A cow on a Montana ranch has delivered healthy triplet calves, a rare occurrence that happens only once in 105,000 live births.
The Great Falls Tribune reports the three calves owned by rancher Iain McGregor were born Saturday. McGregor says it took the cow a while before she warmed up to the trio, but that she’s now letting them all nurse.
While the birth of twin calves is fairly common, triplet births are much rarer. The fact that all three of McGregor’s calves have survived and are of the same gender brings the odds even lower, occurring about once every 700,000 births.
The heifers weigh 45 pounds, compared to most newborn single birth calves that weigh about 80 pounds. Despite their small size, all three appear to be healthy.
