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Following an internal investigation, the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) is implementing new protocols to avoid similar incidents in the future, the agency announced Friday, March 28.
The changes follow national backlash surrounding “Peanut,” a Chemung County squirrel with nearly one million followers on Instagram who was seized and later euthanized by the agency last fall, as Daily Voice reported.
“At the direction of the governor… I have prioritized a review of our current wildlife protection and enforcement process to protect New Yorkers and this agency from similar incidents in the future,” said Acting DEC Commissioner Amanda Lefton.
“We have carefully reviewed all the public feedback and we understand the distress caused to communities throughout the state. We know that we can do better moving forward.”
Mark Longo and "Peanut" the squirrel.
The agency added that it is bringing on a new Deputy Commissioner for Public Protection & Emergency Response and said it is “committed to developing additional protocols to address illegally possessed wildlife.”
The announcement marks a major development in a saga that sparked widespread backlash online and drew the attention of state lawmakers.
In October, Elmira resident Mark Longo took to Instagram to announce that “Peanut,” the squirrel he rescued in 2017 after its mother was struck by a car, had been taken by state wildlife officers. Longo, who operates the nonprofit P’Nuts Freedom Farm Animal Sanctuary in Pine City, claimed he was “disgusted” and heartbroken after learning that “Peanut,” along with a pet raccoon named Fred, had been euthanized.
“Well internet, you WON,” Longo wrote on Instagram at the time. “You took one of the most amazing animals away from me because of your selfishness.”
In a tearful video update days later, he confirmed, “We got confirmation that (DEC) put him down… ‘Peanut’ was the best thing that ever happened to us.”
Mark Longo and "Peanut" the squirrel.
According to DEC, the animals were euthanized to test for rabies after Peanut bit a conservation officer investigating reports the animals were living in a home with humans.
Longo, however, disputes the claim that Peanut bit the officer. In a screenshot shared on Instagram, a DEC spokesperson informed him that neither of the officer’s gloves were punctured, despite an official report indicating that the officer’s skin was “broken” by the animal’s bite.
“I’m at a loss for words,” Longo said. “The more I read, the more it breaks me and my family. Peanut and Fred were MURDERED for nothing.”
The handling of the case has drawn widespread criticism from thousands online — and from Republican State Assemblyman Jake Blumencranz of Nassau County, who called for a “full investigation” into what he described as a “tragedy.”
Blumencranz has since introduced legislation dubbed “Peanut’s Law,” which would require a 72-hour holding period before an animal can be euthanized, giving owners time to appeal. A Change.org petition calling for the bill's passage had garnered over 81,000 signatures by Wednesday, April 2.
“This tragedy can be an agent of change for our process and system in which there is animal seizure,” Blumencranz said in a video posted to Instagram.
Meanwhile, as Longo and his wife continue mourning their two beloved animals, the almonds once scattered around their home by Peanut have become bittersweet reminders.
“Every second hurts,” his wife Daniela wrote. “Pnut hid almonds EVERYWHERE in our house… When we lay down and open the blanket, when I open cabinets, even in my flowers it brings me to tears seeing them now.”
You can learn more about Longo's animal rescue on his Instagram page and website.
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