Domestic animal

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v50.14 · v0.47.05 This article is about the current version of DF. Note that some content may still need to be updated. More Info · V

Domestic animals are creatures that can be used by dwarves one way or another without taming or training, usually for security or food. Distinguished by having the [COMMON_DOMESTIC] tag in the raws, they can be bought at embark or traded for with caravans. Wild versions of domesticated animals (horses, muskoxen, etc.) can be tamed and used normally.

Every embark starts with two free domestic draft animals which pull the wagon to the fortress site. These can be any of the animals in the list below with the [WAGON_PULLER] tag (Horses, Yaks and Water Buffalos) which are available at embark. Note, the two animals may not be from the same species. Embarking with a sufficient quantity of goods can result in multiple wagons, each of which comes with another two animals. A fortress has no use for wagons after embark except to be deconstructed for wood, so these animals can be slaughtered or kept for breeding and making your dwarves happy as pets.

With the exception of the two free draft animals, the player may choose which gender of animals purchased at embark. Only one male is necessary for breeding. Depending on the animal, you may wish to limit breeding altogether.

Comparison of domestic mammals

When butchered, all adult domestic mammals yield one skull and one raw hide. All milkable mammals give the same value milk and appear to be milkable at the same frequency. The embark costs shown apply to both adults and juveniles of either sex. All domestic mammals reach adolescence at 1 year and adulthood at 2 years, except cavies, which take half as long. All grazing animals require a pasture; the lower the 'grazer' value, the larger the size of the required pasture.

Animal	Embark cost	Pet value	Size when full-grown*	Total edible†‡	Bones‡	Horns + hooves	Milkable?	Shearable?	Grazer§	Notes
Alpaca	101	200	70,000	35	16	0	Yes	Yes	2614
Cavy	2	3	800	0	0	0	No	No	74768	Commonly called guinea pigs
Cat	11	20	5,000	14	4	0	No	No		Adopts owners. Hunts vermin. Beware Catsplosion!
Cow	151	300	600,000	37	15	6	Yes	No	522
Dog	16	30	30,000	37	11	0	No	No		Trainable as war dogs or hunting dogs, which can also be bought for 31☼
Donkey	101	200	300,000	30	13	4	Yes	No	878
Goat	26	50	50,000	27	10	6	Yes	No	3364
Horse	101	200	500,000	32	13	4	Yes	No	599
Llama	101	200	180,000	36	18	0	Yes	Yes	1287
Mule	101	200	400,000	34	13	4	No	No	708	Sterile in real life; all male in Dwarf Fortress
Pig	51	100	60,000	17	8	4	Yes	No		Only milkable domestic animal that does not graze
Sheep	51	100	50,000	27	8 or 10¶	4 or 6¶	Yes	Yes	3364	Cheapest shearable domestic animal
Rabbit	2	3	500	0	0	0	No	No	106,366
Reindeer	101	200	130,000	28	16	6	Yes	No	1643
Water Buffalo	101	200	1,000,000	70	20	6	Yes	No	356
Yak	101	200	700,000	42	16	6	Yes	No	465

* Gives a crude estimate of ability in combat, and thus danger to hunters. This number comes from the raws, so it might also be a better estimate of butchering results than the dodgy numbers from this wiki.

† Total of meat, fat, and offal.

‡ Maximum reported in infoboxes in this wiki, April 2011. Strongly influenced by individual attributes, especially for larger animals. Use with caution!

§ A lower number means the animal needs to graze more often, and will thus need a larger pasture. Cats and dogs have the [CARNIVORE] tag and do not graze or require pasture.

¶ The higher number is for rams.

Comparison of domestic poultry

All domestic poultry have a pet value of 10 and cost 6☼ at embark. Blue peafowl, geese, and guineafowl reach adolescence at six months and are full-grown after one year; ducks, chickens and turkeys reach adolescence at one year and are full-grown after two years. When butchered, all full-grown poultry yield one skull; those that yield bones also yield a raw hide. However, domestic poultry are much more efficient when used for egg production than as a meat source; over the lifetime of an average hen, many more meals can be produced from the eggs. This is especially true for ducks and guineafowl.

Animal	Min. eggs	Max. eggs	Avg. eggs*	Egg size‖	Years til full-grown	Max Age	Size when full-grown	Total edible†‡	Bones‡
Blue peafowl	6	8	7	102	1	15-30	4000	17	6
Chicken	4	15	9.5	62	2	7-15	3000	13	4
Duck	8	13	10.5	52	2	7-9	1000	0	0
Goose	3	8	5.5	152	1	10-24	4500	17-18	6
Guineafowl	4	15	9.5	42	1	10-15	1500	0§	0
Turkey	10	14	12	87	2	7-10	5000	19	6

* Estimate based on mean of minimum and maximum clutch sizes.

† Total of meat, fat, and intestines.

‡ Reported in infoboxes in this wiki, April 2011. Might be influenced by individual attributes. Use with caution!

§ A yield of 2 meat, 2 fat, a skin, and a skull has been reported for butchering a guineafowl. This seems to be rare.

‖ Egg size does not currently affect food quantity