Peanut, the squirrel who became famous for his large and dedicated Instagram following, was killed just days after being caught by New York authorities.
The National Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) raided the home of Mark Longo on Wednesday following complaints that there may be unsafe housing for this animal.
Earlier this week, Mr Longo pleaded with authorities to return Peanut to safety, writing on Instagram that there was a “special place in hell” for the DEC.
However, the authorities say they put the animal down after it bit the officer involved in its seizure. The DEC also revealed that it was pleased with the raccoon named Fred that they took when they raided Mr. Longo's home.
The news of Peanut's death came when the petition for his return had been signed by more than 30,000 people on Friday afternoon.
On Thursday, Mr Longo said he was raising money for legal fees against the DEC. A GoFundMe he set up had raised almost $13,500 (£10,400).
The grief, he said in the post on Friday morning, has turned into a “nightmare”.
After Peanut's death, Mr Longo posted the DEC's phone number online and urged fans to call the agency to “express your feelings”.
“We will not let this be the last memory of Pnuts,” he wrote.
In a separate Instagram story, he thanked Peanut's fans for the “love and support” his family has received and asked for donations to help other animals kept at his “freedom farm”.
A DEC statement said the investigation was launched after receiving “numerous reports from the public about unsafe housing of potentially rabies-carrying wildlife and illegal keeping of wild animals as pets”.
Mr Longo adopted Peanut seven years ago after seeing the baby squirrel's mother, who had been hit by a car.
He nursed Peanut until he was strong enough to be released, but said he found the suspect back on his porch this morning “with a piece of his tail missing”.
Peanut's Instagram account has since amassed over 500,000 followers.
The account features videos of Peanut playing skits with Mr. Longo, occasionally wearing hats, often climbing on him or giving him hugs, and often eating waffles.
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