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 “won't go unheard.”
“We will make a stance on how this government and New York state utilizes their resources,” Mark Longo said in a phone interview.
He declined to specify his possible next steps but said officials would hear from him soon about what happened to Peanut the squirrel and Fred, a rescued raccoon that was also confiscated and put down.
The state Department of Environmental Conservation took the animals Wednesday from Longo’s home and animal sanctuary in rural Pine City, near the Pennsylvania border. The agency said it had gotten complaints that wildlife was being kept illegally and potentially unsafely.
State law requires people to get a license if they wish 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 the 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 didn't see Peanut bite anyone during what he described as an hourslong, heavy-handed search. The authorities haven't spoken with him since they left the property, he said.
“Honestly, this still kind of feels surreal, that the state that I live in actually targeted me and took two of the most beloved animals on this planet away, didn’t even quarantine 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 started 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 glimpsed the animal sporting tiny hats, doing tricks and nibbling on waffles clutched in his little paws.
Longo said Fred the raccoon was dropped off on his doorstep a few months ago. After helping the animal recover from injuries, Longo said, he and his wife were planning to release the creature into the woods.
Associated Press writer Jennifer Peltz contributed. Follow Julie Walker on X @jwalkreporter.
FILE — This undated image provided by Mark Longo shows his pet squirrel Peanut that was seized by officers from the state Department of Environmental Conservation, at Longo's home in rural Pine City, N.Y., Oct. 30, 2024. (Courtesy Mark Longo via AP, File)
Man says it's 'surreal' that officials euthanized pet squirrel Peanut
Man says it's 'surreal' that officials euthanized pet squirrel Peanut
ALTENMARKT-ZAUCHENSEE, Austria (AP) — Lindsey Vonn showed again Saturday she is the standout downhill racer in this Olympic season.
Vonn led a World Cup downhill by 0.37 seconds and was set for her second win in four downhill races in this remarkable comeback racing at age 41 with her right knee rebuilt using titanium implants.
Kajsa Vickhoff Lie was second fastest and Vonn was jumping up cheering in the leader’s box when her teammate Jacqueline Wiles raced into third place, 0.48 back.
High-ranked racers had completed their runs when the race was delayed for 25 minutes while Austrian prospect Magdalena Egger was airlifted from the course after crashing. Egger was runner-up in Vonn’s season-opening downhill win last month at St. Moritz, Switzerland.
The standings were unofficial with lower-ranked racers yet to start.
On a shortened course that took her fewer than 67 seconds to complete, Vonn still clocked 130 kph (81 mph) for one of the fastest speeds any women racer will hit this season.
Vonn crossed the finish line with a look of determined satisfaction, punching the air with her right fist and nodding with short, sharp movements of her head.
With each victory, Vonn will extend her record as the oldest race winner in the 60-season history of the World Cup circuit.
The United States star later made a family video phone call alongside her coach Aksel Lund Svindal, the men’s downhill champion at the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics where Vonn took bronze in the women’s race.
Vonn was Olympic downhill champion at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Games and shapes as a strong contender for the next gold medal race scheduled Feb. 8. It is at the storied Cortina d’Ampezzo slope where Vonn has excelled in her career.
Sofia Goggia, the 2018 Olympic champion, was outside the top-10 places Saturday trailing Vonn by 0.97.
The defending Olympic champion, Corinne Suter, made her season debut Saturday after injuries and was more than a second slower than Vonn.
Vonn will extend her lead in the season-long World Cup downhill standings, after finishing second and third in the other races. Saturday’s race was the fourth of nine scheduled downhills in the World Cup this season.
She is chasing a ninth World Cup downhill season title a full 10 years after her eighth.
AP skiing: https://apnews.com/hub/alpine-skiing
Austria's Magdalena Egger is lifted on a helicopter after crashing during an alpine ski, women's World Cup downhill, in Zauchensee, Austria, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Marco Trovati)
Austria's Magdalena Egger gets medical assistance after crashing during an alpine ski, women's World Cup downhill, in Zauchensee, Austria, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Marco Trovati)
United States' Lindsey Vonn is airborne as he speeds down the course during an alpine ski, women's World Cup downhill, in Zauchensee, Austria, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Giovanni Auletta)
United States' Lindsey Vonn reacts at the finish line during an alpine ski, women's World Cup downhill, in Zauchensee, Austria, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Giovanni Auletta)
United States' Lindsey Vonn speeds down the course during an alpine ski, women's World Cup downhill, in Zauchensee, Austria, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Marco Trovati)
