Our Animals

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.

Their small farm and its small livestock are the perfect size for a Northland dairy farming couple.

Colostrum is essential for newborn calves, very beneficial to humans, and – as Sheryn has discovered – simple to cook and delicious to eat.

Don't bee ill-prepared for these powerful pollinators.

A Taranaki gardener has found there are some growing opportunities in the $1.5 billion pet health business.

It's time to prepare for lambing and calving season.

Discovering that bumblebees live in underground burrows sent the Bay of Plenty’s Rachel Weston on a hunt for knowledge. What she discovered is revealed in her first book.

It's only natural to want to spoil your flock, but know that not all treats are created equal.

With spring just around the corner, it's time to get the paddock in check.

How do you find a good breeder? How do you feed chicks that will become layers? Is your rooster shooting blanks? NZ Lifestyle Block editor Nadene Hall and poultry expert Sue Clarke answer your questions.

You can use lights to extend your hen’s working year. We look at how to design a lighting programme that can give you more eggs without harming your hens.

She’s famous as one of NZ’s most popular romance writers, but Danielle Hawkins' other job is always calling her. Sometimes, from the washing basket in the living room.