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Every job in the fantasy world comes with its own perks and disadvantages. One of them, the fantasy rancher, has a ton more pros than cons, one being that you get to work with animals all day. There’s nothing more fun than spending time with them since you have no idea how they’ll react to things you do with them.
The rancher’s operations are solely out in the countryside due to the ample land and the relatively low number of people who live out there. This makes it easy for him to interact with animals since he doesn’t need to worry about a whole bevy of people interrupting him as he does his work as well as giving him the opportunity to engage in some one-on-one time with the animals under his care.
The life of a fantasy rancher changes everyday, making it one of the most exciting occupations someone could have. Some days, he’ll be moving the cattle from one field to another whereas other days, he’ll be giving them their medicine or checking for signs of infection. Sometimes the animals will collaborate, other times they will be difficult to work with.
What animals does the rancher typically work with? It depends on what you have in your world. Horses and cows are a mainstay in many imaginary worlds so it doesn’t come as a surprise to have them in yours. You could even make up your own or use mythical creatures like the unicorn!
A fantasy rancher contributes to the world by taking care of animals that will be sold to other people or businesses, depending on what type of animal it is. There are some that specialize in wounded creatures where they devote plenty of time nursing them back to health, for a fee of course.
This is the third article in the series diving into the various kinds of fantasy occupations. If you want to see what other articles we have, you can find more on our blog page!
The best part of being a fantasy rancher is that it is an occupation full of excitement, largely due to working with animals. You’re also outside all day, whether it’s nice and bright or raining. You feel the wind caress your face as you’re riding your horse while moving the herd from one place to another.
The average rancher owns a sizable amount of land, thereby giving the animals he’s raising plenty of space to graze or forage on. This is precisely the reason why you always see ranches out in the country, not in the city. Most of them have some water running through their land, usually a stream or river, where their animals can drink it.
Every now and now, the rancher has to move the herd from one part of his ranch to another so that they don’t completely eat the grass down to the root. He employs several workers to help him move the herd which can take hours to days, depending on how far they have to go. For those that span multiple days, the rancher and his workers sleep in tents overnight, taking turns to watch the herd.
Every ranch has a stable and barn where they keep the animals under their care overnight as well as keeping them safe from weather. Some of them like being confined inside but others clamor to be outside where they can run around freely. Their mood dictates how much they’re willing to collaborate which makes working with them all the more exciting, since their temperament can change in the blink of an eye!
The animals the fantasy rancher are taking care of aren’t the only ones around. He has to deal with wild, vicious beasts like wolves who are looking for a quick kill. The rancher will take every measure he has to in order to protect his animals, even killing wild ones if that means saving them from harm.
When they’re ready to be sold, the rancher can negotiate directly with a customer or business where he seeks to get as much money as he can out of it. Other times, he’ll simply have them auctioned off and he’ll attend the auction just to see how much money other people are willing to fork over for his animals. He takes great pride in seeing other people bid on the animals he lovingly raised.
So what wonderful creatures can you find on a ranch? Many fantasy worlds take their cue from the real world, featuring animals like cows and horses, making the ranches in these worlds feel quite similar to their real brethren. Since you’re creating a fictional world from scratch, there’s no harm in using them but you can also use this as an opportunity to create your own!
The number one animal the fantasy rancher works with is the cow. Cows are one of the most versatile animals in the world, owing to their ability to produce milk and people love eating the meat that comes from them. They’re great at eating grass and their moos of contentment are delightful to hear!
Besides cows, horses are a mainstay of ranches. They serve a multitude of functions from being used as a means of transport for people to get around on to pulling carriages. Moreover, they develop a rapport with the people they spend a lot of time with and some ranchers work with them to be fantastic for whoever winds up owning them down the road.
Let’s not forget chickens. These small fowl are an excellent source of meat and the eggs they lay are used in many food dishes. The average fantasy rancher has a good number of chickens on his property; however he uses them primarily for egg production. These birds take care of the worms and bugs that plague the ranch.
Sheep is another animal you see on many ranches. This is because their wool is used to make clothes. When the time is right, the rancher shears the wool off and sells it to the local tailor shop, thereby netting a nice profit. Over time, it’ll grow back and the rancher will simply shear it off again.
If you’d like, you can develop your own, unique fantasy animal or you can use a mythical like the unicorn and have the rancher take care of it. There’s no shortage to the possibilities you can come up with! If you do this, be sure to give a good reason why a rancher would be interested in having it on his land. If it doesn’t make sense to your audience, it will make it harder for them to fully immerse themselves in your world!
Since he primarily focuses on animals, the rancher contributes to the world by working with animals in a variety of ways, all of which are designated for the day when he sells or gives them away. Though he would love to keep all the animals that come his way, he has to make a living which means he has to sell them.
Since many fantasy worlds take place in medieval times, there aren’t as many jobs where people can work with animals as you see in the real world. Additionally, they view a lot of animals as a threat to them since they don’t know a lot about them. This gives ranchers the perfect chance to show that not all animals pose a threat to people.
The average fantasy rancher doesn’t just work with animals; he strives to learn as much as he can about them. He wants to understand why they act the way they do. In other words, he studies them to gain a complete understanding of them which he can use to show people that many animals are simply misunderstood or mischaracterized. He does so by spending time with them, seeing what they like to eat, and so on. This is true, especially for those working with animals they haven’t worked with before.
With the goal of selling animals, the rancher endeavors to get them in prime condition. This means exercising them and giving them the best food they can afford. Every now and then, he and his employees check them for diseases and other maladies so that they can give them the medicine they need before it’s too late.
When they’re ready, the fantasy rancher sells them to either customers or other businesses. Through his hard work and caring for them, the animals he sells are in excellent condition which will definitely be appreciated by whoever winds up with them, making them more likely to buy more in the future or recommend the rancher to other people.
From dawn to dusk, the fantasy rancher is outside, working with animals all day. Whether it’s moving them from a field to a stream or giving them some TLC, the rancher is striving to get them in the best shape as he possibly can in the hopes that out there, there’s someone who will fork over money in return for the animals he’s caring for.
One of the best parts of being a rancher is the plentiful amount of land he owns, way out in the country. He can focus on giving as much attention as he can to the animals under his wing without the hassle of having a lot of people bothering him or them. Taking care of them keeps him on his toes or his steed for extended periods of time!
A fantasy rancher works with all sorts of animals. Many ranchers in the genre work with those found in the real world like horses or chickens. If you want to use one you created for your world, go ahead and use it. It’ll be nice to show something different and unique which your audience will enjoy!
The rancher’s work with animals helps the world in that people learn how to interact with them, at least in the proper way. As a bonus, he makes money by selling the ones he raised and took care of!
If you’re populating your world with many different kinds of occupations, you can’t go wrong with bringing that of the fantasy rancher into yours!
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Sunfire
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