When Kaley Cuoco gave birth to daughter Matilda with her partner, actor Tom Pelphrey, she knew she had to immediately acclimate her to animals.

“Yeah, I said, ‘Matilda, if you don’t like animals, I’m sending you back. This is what’s going to happen,’ ” jokes the actress, 38 in this week’s issue . “Luckily, one of her first words was dog, so it was mama, dada, dog, so that was a really good sign.”

Among the menagerie at Cuoco’s ranch in Thousand Oaks, northwest of Los Angeles, are horses, donkeys, chickens, goats, cows and pigs.

All are now family for the Based on a True Story star, who bought the property about six years ago and built everything from the ground up, including a petting zoo and contemporary chandeliers for the vast barn.

“Obviously I rescue dogs, and everyone knows that about me, but I’ve really expanded to farm animals and even Thoroughbreds and horses off the track,” says the Oh Norman! co-founder. “Really anything with four legs is welcome here. We don’t turn anyone away. It’s become this magical place.”

As for Matilda, “I have been bringing her out here since she was three weeks old,” she adds. “I’ve introduced her to every single horse. She has a pony here that is waiting for her when she is big enough to ride. But no matter if she ends up riding or not, it’s a great place for a kid to learn responsibility, having chores, taking care of the animals and seeing how they live together.”

In turn, the animals love Matilda as well.

“I have video of us, even in the little animal area with them, all the goats coming up to her, and every animal has kissed her and licked her,” Cuoco says, laughing. “And I was like, this is a good thing. She’s already getting germ-free. I’m like, let’s just get it all.”

From playing catch with her father to someday teaching her daughter to ride, the Flight Attendant star never takes a day at the ranch for granted.

“We sit outside and just look at the view and have a glass of wine, and then it’s 8 p.m. because there’s no time here,” Cuoco adds. “This was my dream.”