A question about farming..

[Cryght 1]

I've been playing for a bit to start out managed to push 2 cows, 2 sheep into a holding pen till i get to grow and harvest wheat.. but i noticed sumthing weird... my sheep are taller then my cows, and the cows seem to have shrunk... the biome im in the grass also is weird its not like grass im normally seen in minecraft its like mossy dirt? like cobblestone grass looking textures... Do i need to relocate to a more green area to have animals?

[Temujen 31]

Not sure if lack of grass causes shrinkage, but greener areas are probably a good idea.

From what I've seen, the mossy dirt you're describing means little-to-no rainfall area. Crops will suffer for sure. Shortage of grass may mean your critters drop eventually as well. I try not to use it since the indicators are there once you learn what to look for (green grass, green trees, rain/snow), but you can hit F3 and rainfall is on the debug screen there.

Temperature is harder to judge (also on your f3 screen), but important for crops. If it's snowing and not winter, you're probably too far north for much to grow.

[transcengopher 349]

Animals require grass to eat. I think - and don't quote me on it - that rainfall value affects how fast the grass spreads back to dirt.

Now, to get rid of this exact dry grass texture you can place some water nearby, but I'm not sure if it will affect grass spread in any way.