AP
—

A man who took in an orphaned squirrel and turned it into a social media star vowed Saturday that New York state’s decision to confiscate and euthanize the animal “will not go unheard.”

“We will take a position on how this administration and New York State use their resources,” Mark Longo said in a telephone interview.

He declined to specify his possible next steps, but said officials would soon hear from him about what happened to Peanut the squirrel and Fred, a rescued raccoon that was also seized and put down.

The state Department of Environmental Conservation took the animals Wednesday from Longo’s home and animal shelter in rural Pine City, near the Pennsylvania border. The agency said it had received complaints that wildlife was being kept illegally and possibly unsafely.

State law requires people to obtain a permit if they want to own a wild animal. Longo has said he was working to get Peanut – also known as P’Nut or PNUT – certified as an educational animal.

The DEC and Chemung County Health Department said Friday that the squirrel and raccoon were euthanized so they could be tested for rabies after Peanut bit someone involved in the investigation.

Longo said Saturday that he did not see Peanut bite anyone during what he described as an hours-long, heavy-handed search. Authorities have not spoken to him since they left the property, he said.

“Honestly, this still feels a little surreal, that the state I live in has basically targeted me and taken away two of the most beloved animals on the planet, and not even quarantined them. They took them from my house and just killed them,” he said.

A request for comment was sent to the DEC on Saturday.

Longo said he began caring for Peanut after the animal’s mother was hit by a car in New York City seven years ago. Tens of thousands of users of Instagram, TikTok and other social media platforms caught glimpses of the animal wearing tiny hats, doing tricks and nibbling on waffles held in its tiny paws.

Longo said Fred the raccoon was dropped off on his doorstep a few months ago. After helping the animal recover from injuries, he and his wife planned to release the creature into the woods, Longo said.