The owner of P'nut the Squirrel issued a tearful statement on TikTok on Saturday about the tiny creature's death at the hands of New York State officials.

Mark Longo, accompanied by his girlfriend, sobbed during his prepared remarks about the killing of his beloved best friend.

“I’m angry, I’m sad, I’m disgusted,” Longo said while suppressing his emotions in a clip from a TikTok livestream.
“We fight and work every day to pay our state taxes and they turn around and do this to a family,” Longo said.

New York State and the Department of Environmental Protection have suffered massive public backlash for their actions.

Many of the DEC's social media posts have received hundreds of comments from outraged P'nut the Squirrel supporters.

The animal rescuer also thanked his fans and the public for their “incredible support.” A GoFundMe set up by Longo in P'nut's honor has raised over $73,000.

The couple also say they are inundated with heartfelt messages from supporters.

Longo also said he would continue to post photos and content of P'nut “in his prime.”
P'nut the squirrel and Fred the raccoon were seized by the Department of Environmental Protection on Wednesday after anonymous complaints about a rabies-carrying species in the home, the department told the Post.

On Friday, the DEC announced that it had euthanized both P'nut and Fred to test for rabies.
The ministry claimed in a statement Thursday that P'nut, who was particularly friendly and docile in public throughout his life, had bitten an agent and needed to be tested for rabies.