– Every Farmer has a Clint and Kelsey McClellan –
Three times the charm
Clint and Kelsey McClellan of Humboldt are blessed with triplets
By Page Haynes
– Every Farmer has a Story with Clint and Kelsey McClellan –
Three times the charm
Clint and Kelsey McClellan of Humboldt are blessed with triplets
By Page Haynes
What started as a routine Saturday on February 21st at the small cow/calf operation of Clint and Kelsey McClellan in Humboldt turned into a notable surprise that afternoon. The black Balancer cow they call “tag number #193” calved unassisted to triplets! Triplet calves are extremely rare, with odds of occurring approximately one in every 105,000 births. While twins are uncommon, triplets — particularly when all three survive and are healthy — are nearly unheard of in cattle farming.
“We had basically been running errands all morning the day she calved,” says Clint. “Knowing that she might go into labor, we were watching out for her. But she surprised us! By the time we found her, she had licked them clean, and all three were up and going. We moved them to the barn and tried to help, but she did most of the work and is still taking great care of them.”
The triplets have garnered steady interest from friends and neighbors, who often visit with children and grandchildren to see them. Frequently, triplet calves need extra care from farmers to ensure they survive. Clint and Kelsey quickly prepared a bottle to supplement the mother’s milk, but only one of the female calves took it. The other two, a female and a bull, only nurse from the cow. All three continue to thrive, and their mother is recovering at a normal pace.
The natural-born triplets are from a Balancer cow that was artificially bred to a purebred Gelbvieh bull. Balancers are a hybrid breed of beef cattle, a combination of 25 to 75 percent Gelbvieh with the balance Angus or Red Angus. Balancer cattle are bred for their hybrid vigor, resulting in a higher growth rate and better-quality meat. Since the female calves were born as a twin to a male, there’s a 92-percent chance that they will be “freemartin” and infertile, says Clint.
Clint and Kelsey raise cattle on a fifth-generation family farm near Humboldt, owned by his family since 1892. Clint’s late parents, Edward and Nancy Cheryl McClellan, first started him with bottle calves in grade school, and he later expanded into beef cattle during high school. Their small operation runs about 20 to 25 cow/calf pairs annually, they retain calves to finish and then sell them as direct-to-consumer beef — primarily halves and wholes — averaging around 20 finished head per year.
“I love all the calves, but these three right here are special.” — Kelsey McClellan
Clint emphasizes the advantages of the Gelbvieh breed, citing strong maternal instincts and efficient weight gains.
“It’s not uncommon for us to wean 600- to 700-pound calves every fall,” says Clint. “Our cows calve from February through March, and we’ll wean the middle of August, and we’ll have some good-sized calves.
“What I like best is their docility,” he says. “My parents were older but still very active on the farm, and my main help [Kelsey] didn’t have much experience with cattle, so we switched to Gelbviehs, and the docility has made a world of difference to us.”
Clint and Kelsey are members of the Tennessee Cattlemen’s Association and the Gibson County Cattlemen’s Association and have consulted with the state association via social media regarding the triplets. They are also dedicated patrons of United Co-op in Alamo, where they purchase cattle feed, crop protection products, and fertilizer.
Kelsey, originally from Milan, only became involved in farming after the couple met in January 2023. She works as an agent with Tennessee Farm Bureau in the Trenton office and has embraced her new role as a “cowgirl,” expressing excitement and affection for the triplet calves.
Beyond cattle, Clint works full-time as a farrier, describing shoeing horses as his “40-hour job” and cattle as his “60-hour job.” He typically does his farrier work in the mornings and manages cattle in the afternoons, reversing the schedule in hot weather to complete cattle chores before the heat. His farrier business covers a wide regional area — from Somerville in the south to Paris in the north, including Lexington, Jackson, and Dyersburg — and consists mostly of repeat customers on a six-week cycle.
While both Clint and Kelsey have jobs elsewhere during the day, both say being involved in the cattle business has been a fulfilling experience, and there’s “something different every day.”
“I love all the calves, but these three right here are special,” says Kelsey, lighting up with enthusiasm. “We had a set of twins born last year, and we thought we were doing well, but this year has been quite exciting already. It just keeps getting better.”
Location manager Grant Mayfield of United Co-op in Alamo visits with Clint McClellan at the family farm in Humboldt. Clint says the Alamo Co-op has been “a real blessing to us. I call them with questions all the time, and they take care of anything we need.”
By Page Haynes,
Contact phaynes@ourcoop.com