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By Julie Walker

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NEW YORK (AP) — A man who took in an orphaned squirrel and made it a social media star vowed Saturday that New York state’s decision to seize and euthanize the animal “will not go unnoticed “.

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

He declined to elaborate on possible next steps, but said authorities would soon hear from him about what happened to Peanut the squirrel and Fred, a rescued raccoon who was also confiscated and shot.

The state Department of Environmental Conservation recovered the animals Wednesday from Longo’s Home and Wildlife Sanctuary in rural Pine City, near the Pennsylvania border. The agency said it received complaints that wild animals were being kept illegally and potentially dangerous.

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State law requires people to obtain a permit if they wish to own a wild animal. Longo said he is 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 a person involved in the investigation.

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

“Honestly, it still seems surreal, that the state I live in actually targeted me and took away two of the most beloved animals on this planet, without even quarantining them. They took them to my house and just killed them,” he said.

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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 seven years ago. Tens of thousands of users on Instagram, TikTok and other social media platforms spotted the animal sporting tiny hats, doing tricks and munching on waffles clutched in its tiny paws.

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

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Associated Press writer Jennifer Peltz contributed. Follow Julie Walker on X jwalkreporter.

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