year. This happens in the dairy industry. Most of these were in Nebraska, which is better known as the Beef State.

They won’t jump the fence and attack you in your sleep.

Oddly, the number of people attacked by cows is greatly higher in England. Reason: In England, it is popular to do “walking” and it is considered fine to peacefully walk across someone’s pasture. The unfortunate Brit is then trapped and trampled.

Bulls, the male type of Cow, are not considered docile.

Side point: If a stupid city person hops over a fence, approaches a cow, and interacts with it, and the cow gets mad and stomps him or her to death. who do you blame, exactly?

These docile creatures get ticked off and will kill you if you mess with them.

Bees, Wasps, Fire Ants

According to the CDC, as of 2018 there were 90 fatal bee or wasp attacks in the US. and the number is increasing for some reason.

90 percent of the people killed by this type of sting are male for some reason.

Around here, yellowjackets, which are little burrowing wasps, are common. Their sting is painful, they seem to take pleasure in stinging you, and will keep doing so as long as it is fun, for them.

It is not fun for you. The Most Dangerous Animal in Georgia might be this, from the standpoint of annoyance.

If you are one of those allergic people that goes into anaphylactic shock, or has a delayed histamine reaction, we will give you directions to the ER if it happens at our place.

There was a fatality in Georgia in 2010 due to the “Africanized” killer bees, so the chances of this are not zero, but maybe snakebite is a little more likely here.

The Most Dangerous Animal in Georgia from the standpoint of annoyance is this little wasp.

Spiders

There are two main types of venomous spiders in Georgia, the Black Widow and Brown Recluse.

If left untreated, bites of both of these creatures can lead to all sorts of problems. The article I linked below is from one of the pest control companies that says the best solution is to keep their numbers down.

There are also scorpions in this area. If you come to visit, we can probably find one or more, because they are common.

No, some supervillain is not going to release a Georgia scorpion near you, which will creepily crawl toward you and sting you fatally. You have to work pretty hard to find one at all, they are small and relatively harmless.

But, these things all fall into the same category, which is that if you have some underlying health conditions, neglect it, and don’t go to the doctor at some point after some length of time, there may be serious complications.

Dogs

This one is actually #2, and in Georgia may actually be #1.

There were 15 fatal pitbull attacks in Georgia since 2010. The Most Dangerous Animal in Georgia is probably this.

This issue is probably worthy of an article, because there are people that swear that these dogs are lovable and loyal. But, this is a religious argument in that you aren’t going to convince them otherwise.

These animals are bred to be vicious.

There is a Wikipedia article, attached, that says dog attacks cause 50 to 90 deaths per year, nationwide, and lists them. Two of the fatalities were in Georgia in 2020. 90% of these fatalities are due to pit bulls.

Pitbulls have caused 20 fatalities in Georgia

Deer

According to the link, these vicious animals have the bad habit of running out in front of you while driving.

Estimates are that there are over 1 million deer-car collisions every year and in the US up to 200 fatalities per year due to deer crashes.

This is more common from late October through December, which is mating season, and the males don’t pay attention to what they’re doing.

The top states for this are West Virginia, South Dakota, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Montana, Wisconsin, Minnesota, North Dakota and Wyoming.

The body shops of rural Georgia are full of vehicles with deer damage.

The question of the day: Is it legal, or desirable, to pile a recently killed deer into the bed of your pickup, and then eat it.

The answer to this is in the link below, it does not go so far as to suggest that a road-killed deer tastes better, but in general, unless you splatter it, it ’appears to be harmless.

There is the minor issue of how to “process” the deer, but that is a side topic.

These vicious animals cause the most property damage in GA.

Dangerous Animals in Georgia

Based on this research, unless you hear otherwise, the most dangerous animal in Georgia is the sneaky deer, with annoying pitbulls being a close second.

Actually, Georgia is no different from other rural areas of the country, there are animals, and it helps to be alert.

The likelihood that you will encounter any of these animal-related perils is low, but it helps to be informed.