Locals in an Indian village have been left stunned and fascinated after a cow gave birth to a calf with two heads.
Dailymail reported that the strange phenomenon in a village in Jalalpur, Uttar Pradesh, India, at the end of last month – has been described as a divine miracle.
Although the young cow has one body, it has two heads with a total of four eyes and two noses. But where the two heads separate, the cow still has just the two ears and a joined mouth.
Cattle are considered sacred in India under the nation’s prominent Hindu and Jain religions. The slaughter of cows is largely prohibited and they are free to amble unmolested in traffic-choked streets.
Despite the severe deformities, the cow is reportedly healthy and enjoying its young life in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh.
Two-headed animals generally have a condition called polycephaly – a term that derives from the Greek word poly, meaning ‘many’ and kephale, meaning ‘head’.
The majority of cows with this deformity are not expected to survive more than a couple of days, and in rare cases, more than a few months.
However, this young farm animal has been given a clean bill of health and so far enjoying its ten-day-old life.
Although the cow has a peculiar mouth that is still joined between its heads, it is still able to drink its mother’s milk.
Family members who reared the cow and local villagers have considered it to be a wonder of nature and many have gone so far as to suggested it is a divine miracle.
After the news spread, people from nearby districts and villages flocked to see this rare two-headed beast.
According to vets, this type of case can occur due to the abnormal development of cells during the development of the embryo.
Animals that develop the polycephaly condition, also referred to as dicephalic parapagus, have two heads on one torso.
Each head of a polycephalic animal has its own brain, and they share control of the organs and limbs, though the specific structure of the connections varies between each case.