“They have a special place in hell”… The anger of the owner of Peanut, the Instagram star squirrel, who risks being euthanized

Is Peanut still alive? The question is beginning to panic many Americans across the Atlantic, as revealed by numerous media such as the BBC and Fox News. This 7-year-old squirrel was taken in by Mark Longo when he was a baby and only five weeks old. Since then, he has lived in his owner's apartment and has become a real social media star: his Instagram account has nearly 534,000 subscribers!

Problem is, this week Peanut was seized by the New York State Department of Environmental Protection (DEC). In a message shared on Instagram, Mark Longo spoke at length, declaring in particular that “there is a special place in hell” for people who called the New York State services about Peanut. He added that he did not know whether the rodent was euthanized or not.

A petition launched

To justify themselves, the American authorities indicated, in a press release, that an investigation had been launched after having received “numerous reports from the public concerning the potentially dangerous housing of wild animals likely to carry rabies and the illegal keeping of wild animals as pets.

But a surge of solidarity appeared on social networks to try to save Peanut. A petition was created so that the animal could return home, the latter had already collected more than 20,000 signatures on Friday, November 1st morning. On Instagram, Mark Longo and his squirrel put themselves in the spotlight, the animal sometimes wearing a little cowboy hat.

“Treated like animals”

In a message sent to Fox News, Mark Longo also said he had a particularly bad time when Peanut was taken away. “This came as a complete shock not only to my family but to the entire Peanut community. My wife and I were treated like criminals while several police officers raided my home. Something is wrong and I would like find out why it took more than 8 officers to come and destroy my house.”

Still, the man who runs an animal shelter inspired by his squirrel called “P'Nuts Freedom Farm Animal Sanctuary” does not know if the latter is alive, while the spokesperson for the DEC did not not mentioned the situation, indicates The Guardian.