New Details Emerge About the Seizure and Death of Pet Influencer Peanut the Squirrel

Peanut died in October 2024 after being seized from his owner Mark Longo

By Raven Brunner – Published on April 23, 2025 04:41PM EDT – People Magazine

New documents reveal that the New York Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) did not initially take action to address the complaints made about the safety of Peanut the squirrel months before his death.

An incident report obtained by the Associated Press shows that the state department was made aware of alleged animal mistreatment at P’nuts Freedom Farm Animal Sanctuary, the sanctuary run by Peanut’s owner, Mark Longo, as early as January 2024. However, officers dismissed the concerns, citing bureaucracy and a lack of crime. 

Peanut, also called P’Nut or PNUT, died on Oct. 30, 2024, after New York’s DEC seized the animal from Longo. On Nov. 1, the social media influencer announced on Instagram that the DEC euthanized the squirrel and his raccoon, Fred. The squirrel’s death was later confirmed in a joint statement from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and Chemung County Department of Health shared with PEOPLE.

An incident report, per AP, revealed that before Peanut’s seizure, the DEC was notified of a news story about P’nuts Freedom Farm Animal Sanctuary and saw photos of “a non-releasable squirrel being referred to as a ‘pet’ and being dressed up and showcased for publicity reasons.”

PEOPLE contacted the New York Department of Environmental Conservation for additional information but did not immediately hear back.

Authorities also received complaints about alleged animal mistreatment from a wildlife rehabilitator and a former neighbor of Longo’s, per the AP. 

The news agency reported that a conservation officer spoke to Longo in May 2024. The owner told the officials that Peanut and another squirrel had been sent to Connecticut, which he later admitted was a lie.

The department received another complaint that month, but claimed that “no judge will give us a search warrant for a squirrel.”

The AP reported that in October 2024, the DEC contacted the Chemung County Health Department after learning that Longo had retrieved a raccoon. Given that the wild animal can be a carrier for rabies, a state health department official advised that the animals would need to be tested for the viral disease and thus euthanized. 

“We fully expect that all ‘wild’ animals in the home will need to be euthanized and sent for rabies testing due to the nature of the human contact,” the county emailed the DEC. A judge then authorized a search warrant for the sanctuary, leading the Peanut’s seizure.

Those involved in the search found Fred in an open suitcase on the floor in an upstairs closet. Upon locating Peanut, the squirrel bit the gloved state wildlife biologist, which resulted in a bleeding wound, according to a DEC email obtained by AP. 

Longo was allegedly “visibly upset” during the seizure and argued that the squirrel was a significant source of income for the farm, per the incident report. The report also claims that Longo “stated he knew we would be euthanizing it,” despite later saying otherwise.

A county health department official told a DEC worker after the search that “both animals should be tested as a precaution,” per the report. Ultimately, neither animal had rabies. 

Longo revealed in a March interview with the New York Post that he has since adopted a puppy.

Longo and his wife Daniela Bittner adopted a miniature dachshund, which, according to Longo in the interview, not only evokes Peanut’s spirit but “may be the reincarnated version” of the squirrel.