Toddler who suckles from cow ‘is fine’
The boy, Tha Sophat, made international headlines after his grandfather revealed he had been feeding himself directly from a cow since July when a storm destroyed his home and his parents left for Thailand to find work.
After he stopped breast-feeding from his mother, the boy became ill, said the 46-year-old grandfather.
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Hide AdThe boy watched a calf nurse from its mother, and began to do the same thing, feeding directly from the cow each day, Um Oeung added.
When he pulled him away, the boy cried, so he let him continue, Um Oeung said yesterday.
Neighbours and local officials in the village of Pheas in Siem Reap province, about 195 miles from the capital Phnom Penh, say they are not happy about the nursing.
“They blame me and have told me not to allow him to suckle from the cow anymore.
“They say that the boy will be ashamed when he grows up and that he will be naughty,” he said.
Since Saturday, he has limited the suckling to once a day.
“His health is fine, he is strong and he doesn’t have diarrhoea,” said Um Oeung.