Minecraft is a popular sandbox game that allows players to explore, gather resources, craft items, and build structures. One important element of the game is farming and breeding animals like cows. Cows are a great source of food and resources in Minecraft. By breeding cows, you can grow your herd to produce a steady supply of beef, leather, and milk. Follow this easy guide to learn how to find, feed, and breed cows in Minecraft.
Finding Cows
Cows spawn naturally in most Minecraft worlds. They generate in the plains and savanna biomes in herds of 2-4 cows. To find cows, explore these open grassy biomes until you spot the distinctive black and white patchwork cow. Plains and savannas are common biomes, so cows shouldn’t be too difficult to locate.
Another option is to transport cows with a lead. Use a lead on an existing cow, then walk the cow back to your base. Bring two cows to start breeding a cow farm. With just a few cows, you’ll be able to produce a large herd.
Feeding Cows
Once you’ve found some cows, you need to feed them to prepare them for breeding. Cows eat wheat and hay bales. To feed a cow, hold the wheat in your hand and right click on the cow. Each use of wheat will reduce the cow’s breeding wait time by 10%.
Hay bales instantly set the cow’s breeding time to 0, allowing it to enter love mode. To get hay bales, use 9 wheat in a crafting grid. Feed each cow you want to breed a hay bale to put it into love mode immediately.
Breeding Cows
When two cows are fed and set to love mode, they will breed a baby cow. Cows bred this way will take about 20 minutes to mature into adults that can breed again.
To tell when a cow is ready to breed, look for large pink and white love hearts floating above the cow. This means the cow is ready to find a mate. Bring two cows with the love hearts close together and feed them both. Hearts will appear around the cows as they go into love mode and breed a calf.
The baby cow will have a smaller model and higher pitched sounds. In around 20 minutes, the baby cow will grow into an adult that can then be bred again. By repeating this process, two cows can quickly become a sizable herd.
Housing Cows
Cows will roam freely across the landscape if not contained. To keep your cows in one area for easy breeding, build a fenced pen or barn. A simple fenced enclosure with a gate will work well. Make sure to provide enough space for the cows to wander. About 20 block x 20 blocks is enough space for 10 cows.
Build your cow pen near your main base for easy access. Adding lighting, a roof, and flooring can help improve the practicality and appearance of your cow housing. Provide a water source for your cows like a pond or trough, which they’ll drink from periodically.
Harvesting Cow Resources
Once your cow farm is up and running, you’ll have a renewable supply of beef, leather, and milk. These valuable resources make breeding cows very worthwhile.
Beef
Killing an adult cow will drop 3-5 raw beef. This renewable meat can be cooked for restoring hunger. Set up a lava blade trap near your cow pen to automatically kill cows and collect the beef.
Leather
Killing cows also provides 1-3 leather, which is essential for books, item frames, armor, and more. A large cow farm can produce a sizable leather supply.
Milk
Right click on an adult cow with an empty bucket to milk the cow and receive a milk bucket, which can be drank or used for crafting recipes. Milk your cows daily since they’ll regenerate the milk.
Tips for Effective Cow Breeding
Follow these tips for success when breeding cows in Minecraft:
- Bring 2 cows close together into love mode for faster breeding.
- Feed cows wheat often to reduce the breeding cooldown.
- Use hay bales to instantly set cows into love mode.
- Make a contained pen to keep your cows nearby.
- Provide food, water, and lighting for optimum conditions.
- Harvest beef, leather, and milk from your cows.
- Cull older cows to make room for new babies.
Conclusion
Breeding cows is an essential farming activity in Minecraft. By locating cows, feeding them wheat and hay bales, and bringing them together in love mode, you can produce cute calf cows.
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House your cows near your base in a fenced pen and harvest their beef, leather, and milk. Following this easy guide, you’ll be an expert at growing your own cow farm in no time!
