Children on a day out to Odds Farm Park are in for a real treat as the farm are celebrating the rare birth of twin British White calves. A first for the farm, the wonderful surprise awaited the Livestock Team early yesterday morning (Thursday 18 August) as they arrived to find that clever mum, seven year old Libby, had given birth all by herself in the field.Twins are very unusual for cattle, with multiple births having odds of only 1 in 200 for beef cattle and 1 in 50 for dairy cattle. British Whites are one of the oldest breeds of cattle in the UK and claim direct links with the ancient indigenous wild white cattle of Great Britain. They were originally dual purpose cattle but are now bred for beef alone.
The new arrivals, one female and one male, have been named Adelaide and Darwin. And children who visit the farm will see that they are very cute, extremely friendly and currently below 70 cm in height! The calves are settling in well with the rest of the herd and can now be seen by children on a day out.
Said Clare Middleton, Livestock Manager of Odds Farm Park “We were delighted to find out that Libby had given birth safely in the field. It is an extremely rare occurrence that British White cows should have twins and is certainly a first for us here in our 17 years at Odds Farm Park!”
Elsewhere at Odds Farm Park you are never short of things to do on a day out. With a continuously changing programme of Animal Activities and Demonstrations, children can see more new baby animals, watch the Cow Milking Demonstrations, help with Egg Collecting, feed animals in the Designated Feeding Area and watch the ever popular Sheep and Goat Racing! Whilst outside, there’s plenty more fun to have with the Outdoor Log Play Areas, the Adventure Maze, Tractor & Trailer Rides, Go-Karts and more.
