Hi! I'm a newbie: I've had this account for a bit but never actually used it, so I'm very excited to start playing. :D

What are some things to do that would help get a good start in the game?

Welcome to BeastKeeper!

A bit of advice is to check the item trades for cheap building materials, which will come in handy as you are crafting and upgrading new buildings. Make sure to do Quests daily to get some quick silver. 

If you have any other questions, feel free to ask me!

@Tiger_Claw

Will for sure go take a look at item trades! As for questions: how do I get started with quests? Is it just a matter of getting pets with the right stats?

Yup! For example, some might ask for a gold cockatrice, or a pet with a strength stat of above 75,etc. It's a bit difficult to find a pet that meets these requirements right off the bat, but as you collect more pets you will be able to complete more quests. Every day  there should be at least one quest that has a basic requirement, or asks for any pet in general, so those should be easy to do.

@SamShireWolf, if you need help with the quests, I can lend you some of mine. :)