These Pioneer Trail Animal Mastery requirements look a tad ... crazy

Seriously, do you think you're going to tend to ... over 18,170 Badgers anytime soon? We didn't think so. Zynga recently released Animal Mastery to The Pioneer Trail in a big way. The new game component has its very own feature window and a complete set of lofty, challenging Goals.

However, what we didn't know was exactly how many of each animal we'd have to tend to before reaching Mastery milestones. Until now.

Thanks to FrontierVille Info, we now know how many times we'll be a tendin' to these creatures, and it's a lot. Like, in the tens of thousands "a lot." Check it out below along with the animal rewards that await you:

Sheep
Sheep Mastery
Sheep Journeyman: Tend 270 Sheep. Reward: 1,000 XP and Moflon Sheep
Sheep Expert: Tend 1090 Sheep. Reward: 2,000 XP Golden Sheep
Sheep Master: Tend 3,450 Sheep. Reward: 3,000 XP, Sheep Mastery Sign and Ram

Cows
Cow Mastery
Cow Journeyman: Tend 1,200 Cows. Reward: 1,000 XP and Belted Cow
Cow Expert: Tend 4,839 Cows. Reward: 2,000 XP and Holstein Cow
Cow Master: Tend 15,500 Cows. Reward: 3,000 XP and Big Buff Bull

Pigs
Pig Mastery
Pig Journeyman: Tend 750 Pigs. Reward: 1,000 XP and Spotted Pig
Pig Expert: Tend 2,950 Pigs. Reward: 2,000 XP and Giant Hog
Pig Master: 8,450 Pigs. Reward: 3,000 XP and Boar

Chicken
Chicken Mastery
Chicken Journeyman: Tend 80 chicken. Reward: 1,000 XP and Rhode Island Red
Chicken Expert: Tend 340 chicken. Reward: 2,000 XP and Speckled Sussex
Chicken Master: Tend 9450 chicken. Reward: 3,000 XP, Chicken Mastery Sign and Rooster

Moose
Moose Mastery
Moose Journeyman: Tend 190 Moose. Reward: 1,000 XP and Black Moose
Moose Expert: Tend 6,000 Moose. Reward: 2,000 XP and Red Moose
Moose Master: Tend 18,000 Moose. 3,000 XP and Elk

Badgers
Badger Mastery
Badger Journeyman: Tend 1,700 Badgers. Reward: 1,000 XP and Golden Badger
Badger Expert: Tend 5,900 Badgers. Reward: 2000 XP and Honey Badger
Badger Master: Tend 18,170 Badgers: Reward: 3000 XP and Red Panda

The rewards for each of these Mastery endeavors also unlocks those animals in the Market on your homestead. Regardless, I don't know that makes tending to over 18,000 Badgers any more worth the effort. FrontierVille Info hopes that some of these numbers get bumped down, while we just hope those new animals are made attainable at least by the end of 2011.

[Image Credit: FrontierVille Info]

What do you think of these requirements for Animal Mastery in Pioneer Trail? Do you plan on going for these rewards regardless of how daunting the tasks look?