• Article Photo. The Rich family members are especially excited about the birth of triplets -- triplet calves.
    The Rich family members are especially excited about the birth of triplets -- triplet calves.
  • Article Photo.
  • Article Photo.
  • Article Photo.
  • Article Photo. Jane, Janice and JoAnn, the one in two million triplets at the Rich Red Angus Farm.
    Jane, Janice and JoAnn, the one in two million triplets at the Rich Red Angus Farm.

The Rich Red Angus Farm southeast of Vinton is celebrating its newest youngsters, siblings Jane, Janice and JoAnn. 

The Red Angus calves give a literal meaning to the phrase "one in a million." Cattle experts estimate the odds of having triplet calves at 1 in every 105,000 births. The odds of a cow having three female calves at one time: Nearly 1 in two million. 

Mother and daughters are all fine, and the calves are eating from their mother as well as the supplemental bottles offered by members of the Rich Family, says Kurt Rich.

The family has bred and raised Red Angus cattle for many years, and plans a bull and cow auction at the farm on March 15. 

Kurt has named the calves Jane, Janice and JoAnn, and those names are quite familiar to friends of the Rich family. Jane is Kurt's wife; Janice and JoAnn are her sisters. Kurt said many people who see Jane with her sisters think they are twins or triplets, so sharing those names with the new trio came naturally.