Academics fear for New Zealand's falling sea lion population after discovering a breed of sea lion was "rapidly" driven to extinction after human contact on the Chatham Islands in the 17th century.

New research into the complex links of the food chain suggest that the lovable mammals play a key role in managing carbon dioxide levels.

Source: Facebook/NRL A black cat appeared on the pitch during an NRL game between the Panthers and the Sharks.

Auckland sailor Paul Thompson can't always hear everything around him. That's where his cat comes in.

Everybody likes to rug up in winter - for some of us, the colder months make it much harder to leave the house and stay active. This

WATCH: America's favourite big-city big cats have welcomed five kittens to their crew.

A litter of 11 young puppies has been found soaking wet and cold on a pathway after being dumped in Porirua.

An exhibition in the Japanese capital is reinventing traditional aquariums of the Edo period

A Florida man has spotted what he believes to be an alligator in a tree.

A male southern white rhinoceros calf has been born at Hamilton Zoo. Arriving in late June after his mother's 16-month pregnancy, the calf brings the total number of white rhinos at Hamilton Zoo to six. The male calf joins his mother Kito, father Kruger, and females Imani, Moesha and her daughter Jamila.

Source: Facebook/Rojas Montecinos Evy While walking through Naples, Italy, a girl came across a snake that was attacking a mother rat and her baby, but in an act of love, the mother rat vehemently attacked back at the snake until it retreated away.

Rat takes on snake - and wins.

A puppy found abandoned in a rubbish bin in central Auckland has been put down today.

He was missing for 15 days, but he was determined to find his way home.

A pair of proud parents at the Australian Reptile Park, on the NSW central coast, have welcomed the arrival of five fuzzy and very cute dingo pups.

The appeal of small dogs needs little explanation: they make less mess, they're (mostly) easier to clean up after and, of course

They may fight like cat and dog, but adventurous pets Luigi and Bandito share a love of the great outdoors.

Dogs can cause sepsis in humans just by licking them, doctors have warned after an elderly British woman became critically ill.

A petrified peacock runner has been immortalised in a series of hilarious memes.

Pet owners are being warned to watch out for gin traps in the area after a cat suffered serious injuries when it became trapped in one.

The zoo has had hundreds of emails, tweets and Facebook comments, with a great range of names, resulting in the team having a tough job to pick only two of them.

She's a valued staff member at the funeral home where she works, and Lulu is always on hand to offer a paw to hold.

Not just any turtle could help these scientists determine why loggerhead sea turtles are dying. They recruited a dead one.

A petition to save Chip the puppy from being put down has more than 10,000 signatures, but Council claim the dog is sick.

River, the puppy saved by a Bay primary school student last year, has settled in with her rescuer's family and grown into a lovable, large dog.

Source: Auckland Zoo

Auckland Zoo needs your help to name two new arrivals - a pair of male capybara pups.

Apollo Taito is a sergeant in the NZ Army, an ambassador for animal rights organisation Safe and one of an estimated five Samoan vegans in the country.

A petition has been set up in an attempt to find a loving family for this dumped dog.