Staffing a Menagerie

The list of necessary helpers is extensive for mantaining a menagerie, and includes beaters, feeders, handlers, and herders. By her own efforts, a maga will only be able to manage a small number of magical beasts, depending on the amount of time she wishes to invest and the type of beast(s) in her menagerie. If she has larger aspirations, she needs help.

Each aspect of a menagerie needs someone to oversee it, supported by enough people to adequately complete the job. Consider that a medieval worker's scope is rather narrow, and managing livestock is a specialized field. Rarely will one man know how to manage every sort of animal. Most will specialize in the care necessary for a single breed. A small menagerie could have a person in charge of the grounds, another overseeing the hunt, a third in charge of feeding, and a fourth in charge of breeding. Much depends on the creatures involved. One man might be able to take care of a dozen magical dogs of different breeds, but perhaps only if all the dogs are hunting dogs and require the same diet and type of boarding. This same man might be at a loss when managing a lapdog. The larger the facility, the more diverse breeds involved, the larger the number of people needed to care for it all. Spe-