English environmentalist and television presenter Chris Packham has spoken out about the recent slaughter of Geronimo the alpaca, calling the event ‘horrific’.
Who is Geronimo?
Earlier this week, an 8-year-old alpaca was euthanized after testing positive for bovine tuberculosis in 2017.
Desperate to save him, Geronimo’s owner Helen Macdonald engaged in a four-year legal battle with the Department of Food, Environment and Rural Affairs (Defra).
Macdonald, who is a veterinary nurse, urged for Geronimo to be re-tested after concerns that the tests were not accurate. A petition pushing for the alpaca’s life gained more than 140,000 signatures.
But ultimately, Macdonald’s pleas were denied and Geronimo was dragged from the farm by a team of Defra members and the police force.
Chris Packham’s response
Packham posted a more than 10-minute video online slamming Defra for its ‘inconceivable’ actions.
“I’m feeling really depressed. I’m feeling more depressed than I have done in some considerable time,” the presenter said.
He spoke about the footage of Geronimo being removed from the farm. “I found those images extremely distressing. Because I like animals, because I like life. Because I respect life,” Packham, who went vegan in 2019, said.
He continued: “When I saw those images of that terrified animal being separated from its small herd, and dragged across a field, and tied inappropriately in a van in extraordinary distress to be led away to slaughter, I thought to myself, there can’t be a person with any real depth of compassion for other animal life in this country who would condone that behavior.”
‘Just be kind’
Defra did not allow an independent vet to present at Geronimo’s post-mortem, which Packham said was ‘extremely worrying’.
“Because it portrays an extraordinary degree of arrogance. What it indicates to me is that these people are beyond accountability,” he said.
He clarified that there is a bovine tuberculosis crisis in the UK. “It’s affected hundreds of thousands of farmers and hundreds of thousands of animals for years,” he said, “and that’s because Defra and other bodies have wholeheartedly failed to deal with this in an adequate way. There are not proper tests available.”
Packham ended the video with a more hopeful message.
“Tomorrow’s another day. Gotta go get up, keep going, press will reform, and remember to be kind,” he said. “Just be kind in the way that we try to lead progress.”
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I hope Chris continues to fight for and publicise the plight of all life on this planet of ours. We need people like him to stand up and be counted.
How they treated that poor animal was absolutely disgusting, absolute swines.
vegan burgers no clogged arteries.
Saw his video on YouTube the other day. Chris has to be applauded for speaking out. I am fed up of the way this government thinks they can go round slaughtering wildlife and animals. https://www.change.org/p/boris-johnson-petition-for-the-resignation-of-george-eustice-from-defra
He’s jumping on the media circus bandwagon. More upsetting though is that PBN would fail to mention that Geronimo was indeed tested twice, and that the TB tests are accurate to 1%. He’s cute, but saving one is not worth the risk to the many.
Hi,
Thank you for your comment.
Plant Based News noted that Geronimo had tested positive in both our articles.
We never commented on the accuracy of such testing, only quoted and referenced those involved – “Macdonald, who is a veterinary nurse, urged for Geronimo to be re-tested after concerns that the tests were not accurate.”
Speaking about Chris Packham – “He clarified that there is a bovine tuberculosis crisis in the UK. “It’s affected hundreds of thousands of farmers and hundreds of thousands of animals for years,” he said, “and that’s because Defra and other bodies have wholeheartedly failed to deal with this in an adequate way. There are not proper tests available.”
Plant Based News is a global, reputable platform regulated by IMPRESS.
Before I reply to your comment Chris Packham does not need to jump on any bandwagon, his reputation proceeds him.
Like the assasins within Defra you need to get your facts right.
I would like you to take particular attention to the transcripts from the Court proceeding and the scientific views expressed by the suppliers of the tests used on Geronimo and Defras very own veterinary experts.
Once you have done that you can then explain to me and all the other readers why you believe Boris Johnson and Gerorge Eustice lied about the 1% accuracy claim you support.
And why you believe Geronimo should have been murdered.
https://medium.com/@ideasofinterest/all-aboard-the-express-towards-scientific-reason-and-compassion-alpaca-my-bags-18e9b1ee7ee8?fbclid=IwAR2G4Ut5ZTaM3uVJuy5sThLHsBX2fk_C3AMSxvqSn5ZUau7JPoDJGS4UwOo