After euthanasia, Peanut the squirrel, who was a social media star in the United States, was not found to have rabies
Kyiv • UNN
Peanut the squirrel, a social media star with tens of thousands of followers, was seized from his owner and euthanized after being bitten by an employee. Rabies tests were negative, and the department launched an internal investigation.
Officials said that the well-known squirrel Peanut, who was seized from his owner and put to sleep, was not found to have rabies. UNN writes about this with reference to CBS News.
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Chris Moss, a spokesman for Chemung County, New York, said rabies tests taken from the squirrels were negative. He said the county had cooperated with the state and followed protocols.
In New York State, only licensed wildlife rehabilitators can legally rescue squirrels, and to legally keep a domesticated wild animal, it must also be registered as an educational animal.
We were ready to fulfill the requirements, we were ready to get the documents. We needed a little guidance from the DEC
He stated that he had expected negative rabies test results.
Peanut the squirrel had tens of thousands of followers on Instagram, TikTok, and other platforms. She had lived with Longo for more than seven years, since he found her as a baby squirrel. Longo said that when the squirrel was seized, he was in the process of completing the paperwork to certify her as a training animal.
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On October 30, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation removed a squirrel named Peanut and a raccoon named Fred from Mark Longo's home. The agency said it had received complaints that the wild animals were being kept illegally and were potentially dangerous to others. Both animals were euthanized after the squirrel bit one of the department's employees. But officials faced a barrage of criticism for the seizure. Civil servants said they have since faced threats of violence.
In a prepared statement, the DEC said that an internal investigation was underway and that they were reviewing internal policies and procedures.