VereeshI have set up my ranch in #NMS, and it's so cool. Very much what I wanted. It's so fun to watch the milk go flying from the animals to the collector. The automated feeder doesn't use up the creature pellets quickly at all. I'm not sure it even decreases with each individual animal. You do need to remain on base while you're collecting, but as long as you do, animals keep gathering and the products keep piling up in the Livestock Unit. #NoMansSkyCommunity
You can safely go AFK, but if you take your character away, the animals will all wander off, and it's not easy to get them back. I was able to attract them back by removing and then restoring the feed. It wasn't immediate, but they did return.