Officials announced that P’Nuts the squirrel and Fred the raccoon did not have rabies – as it was revealed that the animals had been marked for death and decapitated just days before their deaths. seized by the state,
“The test results are negative,” Chemung County Executive Christopher Moss told The Post on Tuesday, ending speculation over rabies tests that resulted in the euthanasia of the Internet-famous animals in late October.
A new timeline shows that New York state officials advised the county to euthanize the pets a full seven days before they were taken from their informal caretaker, Mark Longo, on Oct. 30 — though the Department of Environmental Protection later said the squirrels Had bitten an agent. The raid highlighted the need for testing.
The state health department wrote on October 23, “Wildlife cannot be confined like domestic animals, and if there is an exposure, the animals will need to be tested for rabies” – a message that threatened the animals’ fate. Nearly sealed, as rabies testing requires decapitation so that subjects’ heads can be opened and their brains sampled.
A few days later on October 29, Chemung County and DEC made their plans to raid Longo’s home – a large rural property he runs as an animal sanctuary in Pine City.
But DEC was already coordinating the animals’ euthanasia with Elmira Animal Control, the county’s timeline shows — directly contradicting the previous explanation that P’Nut was put down because he lost his baby teeth. Were buried in the hands of DEC agent.
“I’m in complete shock,” Longo told The Post when shown the timeline. “I want to give you a proper statement, but for now I’ll just say ‘wow’.”
According to the county, DEC began the operation when it reached out to Chemung about four complaints that Longo was keeping animals in his home without a license.
“DEC is aware of a Chemung County individual who illegally possessed one adult gray squirrel and at least 4 young raccoons. “They may also have other illegal wildlife species in their possession,” the DEC said in an Oct. 22 message to the county. “We would like to know if the Department of Health would recommend testing these animals for rabies as a precaution for humans.” Security.”
Eight days later the DEC raided Longo’s home and took the animals, and they were killed the same day.
Read the rabies report for P’Nut and Fred, also issued by Chemung County, “Request for decapitation of animal: on 10/30/24.”
Before noon the next day, the animals’ carcasses were “in the refrigerator” at the rabies testing site. The fate of the dead bodies was revealed.
P’Nut’s rabies report form indicates that he “bite a wildlife handler” on the thumb – and Chemung County confirmed that DEC requested a rabies test upon P’Nut’s resistance – but the timeline indicates that The death of the animals was planned before slaughter.
DEC did not respond to a request for comment.
Longo’s Pine City home is a large rural property that he operates as an animal rescue. Fred had recently been abandoned on her doorstep in need of care, while P’Nut had been living as a pet for at least seven years before being taken in by Longo and his wife.
Before his death, P’Nut had gained a large number of followers on social media. News of his fate outraged the public, with many condemning the government’s overreach and excessive response to the seizure, where Longo said he was treated like a “terrorist”.
Chemung County said the situation is under investigation.
“I would ask the public to allow the NYS Department of Environmental Protection the time necessary to complete its investigation to answer the public’s many questions,” Chemung County Executive Christopher Moss said in a statement.
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