Geronimo the alpaca
Geronimo (6 February 2013 – 31 August 2021) was a stud alpaca that resided at Shepherds Close Farm in Wickwar, Gloucestershire, England. After Geronimo tested positive for bovine tuberculosis (bTB), a highly publicised controversy erupted surrounding his fate and the British government's policy of euthanising any animal that tested positive for bTB. After a number of court battles, Geronimo was ultimately destroyed.
Quotes
[edit]- "The tests used on Geronimo were developed for use on alpacas and are highly specific – the chances of a false positive are significantly less than one percent and we have tested him twice. Not just for the benefit of our farming industry but to avoid more TB cases in humans, our disease control measures must be applied."
- Christine Middlemiss, Defra press release (9 August 2021)