Madridʼs local government has put a stop to the yearly sheep herding event thats been happening for ages. They did this cause of worries about a new type of bluetongue disease (a sickness that hurts sheep cows and goats). The event was gonna happen on 10/20/24‚ but now its not.
Antonio Fernandez‚ a guy from the Madrid farm department‚ said “We are in an area where we have to limit the concentration and movement of livestock“. Even though there arent any cases of the new sickness in Madrid‚ they dont want to take chances.
This sheep parade is part of a thing called ʼFiesta de la Trashumanciaʼ. Its been going on for like 800 years‚ but it stopped in the 1800s. People brought it back about 30 years ago‚ and tourists and locals love it. During this event shepherds can take their animals through busy parts of Madrid like Puerta del Sol square.
The new type of bluetongue (BTV3) has been in some parts of Europe since last year. It just showed up in southwest Spain too. Other places like France and the Netherlands are giving animals shots to stop it from spreading
The disease is spread by bugs and can kill farm animals. Its in different parts of Spain‚ and there are different types of it. Stopping the event is a way to keep animals safe even if its disappointing for people who like watching it