A Northland bird rescuer and advocate is urging dog owners to take more care of their pets after a kiwi was lucky to survive being mauled near Kerikeri.
Robert Webb, of the Whangārei Native Bird Recovery Centre, is angry after a woman took her dog for a walk off the leash near Kerikeri and it ran into bush and grabbed the kiwi.
The bird had been taken to DoC offices in Kerikeri by the owner of the dog that mauled it.
Webb said the woman had taken her dog for a walk on a track near Kerikeri when the dog, which was not on its leash, ran into a bush grabbed the kiwi and came out with it, while mauling the bird.
The woman rescued the kiwi from the dog and took it to DoC.