A FARMER had a moo-ving experience when one of his cows gave birth to triplets.

The Simmental cow, which is used to breed beef cattle at Fernley Farm in Ozleworth, may not be a rare breed, but the chance of her giving birth to three offspring at once stands at just one in 100,000.

“We’ve never had it happen here before, and it was even more surprising because the cow is quite young, at just under three years," said Stephen Evans, who runs the family farm with his son Daniel.

"The fact she’s so young makes it difficult for her to cope with the strain on the body, although she has had one calf in the past.

"I did know that it was going to be a multiple birth for about six weeks before it happened because she was so big, but the vet couldn’t confirm it because cows do get enormous before giving birth."

And it was Stephen who took on the role of midwife last week. "It wasn’t a difficult birth," he added, saying that he only called a vet in to help after the birth - once the arm ache got too bad!

"The first calf presented itself wrongly and I could feel the other two desperately trying to push it out backwards, but I managed to turn it around. The second two were easier.”

The three calves, two females and a male, will remain at the farm although two will be taken away for hand rearing in the near future, leaving mum with just one baby.