In subsequent posts on Instagram on Thursday, Mr Longo said he was raising money for legal fees against the DEC.
A DEC statement said an investigation had been launched after receiving “multiple reports from the public about the potentially unsafe housing of wildlife that could carry rabies and the illegal keeping of wildlife as pets”.
The squirrel’s current condition was not made clear by the DEC.
Mr Longo took Peanut in seven years ago after he spotted the baby squirrel by his mother who had been hit by a car.
He cared for Peanut until he was strong enough to be released, but said he found Peanut back on his porch the following morning with “a chunk of his tail missing”.
Peanut’s Instagram account has amassed more than 500,000 followers in the time since.
The account features videos of Peanut playing out skits with Mr Longo, occasionally dressed in hats, often climbing over him or being hugged, and regularly eating waffles.
During the raid, the DEC also seized a raccoon Mr Longo had acquired in recent months and named Fred.
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