It's the story that has captured the nation's heart — the alpaca sentenced to death after testing positive for bovine tuberculosis (bTB) on his arrival in the UK four years ago, now set to be put down within days.
More than 80,000 have signed a petition to save Geronimo the alpaca after his owner Helen MacDonald lost a court battle to stop his death.
She claims the blood tests that sealed his fate are flawed. And now the Mail can reveal that government officials knew about problems with the tests five years ago but would not investigate.
In spite of this, they have refused to re-test the animal — which has not had a test since 2017.
Despite these revelations, last night Boris Johnson's official spokesman reiterated that there were no plans for further tests to be carried out.
However, in an impassioned plea, here Helen MacDonald makes a last-ditch appeal to the one person who may still be able to change the Prime Minister's mind, and save Geronimo's life...
The paddocks surrounding Helen MacDonald's Gloucestershire farm may seem like an unlikely venue for a western-style stand-off. Alpacas graze contentedly on the lush grass, and only birdsong interrupts the pervading peace.
But any official person who dares to visit in the coming hours and days will be in for a shock.
'I will do whatever it takes,' says Helen. 'And if that means taking a bullet then I will. I will simply not be bullied.'
They are strong words, but then Helen has been battling passionately for four years and quite simply is at the end of her tether.
Her fight centres on the future of her eight-year-old chocolate alpaca, Geronimo. 'It's not about just him but about what's right,' says Helen.
More than 80,000 have signed a petition to save Geronimo the alpaca after his owner Helen MacDonald (both pictured) lost a court battle to stop his death
Geronimo has been earmarked for execution by government agencies ever since his arrival in the UK four years ago, after twice testing positive for bovine tuberculosis (bTB).
But Helen has now reached the end of the legal road. Last week, a High Court judge issued a fresh warrant for access to her property to enable an execution.
Veterinary nurse Helen, 50, believes those tests to be categorically wrong and has dedicated her life to trying to prove it.
And, today, desperate to stop her beloved Geronimo falling victim to execution, she makes an impassioned plea to the Prime Minister's wife, Carrie Johnson, to save him.
'I am appealing to Carrie directly to ask the Prime Minister to intervene. She is a patron of the Conservative Animal Welfare Association and has campaigned for the environment and the welfare of animals.
'As an animal lover, surely she cannot stand by and let this happen? I am begging her woman to woman to do what she can.
'She and Boris have a beautiful dog, Dilyn, who they clearly adore. I feel about Geronimo exactly the way they feel about him. Please Carrie, help Geronimo. He really does not deserve to die.'
Carrie has been fearless with her campaign for animal rights, leading Peta (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) to last year name her 'person of the year'.
In January, it emerged that Carrie had been hired as head of communications by the conservation organisation the Aspinall Foundation, known for its work protecting endangered species.
Moreover, just last month, the Conservative Animal Welfare Association, of which she is a supporter, called for ministers to broaden the scope of its Animal Welfare (Sentience) bill to include crustaceans, stopping the practice of restaurants boiling lobsters alive.
In an impassioned plea, Helen MacDonald has made a last-ditch appeal to animal lover Carrie Johnson (pictured), the one person who may still be able to save Geronimo's life
'If she can lend her voice to the protection of lobsters, then surely Carrie can intervene to stop a healthy alpaca being shot?' says Helen.
With no further legal recourse, it leaves Helen in a terrible dilemma: with the warrant valid for 30 days from last Thursday, she is expected to either arrange with her vet for the euthanasia of an animal she claims is healthy, or wait for a team to turn up and shoot him.
'I genuinely think that when I lost in court last week the officials thought that I would come home, put him down, and we'd all get on with our lives — but I'm just not prepared to do that. How can I ring my vet and ask him to kill a healthy animal I love?' she says.
'Equally, the team from the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) could turn up at any 'reasonable hour' apparently. I don't know what the definition of that is, but they can bring the police, force their way in, and shoot Geronimo. And that's horrific.'
Adding to her distress, yesterday police officers arrived at Helen's farm shortly after 5pm.
They told her they wanted to make themselves known as, in accordance with the High Court warrant, they would be accompanying any Defra vets onto the farm so that contractors can kill Geronimo.
'The police were gauging the level of resistance they might face if and when they arrive with the vets,' says Helen. 'It's very upsetting.'
Her plight has certainly captured the imagination of the country; Helen has been inundated with messages of support and a petition to save Geronimo has almost 80,000 signatures.
Celebrities have joined in the chorus, with Joanna Lumley and Chris Packham voicing their dismay at the prospect of what Helen has labelled a government-appointed slaughter.
When we speak at her farm in Wickwar, Gloucestershire, her emotions are clearly raw; her eyes brimming with tears.
'It's hugely stressful and has been for years,' she says. 'The constant fighting and the anxiety is debilitating. My whole life has been taken over by it.'
'The government have a mission for disease control, I get that, but it's not right to make stuff up, to make your policy fit the situation.
'Geronimo doesn't have bTB, and they know it. We have shown he did not catch bTB in New Zealand, as suggested by officials.'
At least Geronimo is unaware of his fate. Now in his prime, Helen brought him to breed from, but courtesy of his diagnosis he has spent every day here in the UK segregated from Helen's herd.
Helen's love affair with alpacas began nearly 20 years ago, when she attended a country show.
Single and looking for a diversion, in 2002 she decided that she wanted to set up her own breeding herd.
'I visited half a dozen different sites,' she recalls. 'After that I bought my first three females.'
Costing £10,000, Ebony, Fluffy and Cheeky were the first trio in a herd that today numbers 80, a small slice of the roughly 45,000 that are now
