Ranching

**Ranching** is a core game mechanic in Paleo Pines that encompasses all of the things needing done to keep your dino friends happy. The player will need to make them Pens, keep them fed, pet them daily, feed them treats, and keep their pens clean in order to keep them as a happy Helper on the ranch.

## Pens

Each dino needs a **Pen** to be happy. Pens are built out of **Fences** and **Gates**. They should contain a **Sleeping Spot** for each dino, a **Trough** for food, and at least one Gate so the dino can get in and out.

Dinos can share a pen, but they need enough space. Check the journal entry for a dino's species to see how much space it needs. To see a pen's current size, equip the journal and take a look at the pen gate- this will also show any problems with the pen -or check the roster in the journal.

GateRope Fence
### Biomes

Each pen has a **Biome**, which is the kind of landscape it resembles. Any new pen has the biome type "ranch", and there is one biome type available for each region- Valley, Forest and Desert. Dinos are happiest in the biome that resembles the area they live in in the wild. This information is shown in the journal's dinosaur record.

The player can change the biome type of a pen by adding the appropriate decoration items. If the player has enough decoration of a particular biome type based on the pen's scale, the pen's appearance will change to match the biome and a message will be displayed. Decorative items from Veridian Valley and Dapplewood Forest can be purchased from Corlan. Desert plants can be purchased from Alyx in Ariacotta Canyon.

#### *Valley Plants*

* Veridian Wild Bush

Young Heather BushMature Heather BushPoinsettia BushPampas Grass
#### *Forest Plants*

* Fly Agaric
* Dapplewood Wild Bush
* Forest Flame

Foxglove
#### *Desert Plants*

Ball CactusBlack BushBuckhorn ChollaCreosoteSmall SaguaroLarge SaguaroYucca Flower

Another way to change biome type is to upgrade **Sleeping Spots**. By selecting a Dreamstone after placing it in the ranch, the player get three options to choose from, one for each biome type. Add the required resources to upgrade the Dreamstone to a sleeping patch that suits the dino's preferences.

Small Sleeping PatchSmall Valley Sleeping Patch (Upgraded)Small Forest Sleeping Patch (Upgraded)Small Desert Sleeping Patch (Upgraded)Large Sleeping PatchLarge Valley Sleeping Patch (Upgraded)Large Forest Sleeping Patch (Upgraded)Large Desert Sleeping Patch (Upgraded)
### Social Needs

Another thing to consider when building a pen is the social needs for the dinosaurs. Dinosaurs fall under three social categories - **Loner**, **Pack** and **Herd**, and these impact not only how big a pen needs to be but also how the happiness of the inhabitants is affected.

* **Loner** dinosaurs can only be exhibited by themselves and will react negatively to the presence of any other dinosaur in their pen.
* **Pack** dinosaurs can be exhibited by themselves, but prefer to be kept in groups of two or three. This can be achieved by multiple members of their own species, or other species. However, they will become unhappy if kept in groups larger than three.
* **Herd** dinosaurs can only be exhibited in groups, ideally of three or more. As with pack dinosaurs, these can consist of same-species or mixed-species groups. They will tolerate being kept in pairs, but not on their own.

Whilst smaller dinosaurs naturally require smaller exhibits, many of them are pack or herd animals, which can drastically increase their size. For example, the herd-living Coelophysis requires an exhibit of at least 36 square metres for three animals to be happy, which is only 14 square metres less than the loner-living Carnotaurus requires.

## Feeding

All dinosaurs need food to live, and if the player doesn't give them food while on the ranch, they will leave and find food elsewhere. The player must place at least one food trough inside of a pen, which can then be filled with food. Herbivores eat Herbivore Food, carnivores eat Carnivore Food, and omnivores are happy with either. Food can be purchased from Corlan, however, herbivore food can also be found in the wild while exploring.

Every species consumes a different amount of food each day, so food must be included for every dino in the pen. The player can check the journal's dinosaur record to see how much they need per day. Treats and Poppins do not count towards the amount of food a dinosaur consumes each day.

The player may place multiple troughs in one pen and the dinos will gladly eat from all of them. Additionally, the player can special order larger troughs from Marlo in Pebble Plaza. However, herbivores may become uneasy if there is a food trough in their pen that contains Carnivore Food, even if there is also another with Herbivore Food inside of it.