Farmer's surprise at 'rare' delayed cow twin birth

A farmer said she was left confused when a cow that had already delivered a healthy calf gave birth to a second six days later.

Claire Hart said twin births in cows were rare, but the delayed twin birth at Brook Meadow Campsite in Market Harborough, Leicestershire, was "extraordinarily rare".

Hart believes the second birth would have taken place without much trouble, but it appeared to have also confused its mum, which was already caring for its first healthy calf.

This meant that initially the mother was pushing the newborn calf away, but after work by the farm team, both calves are now feeding side by side.

Hart said: "It is really rare for a cow to have twins anyway. It's usually once every four years, so you're not really checking for twins.

"It is a one-in-200,000 chance for there to be a delayed twin birth, so it is extraordinarily rare."

The first calf was born on 5 February and its sibling followed on Wednesday.

Hart said the later calf was found in the mother's pen and was "wobbling around like Bambi desperately trying to find her mum, but the mother was bewildered".

It is believed that after the original birth, instead of the usual hormones kicking in for her to continue giving birth to the next calf, her uterus closed up.

This allowed more room for the second calf to continue growing for a few more days before being delivered.

Hart said this could be risky because if the uterus did not close in time, infection could get in and cause more problems.

She added it had been "a matter of urgency" when they realised the situation as a newborn calf needed milk within six hours of being born.

Hart said the calf had been "desperate for milk" and was "sucking everything" to try to get milk, but kept being pushed away by the mother.

"It was heartbreaking to see but you know how to sort it out," she said.

She called for help from other farm handlers and was also supported by her son, as they worked to separate the cow and her two calves from the other cows on the farm.

The mother cow and the two calves were then put into a separate pen overnight and the mother was distracted with treat food to help with the transition.

This allowed them to bond and the mum had accepted both calves by the morning. The twins are now happily feeding side by side.

Hart said: "In all our years of farming, we have never witnessed anything like it."

She added it had been "an emotional 24 hours here on the farm".

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