Our Animals

Chickens are not the best at self-regulating a nutritious diet.

Preventative action will keep livestock happy and healthy in peak summer.

It may be time to size up the differences between a pony and mini horse.

Poo can be a smelly problem but if you manage it well, it’s a beneficial addition to pasture and gardens.

Research shows a small dock population can do animals good.

Keep your animals happy and healthy all summer long.

Robert Jones and Angela Moon-Jones are bringing native butterflies back — one garden at a time.

You may love your poultry for their sweet natures, colourful looks, daily egg, and possibly meat, but they reliably produce another useful product too.

Your dog has that guilty look on their face and you know they've eaten something they shouldn't. Here are the 10 most common things that send a pet to the vet with a serious problem.

Are wild deer and cats pests? A new report says getting people to agree on what biodiversity is, and how to control pests is going to be critical if NZ is to be predator-free.

Her working life is dedicated to the glamour and romance of weddings, but another job has stolen Lisa Charteris' heart.

The parties and chaos over summer are a lot of fun, but also include tempting danger foods for your pets.

Some tasks are non-negotiable as temperatures begin to soar.

Psychology can be your best friend when dealing with an aggressive rooster.

Free-ranging heritage-breed pigs are intelligent, companionable, productive and very, very tasty.

Researchers hope to find native birds with an appetite for insect pests.

Roosters are the most beautiful of the poultry world, but they are the most trouble too.

Geese are NZ Lifestyle Block editor Nadene Hall's favourite birds, and she doesn’t know why.

The essential equipment you will need and how to find it.

With summer just around the corner, it's time to prepare your land and animals for warmer weather.

Poultry have some habits when it comes to their love life.

Responsible for millions of bees, 26-year-old Steph Munro of Southland's Munro Honey now combines her design skills with the sweeter side of life.

Eastern rockhopper penguins might be declining in number, but they’re no less loved by  thisNZlife. The cute characters are our top pick for Forest & Bird’s Bird of the Year competition and your kids can play along with this easy-to-make dress-up mask.

Goats grazing pasture generally don’t develop immunity to parasites in the same way as adult cattle and sheep. While there’s little research available, Wormwise report industry feedback is that drench resistance on goat farms is widespread and severe.

Get the most out of your homegrown pork by rendering excess fat into useable lard.

The NZ dairy sheep industry is small, but dedicated artisan cheesemakers and one of NZ’s biggest farming operations are working to turn this niche into big business.

One of the biggest problems facing farms of all sizes is drench resistance, and one of the answers is to stop drenching.

This isn't your average bird-watching. From the Hauraki Gulf to Stewart Island, there are plenty of seabirds to be seen splashing around.

It’s easy to malign pests, but they’re not malicious. Think before spraying them and adopt an attitude of gratitude to the many beneficial insects that feed on the nasties that attack the garden.

How to avoid supporting a puppy farm.

It took some persuading to get this humble Northland farmer to enter her sheep cheese in the NZ Champions of Cheese Awards.

Raising plants from seed is a cost-effective way of planting out a garden.

If you’re caught short with a sick chicken, a home remedy may help.

At 17, Nik Hurring took New Zealand's most accident-prone bird under her wing. She has been rescuing kererū ever since.