Peanut (squirrel)

Peanut, also known as P'Nut, was a male eastern gray squirrel. Found and rescued as a kit by Mark Longo in 2017, he was the subject of a popular Instagram account. On October 30, 2024, Peanut was seized from Longo's home by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and euthanized soon after for rabies testing, which yielded negative results. Peanut's death created an outcry on social media, condemnation from various lawmakers, and the introduction of a bill aimed at preventing similar incidents in the future.