Latest fromPets & Animals

Fears for deer after 1080 drop
Volunteers have gone into South Island back country looking for white-tailed deer which may have been killed by a Department of Conservation 1080 poison drop.

$146,000 for Otago skinks is money well spent - Nick Smith
Skinks might not be as ''sexy'' as other endangered wildlife but giving $146,000 to support the work of a community group focusing on boosting the Otago skink population is money well spent, Conservation Minister Nick Smith says.

Sliced squid with a side of science
Scientists yesterday discovered the eyes were 35cm wide, at least 8cm bigger than the last one.

Scientists uncover monster squid's secrets
New Zealand scientists hope to discover what makes 350kg deep sea beast tick. Watch a live stream of the examination.

Let's p...p...pick up the pace
Fiordland crested penguin Munro is making the most of the spring sunshine.

Kiwi scientists to examine intact colossal squid
Scientists will soon examine an intact colossal squid for the first time in six years.

Dogs know rules of life
Man's best friend is more closely aligned to humans than many dog owners may realise.

It's a dog's life on holiday
Hotels are now offering special packages for pampered pooches, writes Sarah Marshall.

Cheek to beak dates with kiwis
Ever wanted to meet a kiwi up close? Auckland Zoo is offering a chance to do just that with a behind-the-scenes kiwi experience.

Sue Kedgley: Animals deserve vote of support
There's been a proliferation of pre-election political panels in the run-up to this election - more than I can remember, which is a healthy sign in our democracy.

Shark attack victim joked about risks
The man killed by a shark at Byron Bay in New South Wales joked with his parents during their last conversation about the risk sharks posed.

NZ's war on predators commemorated
The start of a war will be commemorated this week -- one waged not on foreign battlefields, but across our own offshore islands.

Shark joke before attack
British ex-pat Paul Wilcox joked with his step-father: "I always wear a wetsuit and I use a lot of sun lotion. The sun's not the problem, the sharks are.”

Shark 'came back and had another go'
Horrified swimmers describe seeing a huge shark in Australian waters after man killed in front of them.

Best animals on Instagram
There are oodles of adorable animals making a mark on our Instagram account, Nicky Park has picked the eight that you need to be following.

Centipede on a plane
Passengers on a flight to New Zealand got a scare when a large centipede scuttled up the leg of a first class passenger.

Father faces court after his pitbull mauls son
The father of a boy seriously injured in a dog attack has been charged as a result of the incident.

Dingo handler heals animosity
In a strange twist to an already bizarre tale, the half-sister of a baby girl killed when she was snatched by dingoes in Australia has become an advocate for the very animals that took her.

Meet my hairiest Friend
Michael Wheeler cannot imagine a life of independence without Friend - he pushes open doors, picks up fallen pencils and even fetches Michael's lunch from the refrigerator for him.

Kiwi bird hatched after 78 days of incubation
Tuatahi, meaning first in Maori, hatched at Kiwi Encounter at Rainbow Springs in Rotorua, on Thursday.

Lemurs join the Wellington Zoo family
If you want to experience a close encounter with a lemur, you can now skip a trip to Madagascar and go straight to Wellington Zoo.

How big is a Dreadnought?
Weighing more than seven Tyrannosaurus rex, or a modern Boeing 737, and longer than a swimming pool, a newly discovered species of dinosaur would have "feared nothing" scientists say.

Claws sharpened over felines
Crouch, touch, paws, engage. Outspoken anti-cat campaigner Gareth Morgan will this month meet his match in the founder of America's huge no-kill movement, Rich Avanzino.

Low-emission sheep? We're a step closer
The world is a step closer to a low-emission sheep, thanks to leading work by Kiwi and US researchers.

Egg on face after relocation goes wrong
They were meant to relocate a blackbird's nest and eggs from a central Dunedin traffic light. Instead the contractors dropped the eggs.