Peanut the Squirrel's Death Ordered Days Before Raid, Rabies Test Is Negative

Peanut the Squirrel is officially in the clear, testing negative for rabies after his death, but get this -- it's also emerged that both he and Fred the Raccoon were set for the chopping block days before they were seized in a raid ... and their owner is absolutely livid over it.

Mark Longo didn't hold back, telling TMZ it's hard to stomach the bombshell revelation that 4 different agencies had already given the green light to euthanize his pets 7 days before they were even taken from his Upstate New York property on October 30.

The New York Post reports state officials advised the county to euthanize the animals a week before the raid was launched. This news contradicts the New York Department of Environmental Conservation's claim that Peanut had bitten an agent during the raid ... supposedly necessitating the rabies test. Animals must be euthanized to properly test for rabies.

A Chemung County, New York official said in a Tuesday news conference ... tests on the 2 animals returned negative for rabies.

Mark tells us he’s been left in the dark, finding out key details through news outlets while the agencies haven't even bothered to give him a courtesy call with updates in the investigation.

He adds officials have been investigating him since January, and he’s gearing up to slap the entire state with a major lawsuit.

Heartbroken, Mark shares with us he’s been waiting to get Peanut's and Fred's bodies back so he could properly plan a funeral. He'd hoped to hold it this weekend -- but without their return, he's now thinking of hosting a memorial at his animal sanctuary, P’Nuts Freedom Farm Animal Sanctuary, instead.