Latest fromPets & Animals

Bug man to turn home into creature centre
Auckland bug man Brian Lawton shares his home with thousands of lizards, eels, exotic insects, rats, turtles and several tarantulas.

Unique way to immortalise pets
Auckland woman Andie Page is designing custom-made pet pillows for animal-loving Kiwis.

Support for SPCA's call to ban fireworks
The SPCA is renewing calls for a ban on the public sale of fireworks and launched a survey asking their animals' experience with fireworks.

Hunter who shot Pedals is given anonymity
The identity of the hunter who killed Pedals the bear with a crossbow will remain secret after the authorities in New Jersey refused to release it.

Snapped cats: Hilarious antics revealed
Cat owners share their playful pets quirkiest habits on Snapchat

The spider that nightmares are made of
A photo of an enormous Hunstman spider spotted in Queensland, Australia, is terrifying social media users.

Watch: Shark filmed swimming under surfers in Australian bay
Source: YouTube/Brosharsadventures. An American traveller has captured video of a shark casually swimming very close to surfers in Byron Bay.

Rare ice age elk antlers sold
Giant antlers discovered in an Irish bog and which have hung in a Kiwi hunting lodge are going under the hammer.

Watch: Extinct Irish Elk antlers up for auction
The Irish Elk died out in the Ice Age, about 11,000 years ago. The antlers and skull are quite remarkable, and extremely rare, especially for NZ. They have estimate of $8k to $15k.

'Get away from the f***ing boat'
WATCH: Curiosity turns into horror for two fisherman as a great white circles their boat.

Brutal beating: Puppy suffers 11 fractures
A puppy that endured massive swelling to its face and could not open its jaw following a beating is one of the cases included in this year's SPCA List of Shame.

No bones about bones
Warnings about feeding bones to pets are overblown - and outweighed by the beneficial effect on pets' teeth, according to pet food

Could this be the nature photo of 2016?
The 2016 National Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year competition wraps this Friday and the photographers are in the running for the coveted title

Angry kitty sends firefighter flying
A Wellington firefighter had to be winched from steep terrain after a cat took exception to being rescued from a macrocarpa tree.

Top 5 dog Halloween costumes
1. Hot-diggity-dog Take the Dachshund-as-hotdog costume to the next level by being the hotdog seller. Your sausage dog will be happy

Revealed: What your pets dream about
Ever wondered what features in your pet's dreams? A Harvard researcher has the answers.

Pets getting high as marijuana legalisation spreads
'The dog ate my brownie': Tasty "edibles" such as muffins and cookies that people consume for a buzz are also appealing to animals, who can't read warning labels.

Family upset after dog escapes pound and dies
The family of a much loved dog is devastated after it escaped from a high security dog pound and was found dead three days later near the Paraparaumu railway tracks.

Parrot's squawks reveal man's affair
A parrot's saucy words lead a woman to believe her husband was having an affair with their housemaid.

SPCA condemns calf mistreatment
The SPCA has condemned new hidden camera footage showing more mistreatment of bobby calves as deeply disturbing and inhumane.

Why laughing could be deadly for this kid
But her pet pooch Elmo could be the key to saving her life.

Watch: Orca gets close on North Island's Mahia coast
Source: Jane Tarrant / Facebook. Jane Tarrant had an unexpected close encounter near Mahia

Dog becomes online star from single pic
She's got style, she's got grace, she's also an Afghan hound who has more online fans than most internet celebrities.

Cat-in-cavity keeps firefighters busy
It wasn't quite the cat-up-a-tree cliche, but it was something near-enough that gave a Wellington fire crew a memorable call-out for the long weekend.

Four-legged pals lining up for canine massage
Massaging away aches and pains isn't only a treat for those with two legs, and the number of people getting their pooches professionally patted is growing.

Watch: Owners paying up to $85 per hour for dog massages
Dog owners are paying up to $85 an hour for massage therapy for their four-legged friends. Helen Morphew from Auckland Canine Massage speaks to the Herald about her job.

Prized pooches dine out on possum patties
Possum patties for pooches were on offer in Remuera yesterday, all in the name of protecting our native bird.

Can selfies with animals be a career?
Allan Dixon is parlaying a childhood spent taking videos and photos into a way of life.