A RARE set of triplet calves has been born at a farm at Stoke Climsland and mother and babies are doing just fine.

There is a one in 50,000 to 100,000 chance of giving birth to triplet calves, according to the experts, so when it happened at Burrows Farm on Monday morning it came as a complete surprise to dairy farmers Chris and Caroline Hatch — they were preparing for one calf not three.

Chris said: 'This particular British Friesian cow has had one calf each year for the last three years so we were not expecting anything different.

'I checked her at 3am and nothing was happening she was just lying down. I went back at 7am and there she was with three healthy calves.'

Chris, who has 70 Friesians and a few Jersey cows, said the youngsters — two females and one male — were a good size and were feeding well from their mother: 'For them all to be as big and healthy as they were I think we were extremely lucky, we did not even need the vet.'

He added that the mother was getting a special mix of food as feeding three calves was very stressful and tiring.

In 15 years of farming Chris has never seen a set of triplets born and he may never again. According to vet Christopher Warren from Westmoor Veterinary Centre it is always a bit of a surprise when triplets are born: 'You are talking in terms of one in 50,000 to 100,000 births and they are not always born alive.

'I have dealt with three sets of triplets in 37 years so it is not a usual event.'

Chris and Caroline Hatch were previously beef and sheep farmers but changed to dairy farming in February which they say is 'the best thing we have ever done'.