A complicated cat rescue at a Mosgiel arts and crafts shop has ended with the shop's lock picked and holes bored into its wall.

From just plain weird to outright dangerous, going beyond a healthy enthusiasm for pets and animals brings some interesting results.

The northern white rhino is heading the way of the dinosaurs. With only five left on Earth extinction is now inevitable.

Two new dogs have joined the team at border control to help prevent the spread of the Queensland fruit fly. They join a growing team of canines around Auckland in charge of pest control. Michael Craig captured some of them in action.

A family dog reportedly stabbed during a burglary was actually injured while fighting another dog, police say.

An unusual white-coloured kingfisher is on the mend after headbutting the window of a Whangarei home by mistake.

Authorities are investigating a photo of thin jersey cows being transported across Cook Strait to slaughter, which caused outrage after being shared on Facebook.

Follow Anjalee's journey to Niue, where she will be quarantined for a 90-day period, in photos.

A filter-feeding ''lobster'' as big as a human took the place of whales 480 million years ago, a new fossil find has shown.

Animal behaviour expert Sally Hibbard investigates dog attacks and delves in to the debate of nature versus nurture.

The genteel world of Crufts has been rocked by a murder mystery which has seen one dog apparently killed and two others taken ill in suspected poisonings.

Famed dog show blighted by accusations of poisoning by jealous contender after Irish Setter dies in mysterious circumstances.

The claws were out and the competition catty as pampered moggies strutted their stuff in West Auckland yesterday.

A miniature horse has been burnt after someone poured petrol on to its cover while the owners slept.

Doggie gumbo, puppy paella, red velvet pupcakes and icy pole bones are a sample of the quirky-named treats in a cookbook created especially for dogs.

Outraged pet lovers have launched a fundraising drive for a cat shot with an arrow.

Spider venom may contain a long-sought secret ingredient for an effective, long-term painkiller, Australian researchers say.

Forget #thedress; today it's all about an incredible shot of a weasel riding a woodpecker and the clever memes it has spawned.

A police officer who was savagely attacked by a pitbull while on duty yesterday says he went into survival mode while the dog chewed at his body.

A man will appear in court today after a police officer suffered numerous bite wounds to his head and cuts from a pitbull dog in Foxton yesterday.

Thanks to people like Gina Schick, visions of former champion horses being trucked off to pet food factories are proving false.

A policeman suffered numerous bite wounds to his head and cuts to his face in an "appalling" unprovoked attack by a man's pitbull dog in Foxton yesterday.

Dogs are humanity's oldest friends, renowned for their loyalty and abilities to guard, hunt and chase.

Guests at Robert Mugabe's million-dollar birthday party were fed a young elephant, while a lion and a crocodile were also sacrificed as gifts to be stuffed.

A devastated dog owner says he has himself to blame for the canine's slaying of a protected fur seal.

The last thing paddler Jackie Dring expected on her afternoon paddle across Auckland's Rangitoto Channel was to pick up a passenger.

Pascale Sperling, 13, is heading to Britain to compete in the world's top dog show: Crufts.