How do I ranch animals?

[Viking Crusader]

I am trying to play more realistically with chickens and whatnot but im just lost in the sauce when it comes to strategy for animals. Like do i let my Roosters fert every egg or do i let the m do it for a few days then stop them for a few? also feeding them things like that. Is there an up to date guide that can help me?

[Gloomster569]

Hey Scraggly!

So in my experience, farming animals is pretty non profit... It isn't as good as getting the ol' rice farms up and going!

But as you mentioned. Playing for realism, (Which I totally respect btw, I try too). I suggest having as many fertile chickens as you think you need, and then killing the rooster. or just put it in a different pen. Chicken eggs contribute as the 10 meat in fine meals so 1 egg = 10 meat. This is good for combos with rice farms for easy fine meals. I assume its the same for better meals, maybe 2 eggs? Chickens lay an egg a day im pretty sure. So it does add up depending on the amount of prawns you have! I also strongly suggest "Fences" for a mod to help with realistic farms! Let me know if you have anymore questions :)

[Ant Ra]

I am a newbie but have tried from day 1 to use ranch and farm.

A ranch comes in benifit to produce an endless wave of flesh to produce levish meat (mood +10) for colonies, kibble and pemmican/packaged survival meal for all kind of (long haul) caravans.
Unless you have no devil strand farm you can make all clothes from finest leather wares. Friendly caravans from outside will visit your colony more frequently to buy your clothes.

But you will need the long living animals, all big ones with milk and wool. Dromedary, elk, caribou, cow and alpaka/camel for best wool (only). Whatever you have in your climate zone.
But beware of the "best" muffalo. Muffalos are hungry, really hungry. That hay managment to feed them...
Muffalos have the the most flesh, lots of milk, good wool (heat and cold save) but to feed them.. oooh. To let that feeding menace pass is the best to do.
Pretty sure there are other animals like muffalos but i have used atm only this climate zone where muffalos are, even if i have seen a wandering elephant horde near my settlement.

Or have fun with a boomrat ranch. Fuel and military testing field in once. Send tamed boomrats to your enemies and shoot... Why not ?

Btw, would love to build in future an Alphatrumbo ranch. Maybe with luck,

Ok, you can hunt. But hunting means lots of time wasted and lots of settlers are for 1-2 complete days bound for hunting. Often they come back with injuries because of aggressive animals. You know what a mad squirrel, rat, bunny can do. Look at that missing shot hitting a boomrat.. makes boooom. Dangerous predators will haunt your village if not enough wildlife prey is left. Hunting have no long live benefit but ranching and farming have.

Your shooters will kill very fast human attackers but hunting wild animals have a different ruleset, i am sure. Your best shooters (long range 16+ and sniper) have lots of missing shots and the time runs and runs and runs. Time your guy/s will miss in your settlement.

If you can reach overproducing you earn a fast silver all the time a caravan visit you. Nice to sell food instead of drugs, btw...

Oh, forgotten: If you want to have a ranch - Make wide buildings from stone if possible and with roof, cooler, heater, door. Restrict the animals into this building with special zone and set a hay storage inside. Safe your ranch !

Edit: Boomrats = Boomalope

[Gloomster569]

Originally posted by Nopel:

I am a newbie but have tried from day 1 to use ranch and farm.

A ranch comes in benifit to produce an endless wave of flesh to produce levish meat (mood +10) for colonies, kibble and pemmican/packaged survival meal for all kind of (long haul) caravans.
Unless you have no devil strand farm you can make all clothes from finest leather wares. Friendly caravans from outside will visit your colony more frequently to buy your clothes.

But you will need the long living animals, all big ones with milk and wool. Dromedary, elk, caribou, cow and alpaka/camel for best wool (only). Whatever you have in your climate zone.
But beware of the "best" muffalo. Muffalos are hungry, really hungry. That hay managment to feed them...
Muffalos have the the most flesh, lots of milk, good wool (heat and cold save) but to feed them.. oooh. To let that feeding menace pass is the best to do.
Pretty sure there are other animals like muffalos but i have used atm only this climate zone where muffalos are, even if i have seen a wandering elephant horde near my settlement.

Or have fun with a boomrat ranch. Fuel and military testing field in once. Send tamed boomrats to your enemies and shoot... Why not ?

Btw, would love to build in future an Alphatrumbo ranch. Maybe with luck,

Ok, you can hunt. But hunting means lots of time wasted and lots of settlers are for 1-2 complete days bound for hunting. Often they come back with injuries because of aggressive animals. You know what a mad squirrel, rat, bunny can do. Look at that missing shot hitting a boomrat.. makes boooom. Dangerous predators will haunt your village if not enough wildlife prey is left. Hunting have no long live benefit but ranching and farming have.

Your shooters will kill very fast human attackers but hunting wild animals have a different ruleset, i am sure. Your best shooters (long range 16+ and sniper) have lots of missing shots and the time runs and runs and runs. Time your guy/s will miss in your settlement.

If you can reach overproducing you earn a fast silver all the time a caravan visit you. Nice to sell food instead of drugs, btw... :letsgo:

Oh, forgotten: If you want to have a ranch - Make wide buildings from stone if possible and with roof, cooler, heater, door. Restrict the animals into this building with special zone and set a hay storage inside. Safe your ranch !

great tips!

[xicewindex]

As for chickens, what I usually do is,

Build them a coop, dosn't have to be that big just what you feel like the size a coop should have. Get a small stockpile init with hay only and on critical so your haulers will always put hay in if there is room.

Also make a small stockpile for fertilized eggs only, I usual put this in my butchery wich is adjectant to my stables. Make this one critical. You can keep fertilized eggs also checked in your freezer so if the breedingpile is full the rest go's in the freezer and is used for meals.

I let my chicken roam the map outside my base to eat grass except when its freezing.
Sure there will be casualties due to predator attacks and raiders ect but chickens breed so fast it won't be a problem to keep your population up.

I do keep 1 rooster and 2 hens restricted to the coop tough so if some major massacre happened to my outside chickens I always have a breeding set safe.

Be aware that chickens eat alot tough, much more than you would expect from lil birds so make sure you have enough hay for winter.

Edited to add that chickens need a temperature above -5 degrees so a heater is definitaly needed.

Stables in general don't really need that much heating/cooling the comforteble range for muffalo's for example is from -50 to +50 celcius. I only heat the chickencoop when its freezing outside.

[Ant Ra]

Originally posted by xicewindex:

As for chickens, what I usually do is,

Build them a coop, dosn't have to be that big just what you feel like the size a coop should have. Get a small stockpile init with hay only and on critical so your haulers will always put hay in if there is room.

Also make a small stockpile for fertilized eggs only, I usual put this in my butchery wich is adjectant to my stables. Make this one critical. You can keep fertilized eggs also checked in your freezer so if the breedingpile is full the rest go's in the freezer and is used for meals.

I let my chicken roam the map outside my base to eat grass except when its freezing.
Sure there will be casualties due to predator attacks and raiders ect but chickens breed so fast it won't be a problem to keep your population up.

I do keep 1 rooster and 2 hens restricted to the coop tough so if some major massacre happened to my outside chickens I always have a breeding set safe.

Be aware that chickens eat alot tough, much more than you would expect from lil birds so make sure you have enough hay for winter.

Edited to add that chickens need a temperature above -5 degrees so a heater is definitaly needed.

Stables in general don't really need that much heating/cooling the comforteble range for muffalo's for example is from -50 to +50 celcius. I only heat the chickencoop when its freezing outside.

I use heater/cooler for the calfs. After i have experienced a heat wave aswell 2 coldwaves that killed all my newborns and eggs i decided to have a "full comfort stable". Guess better it is to be prepared.
And if i build up a chicken farm if i am in a new climate zone i will take your advice how to build too..

[Viking Crusader]

Thanks everyone for the tips I will keep giving it a shot and see how it goes.

[AKP]

Originally posted by Viking Crusader:

Thanks everyone for the tips I will keep giving it a shot and see how it goes.

how did it go?

[di eshor ribly]

Originally posted by Sneed_Waffen:

Originally posted by Viking Crusader:

Thanks everyone for the tips I will keep giving it a shot and see how it goes.

how did it go?

It's been five years, I doubt they remember now.

[hardy_conrad]

They probably have plenty of chickens after all that time anyway.

[trashoras]

Originally posted by Sneed_Waffen:

Originally posted by Viking Crusader:

Thanks everyone for the tips I will keep giving it a shot and see how it goes.

how did it go?

nice necro

[AKP]

Originally posted by trashoras:

Originally posted by Sneed_Waffen:

how did it go?

nice necro

They call me Vlad Carstein