Peanut the squirrel's owners are suing New York for 'executing' their pet

The owners of viral internet sensation Peanut the squirrel are suing New York state for “executing” their pet.

Known as P’Nut or PNUT, the pet squirrel had gained a following of over 600,000 people on Instagram, where his owners would post updates about his daily life.

But on 30 October, the male eastern grey squirrel was seized by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and euthanised to “test for rabies”. This was in addition to another online star, a raccoon named Fred. Both tested negative for rabies.

In a statement at the time, the DEC said it is illegal to keep wildlife as pets as they are “not well suited for life in captivity. Plus, they may carry diseases that can be given to people”.

Peanut’s owners Mark Longo and Daniela Bittner have begun the process of filing a lawsuit against the state claiming that the government may have lied about an agent being bitten by Peanut in order to have him euthanised.

The claim, filed on Wednesday (27 November), read: “It is submitted that the notion that a DEC agent and/or other respondents’ agent was ‘bitten’ by Peanut may be false and/or manufactured.”

It continued: “It is further submitted that even if an agent was in fact bitten, killing Peanut would still be unnecessary, unjustified, improper, and illegal, it is further submitted that there is no claim that Fred the raccoon bit anyone, and thus, the killing of Fred was unnecessary, unjustified, improper, and illegal.”

Longo and Bittner allege that the killings were an “abuse” of government power.

“The killing of Peanut and Fred was not due to fear of rabies, but rather, was a senseless act of violence, perpetrated by government officials in an obscene demonstration of government abuse and an overreach of government power,” they wrote.

Peanut had been living with Longo for seven years after he rescued the squirrel when he was an orphaned pup.

indy100 has contacted the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation for comment.

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