Death of Peanut the squirrel radicalizes people against government tyranny. Even Elon Musk goes nuts.

Social media was lit afire with outrage on Saturday over the death of Peanut the squirrel, a pet and online star, at the hands of the New York state government. Even Elon Musk, a strong supporter of former President Donald Trump, condemned the killing.

The pet squirrel was euthanized by the Department of Environmental Conservation after anonymous complaints were lodged against the owner Mark Longo. Another pet belonging to Longo, Fred the raccoon, was also euthanized.

Longo said he had rescued Peanut after seeing the squirrel's mother get run over by a vehicle.

The squirrel was known as "P'nut" on various social media accounts until his untimely death at the age of seven by order of the state.

“RIP MY BEST FRIEND. Thank you for the best 7 years of my life. Thank you for bringing so much joy to us and the world. I’m sorry I failed you but thank you for everything,” wrote owner Mark Longo in a post announcing his death.

Longo said the squirrel was very friendly and docile, but state officials claimed the squirrel bit an officer while they tried to confiscate him. That provided the pretense for his state execution.

“Well internet, you WON,” Longo wrote after the animals were seized. “You took one of the most amazing animals away from me because of your selfishness.”

The incident enflamed critics of state tyranny online, where many memes were cast.

"Government overreach kidnapped an orphan squirrel and executed him," Musk wrote.

"I want a government small enough to have neither the time nor the resources to conduct a 5 hour raid over a pet squirrel," read another popular response.

"Petty bureaucrats can, at a whim, terrorize people. Nobody was being hurt, good things were being done, but some petty rule was broken. They mobilized goons and destroyed something good," read another tweet.

"Euthanizing someone’s indoor pet squirrel under the guise of a rabies concern when New York is infested with rats is a perfect allegory for how the government functions writ large - DRAIN THE SWAMP," said another critic.

A statement about Peanut's demise that appeared to come from the Trump-Vance campaign quickly caught fire on social media as well, but the statement turned out to be fake.

Longo said he had rescued Peanut after seeing the squirrel's mother get run over by a vehicle.

As Peanut and Fred the raccoon were both beloved pets, their deaths also called to mind other politically charged animal memes that went viral after the presidential debate in September. During that debate, Trump famously accused Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, of stealing family pets and eating them.

"In Springfield, they're eating the dogs. They're eating the cats. They're eating ... the pets of the people that live there. And this is what’s happening in our country, and it’s a shame," he said.

Savvy content creators then used those remarks to generate endearing AI images and catchy songs that sent social media users into a craze.

Editor's note: This article was updated on 11/2/24 to include details linking the story to Elon Musk and former President Donald Trump.

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