Some breeds of cattle (i.e. highland cattle of various sorts; Galloway are a good example) can survive on surprisingly scrubby land. For obvious reasons, I figured Heortlings to have highland-type cattle, and not "Jersey cows" or similar.
> Also bear in mind Heort's Laws: 1 cow = 5 pigs = 7 sheep =
> 0.25 horse. I suspect this represents the ratio the animals
> can be found in.
I wouldn't agree with that, necessarily; I would have put the number of pigs from that ratio too high. At least, they are in my Glorantha, where pigs are not very common (wild boar, on the other hand...).
> Actually, that can be turned around the other way. Cattle pull
> ploughs and provide milk, sheep provide wool (and milk, too) - so you
> want to keep them alive as long as possible, not kill them. If you
> want to add some meat to your diet, the easiest and cheapest method is
> to slaughter a pig. Only the rich eat beef, but anyone can get pork
> or bacon.
My understanding is a little different. In sheep herds and cattle herds you keep the females around for a good length of time. The lifespan of male cattle and sheep (outside of breeding) is pretty short. A plow team most probably consists of a small number of steer-cattle, and would have a longer lifespan than your average steer, as their's worth in keeping them around longer.
I suspect the same is true of pigs; you keep the breeding sows around for the length of their useful fertility, and cull males (except for breeding males) and some females every year.
Feeding livestock in the winter is tricky business: I wonder what those pigs will eat in the winter time? They certainly can't forage with the same success, especially in climates where the winters are bitterly cold.
> >And speaking of pure food animals, I wonder if the Orlanthi
> >keep rabbits?
>
> In our world they were introduced to Northern Europe by the
> Romans. Maybe in Glorantha they're another Lunar innovation?
> ;-)
Ah! That makes a certain degree of success! And it gives me some scenario ideas too ... Infernal Lunar Vermin that they are! (Of course, all good Lunars know that Rabbits are the food animal to the world, and have the odd ability to be fertile more or less at will: no doubt a chaotic gift from the Red Goddess herself.)
> Depends on the area. In southern Europe, it got too hot for cows in
> summer in the lowlands so they were moved up the hills - then in
> winter they came back down to the warmer valleys. (Technical term for
> this: transhumance). In England cows were kept close to the village -
> because they kept one field fallow each year, that could be used as
> pasture. Also, once the harvest was brought in the cattle were turned
> loose on the fields to eat the stubble (and grow fat ready for the
> coming slaughter...). Finally, there was usually a hay-field (often
> in marshy land close to a stream), and the hay would be used to feed
> the cattle over the winter.
Good detail! Thanks.
> Climate-wise, I think Sartar is closer to Britain than Italy;
> but maybe they practice transhumance in Heortland.
I agree -- I think of Heortland as the Yorkshire Dales, or bits of northern Germany or central Ontario.
> Sheep tend to eat an area bare if they're left there too long,
> so it makes sense to move them around more.
But they make EXCELLENT lawn mowers. You can always tell a hobby farm that has sheep in my area: the grass in the laneway is always kept immaculately cropped. 8)
> Animals are not necessarily kept in a separate byre; they're
> more likely to be down one end of the same longhouse the
> humans live in. Keeps things warm!
Well, not in my Glorantha. I know it's not "authentic", but I prefer to have more of a "humans sleep here, anmials are out in the barn" kind of feel to my setting.
> Modern pigs maybe - they've been selectively bred to be huge,
> hairless and lazy. Small, bristly ancient-era pigs are likely
> to have been much more hardy.
Good point. Many modern sheep strains, for example, have some difficulty giving birth without intervention, too.
> A good adventure seed would be for PCs to be sent to clear out
> the shielings after the winter and get them ready for
> habitation again - only to find something else has taken up
> residence there...
Ah!! Thanks very much for that adventure nugget!
-- Viktor
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