‘SNL’ mourns death of Peanut the squirrel in Upstate NY: ‘A damn hero’

“Saturday Night Live” is mourning the death of Peanut the squirrel, an internet-famous rodent that was recently euthanized by wildlife officials in Upstate New York.
“SNL” cast member Sarah Sherman dressed up as a giant squirrel to play Hazel, a.k.a. Hazel Nut, the widow of Peanut, also known as P’Nut or PNUT, for a “Weekend Update” segment with Colin Jost. Peanut was confiscated from Mark Longo’s home and animal sanctuary in the Southern Tier hamlet of Pine City, and then put down for rabies testing after allegedly biting a state Department of Conservation agent.
“The cops raided our house, and then Peanut bit one like a damn hero,” Sherman said as Hazel. “Have you ever bit a cop, Colin?”
“Why would I bite the hand that feeds me pink cocaine?” Jost joked.
“Anyway, then they abducted Peanut and chopped his head off in a rabies test. That’s how they really test for rabies. Colin, can you imagine if they chopped off your penis every time you tested positive for chlamydia?”
The bit also included Sherman doing elaborate impressions of a squirrel, jokes about nuts and stuffing his cheeks, and a puppeteer pushing Sherman’s squirrel tail in front of Jost’s face and crotch.
“Oh come on,” Sherman’s character. “I’m in mourning, Colin. I need touch.”
“I’m a widow at four,” she added. “I’m so old that the only person who wants to hit it is Jake Paul. I can’t take it anymore. I’m going nuts. Nuts?!? Where?!?”
Peanut, who was taken in by Longo seven years ago after his mother was hit by a car in New York City, had became a social media sensation thanks to Instagram photos of the squirrel wearing cowboy hats. But Peanut and Fred, a rescued raccoon, where put down when Peanut allegedly bit a DEC worker during an investigation over complaints that wildlife was allegedly being kept illegally and potentially unsafely.
The rabies tests for Peanut and Fred both came back negative, Chemung County Executive Chris Moss announced Tuesday. Moss said the county worked with the state and followed protocols.
“It’s no real big shocker to me, considering I lived with Peanut for seven-and-a-half years and Fred for five months. I’m not foaming at the mouth,” said Longo, also known as “Squirrel Dadddy.” “I knew the test results were going to be negative.”
In New York State, it is illegal to house animals considered wildlife without a special permit. Longo has said he was in the process of applying to get Peanut certified as an education animal. He and his wife Daniela said Peanut inspired them to open an animal rescue in Chemung County called P’Nuts Freedom Farm Animal Sanctuary.
The Peanut controversy became a political issue in the days leading up to the 2024 election, with Republicans using it to accuse Democrats of government overreach. NYS Assemblyman Jake Blumencranz of the 15th Assembly District in Long Island proposed “Peanut’s Law: Humane Animal Protection Act,” an amendment to the New York State Environmental Conservation Law over animal seizure rules, including a mandatory 72-hour waiting period before euthanizing any sanctuary animals and creating a dedicated DEC review board of experts for emergency appeals of cases.