Six much-loved pet lambs belonging to Wanganui school children were stolen at the weekend.

Spring is the perfect time to enjoy the conservation success story that is Tiritiri Matangi Island, finds Cate Foster.

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

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.

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.

The world's rarest whale - the spade-toothed beaked whale - has been sighted for the first time, according to University of Auckland scientists.

Motutapu Island is fast becoming a safe haven for rare native birds with the release yesterday of nine takahe on to the pest-free land.

A family cat cut into pieces and a carabiner threaded through the neck of a dog are among the most inhumane treatment of animals on the SPCA's annual list of shame.

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

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.

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

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

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.

Underground ferret breeders in NZ feed Japanese demand for the blacklisted animals.

Two ring-tailed lemur babies have been born to mother Yetta at Hamilton Zoo.