The only quick method for rabies testing is extracting brain tissue, macerating it, adding an antigen dye and then viewing it under black light. If it fluoresces then it's positive.

The only other method is quarantine the animal to see if symptoms occur, 90 days for the USDA.

Quarantine would mean the bite victim would still need to get the shots as they are only effective if administered immediately.

I'm also sure that whatever agency the protocol is most likely all bites get tested, period.

I read it was a Gov employee that got bit in the process (supposedly)

I would like to know why they killed them? They didn't have rabies. It's the same as them raiding your home, taking your cat or dog and killing it! How would you feel about that?

Because it's illegal in most states to have a wild animal as a bet and or rehab them without proper licensing.

Absolutely LOVE that my tax dollars are going to paying police to kill someone's pet friggen squirrel. Omg the danger !!! Somone has an illegal tree rat and there dressing it up for funny videos

It's a squirrel, not a baboon or something that could legit rip your face off.

It's just as bad as people who loose it of somone keeping a possum as a pet. WHO CARES about the harmless trash kitty .

Again kinda get like a raccoon or maybe a hawk....but a squirrel?

Wrong, that squirrel and raccoon belonged to the people of that state.

Under the American concept of wildlife management all wildlife belongs to we the people and held in common trust.

Now to the specifics of that case. Nothing I've read so far indicates the person had followed the proper procedures for reducing the wildlife in question to personal property. Hence he was holding wildlife in violation of the laws of his state.

Let's flip this. Let's say he went out and trapped a booner white tail buck to turn out on his fenced five acre patch to charge someone to kill?

The rules are the rules across the board.

Some of y'all stand ready to hang poachers but are okay with folks taking wildlife if the wildlife is cute.

Yall do realize that game wardens handle wildlife violations?

Not the city cops, county deputies, state troopers, and state investigative agencies. These are traffic code enforcement, property crimes and violent crime enforcement.

Call a game warden next time your neighbor is cooking meth.

Call the sheriff when someone is poaching on your land.

I think I'll go get a bear cub as a pet....that'll be better than a squirrel.

"Stealing" a squirrel....A SQUIRREL is legit at the same level of crime to me as stealing rail road ties/spike so ff abandoned railroad tracks . Again the law but beyond stupid

Folks thinking keeping wildlife as pets has given us pythons, capybaras, various species of monkeys, monk parakeets and other parrots, ring neck doves, tegus, monitors, various crocodilia like caimans among other things. And that's just a few of the non natives in the US.

Pretty sure that squirrel was a native of new York

True, but it's still the soft headed cute and fluffy thinking that starts the problem. Any married man knows that to be true.

Where does the line need to be drawn?

Make it OK to keep squirrels as pets?

Ok to keep coons as pets?

What about deer?

Bears?

Go ahead...draw the line.

And please state what is supposed to be done with a human -habituated wild critter.

Release it in a park or other wooded area you say?

Lol

Sit dies in the woods all the time .......maybe we should move all wildlife into zoos

Let the people of the state decide, after all it was said that it belonged to them. This is a ridiculous hill to die on, for everyone arguing about it!

The owner of Peanut is a man.

If "the people" have jurisdiction of a states' wildlife, isn't he also part of "the people" ?

The people of New York had already decided. The Environmental Police (NY game wardens) appeared to have followed their state's law....can't hold wildlife as pets without proper permits.

There likely is an operational policy (approved by a public board) in place to euthanized critters held illegally.

Some folks posting on this thread about the "poor little pet squirrel" would make great HSUS or PETA spokespersons.

"Peanut" didn't have an owner.

He was a squirrel...not a dog.

Well the guy who kept "PEANUT" is a human. A man.

I am just intelligent enough to recognize a squirrel from a dog.

Whatever term you like best , by all means use. Owner, kept, kidnapped, whatever.

He kept it in his house, just as one would a cat or dog. I know what a cat is , too.

Mabye use common sense.... I mean seriously the difference between someone keeping a dang tree rat vs idk a apex predator like bobcat or a bear cub..... Like come on. Like seriously how many rednecks are out there with pet coons possum squirrels and other lil critters that aren't hurting anything.

And property of the people.....who is getting upset over someone "stealing" on of the 25 trillion squirrels in the country? Ok yeah if it was like a or something endangered SUREEE that makes perfect sense, ....but a squirrel and a coon....

I know you do.

My reply wasn't about your knowledge...it was about the fact that wildlife are not pets and are not owned.

Maybe he was living there on his own free will.