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Nonetheless, it’s a story to remember on the Floyd Ranch in Northeast Montana. Being in business since 1913, it’s the only time this oddity has come about. So what’s it like to have a two-headed calf appear in the middle of your calving check?
Although it has been several years since the experience, Floyd remembers it vividly. During a routine check of the calving pasture, a family member alerted the rest to the oddity. Floyd and her husband, Bruce, took the bait and followed along. An unexpected natural birth, four eyes attached to one chocolate-brown body peered back at them when they reached their destination.
The family did the best they could. Awe struck them when they watched both mouths suck simultaneously while bottle-feeding the calf. Having a cleft pallet in both mouths prevented sufficient ingestion and tube-feeding ensued. However, some fates cannot be avoided. The curious calf slipped away after three days.
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Being newlyweds with minimal means, the Floyds discussed the animal with a good friend, Joe Bergtoll, who paid to take the calf to the taxidermist. A head mount of the unusual juvenile found its way to the back room of his Glasgow store, Town and Country Furniture, where it resided for over a decade.
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As the years have ticked on, the memory remains. Twenty years later, the Floyds made the choice to reimburse Bergtoll for his taxidermy expense and bring the calf home. With a new home on the same ranch, plans are to set up the abnormal four eyes in Bruce’s office.
Have a calving oddity to share? Tell us about it in the comments below!
© Haylie Shipp 2015
