Managing animals in RimWorld adds depth and complexity to your colony’s survival. When it comes to feeding penned animals, the process may seem simple at first, but it requires careful planning, resource management, and an understanding of the animals’ unique needs. Whether you’re raising livestock for food, wool, or companionship, keeping them fed and healthy is vital. Poor animal care can lead to starvation, mood penalties, and even colony-wide disasters. Feeding penned animals properly ensures your colony thrives and makes the most of the benefits animals can offer.
Understanding Penned Animals in RimWorld
What Are Penned Animals?
Penned animals are those that require a designated pen area instead of following a master or wandering freely. These animals are typically livestock, such as cows, sheep, chickens, yaks, pigs, and others used for farming purposes. They need to be enclosed within a pen to prevent them from escaping and to allow proper management of their diet and breeding.
Why Feeding Matters
Feeding penned animals is essential not just to keep them alive, but also to ensure they remain productive. Malnourished animals stop producing milk, wool, or eggs, and their health deteriorates quickly. Starving animals can also trigger negative moodlets among colonists who witness their suffering or death.
How to Feed Penned Animals
Grazing on Natural Grass
Some herbivorous penned animals can graze on grass if your pen includes rich soil and is located outdoors. This is the easiest and most low-maintenance way to feed them, but it depends heavily on biome and weather conditions. Grass does not grow in cold or arid climates, and during winter or toxic fallout, grazing becomes impossible.
- Ensure your pen includes large, open grassy areas.
- Keep animal density low enough to prevent overgrazing.
- Monitor grass regrowth some biomes are slower than others.
Providing Hay or Plant-Based Food
When grazing isn’t an option or the population of animals is too high, you’ll need to manually feed them. Haygrass is the most efficient crop for this purpose.
- Grow haygrass in fertile soil and harvest it when mature.
- Store hay indoors to prevent deterioration from rain and temperature.
- Place hay in stockpiles or feed troughs inside the pen for easy access.
In emergencies, animals can also eat vegetables like corn, potatoes, or kibble. However, using food intended for colonists is not sustainable for long-term animal care.
Using Feed Troughs
Feed troughs are furniture items designed specifically for penned animals. Colonists will automatically haul hay, kibble, or vegetables to these troughs if stockpiles are nearby. Feed troughs prevent spoilage of food and help animals eat more efficiently.
- Build troughs near the center of your pen for easy access.
- Assign colonists with high hauling priority to maintain food levels.
- Do not rely solely on animal AI make sure food is consistently stocked.
Feeding Special Animal Types
Omnivores and Carnivores
While most penned animals are herbivores, some omnivorous animals may end up in pens if you’re using mods or special scenarios. Omnivores can eat both plant and animal products, but their diet must still be managed carefully.
- Feed kibble to omnivores it satisfies both meat and plant needs.
- Do not feed raw meat unless necessary it can spoil quickly and attract predators.
- Ensure carnivores are not penned unless you can supply constant meat or corpses.
Chickens and Other Small Livestock
Chickens breed quickly and eat a surprising amount of food. Without proper feeding, your chicken population can collapse or spiral out of control. The same applies to ducks, turkeys, and other small livestock.
- Use separate pens for small and large animals to manage feeding better.
- Regularly cull excess animals to reduce food consumption.
- Collect eggs daily before they spoil or become fertilized unexpectedly.
Maintaining an Efficient Feeding System
Automating Hauling and Storage
One of the most frustrating parts of feeding animals in RimWorld is keeping their food supplies stocked. Colonists with hauling enabled will restock feed troughs, but this can be inefficient without good scheduling.
- Use hauling zones to limit how far colonists need to walk.
- Assign animals to handlers who also haul if possible.
- Keep hay stockpiles close to pens for quick delivery.
Temperature and Food Spoilage
Food can spoil quickly in warm or wet environments. Spoiled hay is useless and must be discarded, causing waste and extra labor.
- Build roofed or indoor pens when possible to prevent rain spoilage.
- Store excess hay in coolers or climate-controlled barns.
- Monitor food stockpiles to rotate and refresh as needed.
Common Mistakes and How to Avoid Them
Overpopulation
Raising too many animals at once is a common mistake. The more animals you keep, the more food you need. Without a strict breeding control system, your pen can become overcrowded, leading to starvation and disease.
- Use slaughter zones or manually manage animal population size.
- Check the nutrition value required daily and match it with food production.
Inaccessible Food
Sometimes food is available in the pen, but animals cannot reach it due to walls, fences, or zoning issues.
- Ensure feed troughs are accessible to all animals within the pen.
- Do not place walls or obstructions between animals and their food source.
Neglect During Winter or Disaster Events
Cold seasons or disasters like toxic fallout can wipe out all grazing food and cause animal starvation.
- Stockpile hay before winter arrives or during stable seasons.
- Keep a backup of kibble or vegetables in emergency storage.
- Relocate animals to indoor pens when the environment becomes deadly.
Optimizing Animal Feeding for Colony Benefits
Livestock Production Efficiency
Healthy, well-fed animals produce more resources. For example, cows give milk, alpacas produce wool, and chickens lay eggs daily. Optimizing their feeding translates directly to colony growth and sustainability.
Trading and Resource Management
Animals raised with care can be sold for silver, meat, or leather. Feeding them properly increases their market value. It also strengthens your ability to barter with trade caravans and visitors.
Meat Supply and Food Security
Culling animals provides a steady meat source. By maintaining a controlled population and feeding them well, you ensure an emergency supply of protein in times of famine or siege.
Feeding penned animals in RimWorld is more than just placing food in a trough. It involves planning, observation, and ongoing management of both the environment and the animals themselves. Grazing works in some biomes, but growing hay, managing food stockpiles, and controlling population are essential for a stable colony. Understanding the feeding mechanics allows players to raise productive livestock, avoid crises, and turn their animals into a long-term investment. Whether you’re a veteran or a newcomer to RimWorld, mastering animal care will make your colony stronger and more resilient against the challenges of the rim.