Geronimo, the alpaca at the centre of a legal dispute having twice tested positive for bovine tuberculosis, has been killed by government vets carrying out a court-ordered destruction warrant, after a four-year battle by his owner.
August 2017: Geronimo is brought to England from New Zealand by his owner Helen Macdonald and subsequently tests positive for TB in the same month.
November 2017: The alpaca tests positive for TB for a second time and is isolated from the rest of the herd at the farm in Wickwar, Gloucestershire.
July 2018: A court order for Geronimo’s destruction is sought by the government and he is given a stay of execution, to be slaughtered by the end of August.
In the same month, Macdonald seeks a judicial review claiming new evidence shows the animal is healthy.
November 2018: In the first of a series of lengthy legal fights, Macdonald wins the right to a review at London’s high court.
March 2019: A high court hearing begins and Macdonald claims the government experts have been relying on “flawed science”.
July 2019: The case is dismissed, prompting Macdonald to launch an appeal. An order is made preventing Geronimo’s death pending the application.
An emergency injunction is granted, delaying a warrant to kill the animal before an appeal hearing is heard on 29 July 2021.
July 2021: The case is once again dismissed. A judge agrees to delay the start of a second execution warrant until 5 August, before it is then extended until 4 September.
August 2021: Officials from Defra arrive at Geronimo’s farm flanked by a police escort and lead him away from his enclosure to carry out the destruction order.
