Latest from Pets & Animals

Courts taking animal abuse lightly

Parliament provided a clear direction to the judiciary when it unanimously increased penalties for animal cruelty in 2010, writes Catriona MacLennan.

Woman hospitalised after falling from horse

Zoo races to save wild orangutans

Renewed calls to end greyhound racing

Quake-affected dog poisoned

A Christchurch dog owner who poisoned his quake-affected pet with insecticide after it attacked his grandson has been banned from owning animals for five years.

Website to get tails wagging

Animal-loving science students design network to bring pets and their owners together.

Rachel steals eggs (for a good cause)

Ditching the high heels for gumboots, Rachel Hunter spent a night creeping through the bush to bring a kiwi egg to Kiwi Encounter.

Albatrosses under increasing threat

Endangered albatrosses which nest in New Zealand are under increasing threat as they compete with commercial fishing operations in the same waters, University of Canterbury researcher Lorna Deppe says.

Dog shot during home invasion

A dog has been shot in a violent home invasion in the Auckland suburb of Mt Roskill early this morning.

Penguins find safe haven in cosy cove

Had they remained in the wild, Elmo, Gonzo, Lulu and Gordon would have been long gone.

Decline of kea threatens alpine plants

The decline of the kea, the world's only alpine parrot species, could spell the end of 12 per cent of New Zealand's alpine plants, researchers say.

Kiwi fights to save abused orca

A Kiw orca expert is hoping shocking evidence of a captive orca's injuries will persuade a Dutch court to set it free.

Main street dog ban after vicious attack

Dogs have been banned from Kaikohe's main street following a series of complaints about people walking intimidating dogs down Broadway.

Meat boom fuels prices for best genes

Island's conservation scare

Sniffer dogs were used to check predator-free islands off Northland's coast after a boat broke a mooring and drifted onto rocks, sparking a conservation scare.

Angry birds attack power workers