Welcome to the Alphabet Ranch!

Many creatures make the ranch home. Every type here eats only plants – not meat only or meat as well as plants. Some popular foods here are grass, corn, hay, alfalfa and apples.

Let’s load up on the wagon. Our draft horses, Molly and Queeny, are harnessed up and ready to pull the wagon.

We need you to help feed our creatures today on the ranch, but we have some rules. Rule one, don’t stand up as the wagon moves. Rule two, don’t feed the zebras or the longhorn cattle. The zebras have sharp teeth and the cattle have sharp horns. Rule three, feed each creature the way that works for each creature’s mouth.

Let’s get on the wagon road! The axles may squeak, but they are not too loud to scare the creatures.

Here are the llamas. Feed them out of a flat hand.

Here are the sheep. The males have those curled horns. Feed them out of a flat hand.

Here are the standard goats. They look shaggy because they don’t need cold weather fur for warm weather. Feed them out of a flat hand.

Here are the zebras. Don’t feed them! Oops, yes, they are walk by the wagon and eat feed off the wagon floor!

Here are emus and rheas. They are huge compared to other feathered creatures. And look! That rhea has many baby rheas near her. She can tell them apart by the feathers’ colors – tan, ecru, brown, gray. Feed the emus and rheas out of the bucket, not your hand. Those beaks are sharp!

Here are the water buffalo sunk below the surface of the pond. They are hungry and up on hooves to get some food. Feed the Brahma bulls and the water buffalo on the tongue: drop a handful of food onto that large muscley, slobbery tongue.

Here are the deer. Feed them out of a flat hand. Don’t throw the feed at them. Feed dust can get up the noses or on the eyes. Ouch!

Here are the longhorn cattle. Don’t feed them! The horns are sharp!

We are back at the barn where the draft horses stay. Do you have more feed left? You can take a walk to the creatures by the garden. There are pygmy goats and more sheep who want to eat. Do you remember how to feed goats and sheep? Yes, out of a flat hand. A pygmy goat has already grown up, even though a standard goat baby would be that small. They are very cute! Make sure they get feed, not just the sheep who bump them out of the way to get to your hand.

Now what do we do? Wash all that goat and emu and sheep and deer and cow slobber off of our hands!