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Animals

Animals
The latest news, analysis and opinion on Animals. In-depth analysis, industry insights and expert opinion.
last updated:
9 September, 2024
A resident of an old people’s home pats Calypso, a miniature horse used for therapy programmes, in Athens, Greece. Photo: AP
Wellness

Pet therapy charity’s miniature horses bring joy to young, old and sick

Miniature horses offer therapy to Greek special needs children, old people and psychiatric patients, but charity providing them needs help.

United States

‘This was shocking’: the secret, brutal world of carnivorous squirrels

Malaysia

Gruesome deaths of cats at Malaysian campus spark outrage from animal lovers

Books and literature

Hong Kong ‘snake bible’ author on why you should learn to fear them less

The coming Year of the Snake is a great time to learn more about them, says Adam Francis, an enthusiast for the reptiles and for Hong Kong.

A Burmese python, the apex snake species in Hong Kong. Photo: Adam Francis
Wellness

Snake gut secrets unlocked by new study may help treat human diseases

Research on how pythons regenerate their guts may open door to treatment for Crohn’s and coeliac diseases, colorectal cancer, even diabetes.

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United States

New York man finds mastodon jaw while gardening in backyard

Mastodons, which were distant cousins of mammoths and modern-day elephants, went extinct around 13,000 years ago.

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United States

US hunters chase bear up tree, one shoots him, bear falls, killing one

Shot bear fell and struck a man who had been standing about 3 metres from the bottom of the tree.

A black bear in tree. File photo: Shutterstock
New Zealand

Aggressive Japanese shrimp that packs a punch shocks New Zealand

The discovery of Japanese mantis shrimp – nicknamed ‘thumb splitters’ – in the Bay of Plenty ‘is not something to celebrate’, officials say.

Indonesia

Bali Zoo mourns death of ‘friendly’ elephant swept away by river current

Molly was in the river during a routine exercise when the current suddenly increased due to heavy rain upstream.

Hong Kong society

Hong Kong police investigating after dogs owned by ex-beauty queen poisoned

Lisa-Marie Tse says ‘disgusting’ person left chicken and sausages laced with neurotoxins on plate on road where she walked her dogs.

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Lisa-Marie Tse with her dogs (from left) Peachy, Summer and Leo. Photo: Instagram/lisamarie_tse
Architecture and design

Language Matters | When we say panda, we think big, black and white, not small and red. Why?

‘Panda’, probably of Tibetan origin, was first applied to the red panda. Say it now and it’s taken to mean the black-and-white giant panda.

An An, one of two giant pandas gifted to Hong Kong in 2024. Photo: Robert Ng
New Zealand

New Zealand moves to ban greyhound racing

New Zealand is one of only five countries where commercial greyhound racing is still allowed.

Trending in China

China half-marathon offers unique prizes including cow, wild fish, chickens

In past year, China held 622 marathons and half marathons, averaging nearly two daily, highlighting rising commitment to health.

Pakistan

Sonia the elephant dies days after reunion with sister in Pakistan

Sonia was separated from her sister Madhubala almost 15 years ago. She died of apparent heart failure following their reunion.

Elephants are seen at the safari park in Karachi, Pakistan, on Sunday. Photo: AP
Nepal

Nepal’s ‘barbaric’ animal sacrifice ritual persists despite outcry

Activists estimate as many as 500,000 animals will be sacrificed at Nepal’s Gadhimai Temple this week to honour the Hindu goddess of power.

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A Hindu devotee prepares to slaughter buffalos as a offering during the 2019 Gadhimai Festival in Bariyarpur, Nepal. Photo: AFP
Conservation

World’s oldest-known wild bird lays an egg in Hawaii at age 74

Laysan albatrosses mate for life, but Wisdom appears to have found a new partner after her previous one went missing.

Hong Kong society

Letters | Pet-friendly bus route should prompt owners to obey rules

Readers discuss responsible pet ownership, the benefits of easing the path to tax residency in Hong Kong, and Russia’s rationale for attacking Ukraine.

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Hong Kong’s pandas

Panda Watch: Hong Kong’s twin cubs weigh 40 times more than at birth

‘Elder Sister’ has gone from just 122 grams to 5.3kg, while ‘Younger Brother’ tips the scale at 5.5kg from 112 grams.

Hong Kong’s panda cubs. Photo: Instagram/pandahk_official
Mental health

Puppy love as Czech prison inmates train assistance dogs

The training is part of a project to help inmates at the Jirice prison northeast of Prague be better prepared for life outside jail.

Hong Kong

The giant pandas in Hong Kong before An An and Ke Ke

The latest panda craze is not the city’s first, far from it – Le Le and Ying Ying made their Hong Kong debut in 2007.

Architecture and design

Those ‘lucky cat’ figures? They’re not what you think

Numerous myths surround the maneki neko, but one thing is certain: these wealth-magnet felines are of Japanese origin, not Chinese.

Cat figurines, called maneki neko, on display at Tokyo’s Gotokuji Temple. Photo: X
New Zealand

New Zealand finds bird flu case at egg farm, suspends poultry exports

Tests at the free-range farm identified ‘a high pathogenic H7N6 subtype of avian influenza’, officials said.

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Chickens at a poultry farm. Concerns about bird flu have risen as the H5N1 strain of the virus has spread throughout US poultry and dairy farms. Photo: EPA-EFE
New Zealand

‘Remarkable’: New Zealand scientists dissect world’s rarest whale

The week-long dissection offers a unique opportunity to study a deep-sea mammal that has never been seen alive.

Hong Kong society

Letters | Hong Kong should normalise HIV tests in fight against Aids

Readers discuss the need for a range of Aids prevention strategies, equal access to healthcare, promising signs for local cinema, and an aquarium’s unorthodox attempt to cut costs.

The New Zealand Herald

Sheep sacked after 55 years as New Zealand golf course turns to fairway mowers

The club made the call when faced with a US$15k bill to replace 125 ewes, and to attract younger members unhappy to deal with ‘animal crap’.

A general view of the course and some of the workers at Tahuna Golf Club, about 120 kilometres south of Auckland in the Waikato region. Photo: Facebook/@Tahuna Golf Club
Singapore

Singapore jails helper who hung up dog in balcony and beat it to death

The woman, acting on her boss’ instructions, repeatedly hit the poodle with a rod-like object and hung it from a balcony railing.

Prosecutors said the pet poodle died as a result of the repeated beatings received from the helper. Photo: Shutterstock
Hong Kong society

Hong Kong to slash quarantine for cats and dogs from Macau from 120 days to 30

Discussions continuing with mainland authorities over inclusion on the same quarantine arrangements list as Macau.

Disease

Are pigeons really ‘rats with wings’ or merely misunderstood?

A vet reveals why urban pigeons don’t carry as many diseases as we think, their origin and how to stop them breeding in your roof.

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